I got myself a vintage Hohner Black Dot Double Ray Deluxe B/C box off ebay...it's not a new one, as it was made in Germany and not China. The previous owner already had someone remove the extremely wet stock tuning, so the box already has a nice tone. But I'm not happy yet...here are some photos:
![Image](http://img686.imageshack.us/img686/8883/cimg4291f.th.jpg)
![Image](http://img121.imageshack.us/img121/750/cimg4292w.th.jpg)
![Image](http://img3.imageshack.us/img3/3323/cimg4293fz.th.jpg)
![Image](http://img140.imageshack.us/img140/7821/cimg4294.th.jpg)
As you might have noticed, the box features two big golden swastikas. I really have absolutely no idea why they're there, maybe Hohner wanted to make clear this way that the box was german-made...but it most certainly wasn't made in the 30s or 40s. Really, no clue what that should tell me. Anyway, I'm planning to rip the red perloid foil off the box completely as it is just a little bit too much for my eyes, so the swastikas will vanish, too. I don't know what awaits me under the foil, so if the wood looks nice, I might just leave it as it is and add some clear varnish. I'm also thinking about a sturdy matte black finish with gold or silver accents. The grill is pretty thin and doesn't look very cool. I will probably make a new one from some kind of metal, maybe stainless steel, aluminum or german silver. Will be a lot of work, but why not...I'm also planning to remove the original red perloid keyboard grill, as it is a solid piece of plastic. A metal grill will look nice here, too. As the buttons are going deep into the keyboard, I'm planning to add some kind of rubber padding under the buttons to improve snappiness and reduce action. And the buttons look old and dirty, so I might look into getting/making new ones.
We'll see how it turns out...I have a fully equipped flute-making workshop, so I'll probably be able to use some of the tools I have for the work. But the metalwork will be tricky...I'll keep you updated if you like.
Ah, if anyone has hints or thoughts that might help a new B/C box player to get started, that would be most appreciated. I can knock out a tune or two already (have been playing the concertina a bit), but a few hints regarding technique or tunes that fall nicely onto the keyboard would be great.
Cheers,
Gabriel