Birmingham University,

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Re-leathering the Bellows.

Nine of the Ten bellows and reservoirs in the organ were constructed as part of the
building frame. This meant
they had to be re-leathered in position.
All of the old perished leather was removed, and the surfaces cleaned. The internal leather hinges on all wooded ribs were replaced first to keep the shape and integrity of the bellows. With this done we moved onto the external hinges on the ribs. Next each corner was attended to. Every corner is made up of 5 shapes of leather. Accurate cutting makes for easy gluing, and a smooth tidy job.
The first piece of leather is a diamond shape that covers most of the corner. The next 2 pieces are more or less half circles, and these go top and bottom to give strength and stability. The final 2 pieces are fitted into the edges of the diamond to ensure no leakage along the centre rib.