I decided to open up the concertina while listening to This American Life to see if I could fix it. Well, the wooden reed post (I'm not sure what the parts are actually called, so bear with me) on the one side was standing upright--hence the reason why the concertina would not close all the way--and there were a couple reeds loose, but that was it. I glued in the loose reeds, and replaced the reed post in its proper place, then put the top back on. The side that wasn't loose actually plays now, and I'll wait a bit for the glue to dry to try the other side before I try it. All the reeds did work, though, so my simple fix should work just fine.
I didn't even have to take it apart all the way, which is good! If the other side works, then it was worth the $10 risk of ending up with something to decorate a shelf with. :)
I think the concertina was either dropped or left out in the sun and the glue softened enough to make the reed post come loose. I'm just surprised the bellows are in good shape after all of that!
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