MAKING AN ORCHESTRION                                                     PART 8

 As we told you in Part 7, we put the top shelf back in the piano and after getting the test roll in place, discovered a time consuming result of POOR PLANNING.   

We connected the tracker bar, but without considering that the roll drive works from the back side of the paper.   Thus we have the whole tracker bar tubing reversed side to side.   This means that we have to take the shelf out and retube the whole tracker bar.   Not a technically difficult job, but time consuming and very embarrassing.  

                                        TOM THUMB REPAIR                                                PART 6

As 2017 progressed, the Tom Thumb Player Piano lost it's enthusiasm and by the time we closed for the season, it was ready for some help.

You will remember when we took the pumps out to check them, we found a piece of a piano action in the bottom of the case.    Well it is time to fix that.   In order to do so, the piano action has to be removed and in order to get to it, the player piano roll drive section has to come out.;

With the roll drive out, the piano action can be removed for the needed repair.   The rest of the key striking mechanism is removed and the unglued part can be glued back in place.

Then the parts are reassembled and a few other checks are made and the piano action is reinstalled in the piano.

                                                      TOM THUMB REPAIR                    PART 5

As 2017 progressed, the Tom Thumb Player Piano lost it's enthusiasm and by the time we closed for the season, it was ready for some help.

Well, we have all the pump sections checked and repaired as necessary.

The gaskets are glued where the joints come, replacing the silicon sealer used in the last repair.   This is a more conventional method, but will probably not seal any better.   It will however make the job easier for the next person

After the dry fit and repair of a few stripped screws, the pump is reassembled and ready for putting on the auxiliary control parts.

                                                  Making an Orchestrion     Part 4


The piano we chose for this project is a 1909 Weber.   Having rebuilt the stack and getting it properly fitted in the case, the next issue is placing the other items and instruments.

We have placed all the pieces on the shelf and think this will work out, subject to finding that we have to readjust due to unforeseen problems in the future.

Based on the hope this will work, we have run the valves to the manifolds on the deck and have started tubing the tracker bar for this configuration.

We have not yet found a home for the triangle.

                                                          MAKING AN ORCHESTRION 
                                                                                PART 3


The piano we chose for this project is a 1909 Weber.   Having rebuilt the stack and having gotten it properly fitted in the case, the next issue is placing the other items and instruments.

We think this will be the way the top shelf will be arranged.   The wood block in the form of a pecking bird goes on the left.   The bass drum goes next, then the roll drive and last is the tambouring and snare drum combination.

The xylophone goes in the bottom and there is not much room left for anything else.   We have not yet found a home for the triangle.

                                                    MAKING AN ORCHESTRION
                                                                      PART 2


The piano we chose for this project is a 1909 Weber.   Having rebuilt the stack and having gotten it properly fitted in the case, the next issue is replacing the other items and instruments.

The roll drive has to go on the top of the stack, but how we place the other items is more flexible.   We have a tambourine, triangle, a wood block in the form of a bird, bass drum, soft pedal pneumatic and mandolin rails & its pneumatic.    The xylophone fills the bottom of the case, so not much room is left there.

It will take some time to sort this all out.