First, let me say that I am glad that the new nickelodeons are at least
arousing the public's interest in the old time player type pianos.

I am somewhat of an avid collector of the older original nickelodeons
and have gone to great lengths to obtain some original pianos.  I have
seen the new kits put into older pianos at auction and at one time a
NAMM trade show in California.  I believe Ken Caulkins is responsible
for making 99% of the newer ones I have seen.

I am upset that auctioneers have been going around the country holding
estate sales with new merchandise representing it as original antiques.
Dateline I think ran a story on this deceptive practice two weeks ago.
Unfortunately two local families each bought one of these new nickelodeons.
They were under the impression they had bought rare original nickelodeons.
In one sense they did buy antique pianos but not rare original antiques.

Ken should be complimented only that he has aroused some public interest
and in no way should Ken be held responsible for the auctions his pianos
are showing up in representing these pianos as rare original antiques.

I had the "privilege" of going to one of the homes that now houses one
of these pianos.  It does not work well and has turned the new owners
against these types of pianos since they can not find anyone willing to
work on their new prize.  They are full of plastic parts that would be
difficult to restore.  When these pianos are playing to their fullest
capabilities they do not represent what a good original can do musically.
I have not seen any of the newer nickelodeons compare to an original.

I realize that many of the original nickelodeons are priced out of reach
for many and hard to find.  I spent fifteen years wanting a Wurlitzer
Pianino before I was able to afford one and find one.  I am thrilled to
say the least that I finally have one.  I first saw a Coinola style X
some twenty years before I was able to locate and buy mine.  I have
since seen them advertised for almost half what I paid for mine.  It
does not matter since I bought it for myself to enjoy and not resale
at a profit.

I have several pianos that I believe I would lose money one if I tried
to sell them today.  I got off the subject only to let ya'll know that
I  am truly an avid collector.  If someone wants to enjoy the music of
an original nickelodeon and can not find one then at the very least copy
an original one.  A good copy would certainly bring more musical enjoyment
to the owner.  The homemade nickelodeons usually have the drums to loud
and a poor balance of volume between the different instruments in my opinion.

In the Reblitz-Bowers book known as Treasures of Mechanical Music there
is a section devoted to homemade nickelodeons and the types of rolls one
could use.  Unfortunately when Art was writing this chapter he did not
consult me.  We have spoken on several occasions about his critical
comments on the "O" roll.  These comments were spurred from his having
listened to many homemade machines using this great roll.  Most of these
rolls were made by Capital Roll company and have outstanding arrangements.

Clark roll company also made some "O" rolls and these are quite scarce.
I have often wondered why player restorers that have the capability to
make a homemade nickelodeon did not make more of Foto-player type
instrument.  I have often wished I had the time to do this to an old
pump type player so I could have thousands of tunes available.  I would
also be able to control all the instruments such as pipes, xylophones,
triangle, drums, etc.  I would think that this would be a lot of fun
for the person who has always wanted a player piano with a little extra.

It would be easy to start by building an "A" roll piano with an extra
instrument.  These have always been a favorite of mine and produce a
lot of music. You could then change this machine to a "G" roll
nickelodeon easily and then build another.  Before to long you could
be building Seeburg "H" reproductions or something bigger.  Dave Ramey
a very well known restorer of Nickelodeons has built several Seeburg H's
and they sound good.  Some of the restorers have build Seeburg "G's".

So the bottom line is that if you want a nickelodeon to sound the way
it should, then spend a little extra time and copy an original one.
There are more of them around than you might think.  Join the MBSI or
AMICA and go to the meetings.  These clubs have a newsletter with
advertisements in them with people selling all kinds of player pianos
and music boxes.  Who knows you might just learn that your musical life
is incomplete without a nickelodeon.  I do not have any of these for sale.

Don Teach
Shreveport Music Co
1610 E. Bert Kouns
Shreveport,  LA  71105
dat-smc@juno.com