[ Editor's note:
 [
 [ What follows are two messages sentfrom Andy Taylor 10 days
 [ apart about his Ragtime nickelodeon "kit".  You may remember that
 [ rather than paying cash, Andy traded a 1927 Chevy truck for his kit.
 [ This first message was edited by a second (volunteer) relief
 [ editor:  Joyce Brite.
 [
 [ Andy was cleary frustrated (and perhaps aggravated) at the time he
 [ wrote this first note.  I asked Joyce to take the edge off the message.
 [ Thanks Joyce.  Unfortunately, I went on vacation before getting to
 [ sending this message.  As you will see, Andy is making progress but
 [ is having mixed success with the project.  Anyone with constructive
 [ advice is encouraged to make suggestions.
 [
 [ Thanks
 [ Jody

I finally got the ragtime kit, and after testing the components and
looking over the kit, here's what I found.

The bass drum, snare drum, glock, cymbal, suction motor, coin op
components are all built fairly well, are air tight and will work
properly.  However, with regard to the stack, there is not enough
span in the pneumatics.  There is no lost motion adjustment and no stop
rail.

The unit pneumatics are air tight and responsive, but the way this
stack is designed, there is no suction chamber per se.  You have to
modify the suction hookup in order to have enough suction volume for it
to work, which is the main problem people have with this stack.  It is
a design flaw, but it can be overcome.

The spoolframe is a joke.  The housing is made of plastic, which is
OK, but the gears and bearings are plastic too, and will wear out
quickly if you don't grease them generously.  If they had taken the
trouble to put some kind of metal bearings in the plastic, it would
work perfectly.  It works now, but I doubt that it will last a
year.  The plastic bearings will wear out the roll, causing it to
sag, and the roll will no longer shift like it should.  (If you want
an "O" roll frame, then you should buy one from Player Piano
Company).  I feel that the Ragtime kit is worthless because the
tracker bar is plastic.  I have no problem with using plastic for
support, but it should not be used for the bearings!

The way the stack mounts in the piano will cause it to bounce like
a rubber ball if you don't brace it between the rail breaks.  You
should mount it in such a way so that you can remove it to work on
the piano.  Also, you will need to add a reservoir; this system will not
play softly without one.

Is this kit worth the money?  No!!  Here's what you will have to do
in order to make it work:

  Replace the spool frame,
  Recover the pneumatics for more span, and make sure there is enough
      vacuum/volume for it to operate,
  Brace the stack bar,
  Add a reservoir,
  Add a stop rail and lifters.

Considering that this kit normally costs $3000, and with all the
modifying you have to do, it's not worth it!  But, since I traded
for it, I will either have to use it (if I can get it to work
properly) or eat it.  I will let you know.

If you are going to build an "O" roll piano, the Ragtime drums,
glock and add-ons will work fine.  Just use the original player
stack, and buy a real spool frame.  Hmm...I wish J.P. Seeburg were
still living!

The icing on the cake comes from their own book, and I quote:

XII. Piano maintenance and repair
     "Tuning is not required for the piano's sake, but for yours.
Most player pianos will sound fine for 5 or even 10 years. Do not
have the piano tuned unless it sounds bad to you.  All pianos have
a limited number of times that they can be tuned before the pin
block wears out, since it is just wood and the pins are steel.
When this happens, the piano tuner will advise you to replace the
strings and install over sized pins."  (Andy here: So do it!)

He advertises "restored" pianos if they are to the point that he is
afraid to tune them.  Who needs them for the price he's asking?  I
have scanned that quote in a file.  In case you don't believe that
he actually said it, I'll be happy to e-mail it to you.  I have no
one to blame but myself; I asked for it and got it.  But, if I can
save one person from going through what I did, I'd do it in a
second.  So buyer beware!

Best wishes,
Andy Taylor
Somewhere in Missouri