The Player Piano Co. just got in a new shipment of heavy bellows cloth.
This is the weight of cloth you use for feeder bellows, like pumper
players and rotary pumps.

Prior to this shipment, the bellows cloth has been weak and porous in
some swatches, unreliable unless patched at the corners of the folds, and
not long-lived in commercial situations. That's because the rubber was
just too thin, having been applied by spreaders at the factory. This
cloth is obviously calendared, and the rubber, I estimate to be about
.025 thick. That is .010 thicker than the best we used to find, and I
would suggest that this cloth will be the best that Player Piano Co. has
ever offered.

I just wanted to tell everybody about the new material, and why I think
it should be far superior to the old stuff that used to feel like tent
canvas.  This cloth feels very much like the original Duo-Art heavy
bellows cloth in density and flexibility. I am not "recommending" it,
because I haven't used it, yet.  But I have been hoping to get some
decent cloth like this appears certainly to be.  If I have any problems
with it, I'll also let everyone know about that, too, but I anticipate
none.

By the way, after your feeders are fully dry (and not before) pre-crease
them in a front peak fold by clamping them tightly overnight. This
strain-relieves the covers, causing a permanent crease which will not
travel as the bellows opens and closes. Instead of centering the wear at
the crease line, the material on each side of the crease does more
flexing instead.

You can order it by phone from Player Piano Co., tel. (316) 263-3241.

Craig Brougher