In a message dated 97-07-05 05:16:41 EDT, Peter Coggins writes:

> Hi Andy,
>
> Hope you don't mind if I ask you a few questions about buying
> orchestrions kit bits but after reading of your exploits on the MMD,
> you are the person to ask.
>
> How is your project going?  Are you happy with the result?  I seem to
> recall you said "don't buy the stack or spoolbox but the rest is OK",
> is this right?
>
> I am interested in building an orchestrion and would like to put it in
> an old (big) player using its stack, and making my own spool frame, but
> am looking to buy some pipes or xylophone bits or kits and percussion
> bits.
>
> What did the kit use for an interface between stack and pipes and
> xylophone?  Does it have expression regulators on all the instruments?
> Yours is an 'O' roll with pipes & xylophone isn't it?  Did your kit
> come complete with the instruments or only the pneumatics, beaters, etc.
>
> Could you please let me know where you got these bits from, and any
> hindsight advice would be greatly appreciated!
>
> Many thanks
>
> Peter Coggins


Hi Pete.  I'll try to answer your questions in order.  Ragtime products
are not for me.  The first thing to go bad is the lock and cancel.  I
have ordered one from Player Piano Company.

When this collection of plastic was first fired up it played quite well.
Then things started falling apart.  The lock and cancel and the repeating
beater quit, and the glock became erratic in operation.  Right now it is
just sitting there, and I am debating to leave it at it is and try to get
it to work, or rip it out and return it to a player piano.

I am NOT happy with it at all.  I now understand why they want to trade
for old cars and trucks!  It works well enough to get out the factory
door and that's about it!

As far as the rest is okay, I was wrong; I freely admit it.  It's simple
as that.

I am going to do what I should have done in the first place: order Craig
Brougher's book on the subject and read how to do it *right*.  Some
people say that this book is expensive but I think it will pay for itself
many times over, at least in my case.

For the first time in my life I heard a Seeburg KT special a week ago.
That's when I realized I had a bunch of junk in my piano.

I think I need to copy some of these original stacks, and beaters etc.
The Seeburg blew my unit away hands down.  Next to it, mine sounds like a
toy.

There are no regulators in this kit.  You can get a glock cutout and
stuff like that.

I will never again buy anything from Ragtime.  When I was in Buffalo, I
seen a beautiful Wing & Son piano with this junk in it.  It wheezed and
skipped, just like mine did.  This piano was sold by them as restored,
but the hammers had never been reshaped, the strings was corroded, the
plate was black as coal, and the piano had a strong mildew smell. ... But
the case was beautiful.

Basically, Ken Calkins is a nice guy.  But he doesn't seem to care about
bringing these pianos back to top shape.  The concept is a good one, but
it will not hold up under service.

I am sorry if this offends anyone, but we all spend many hours of labor
bringing these old pianos back.  I never get my money back out of a
restoration if you count the hours.  I do it mainly to save the piano
from certain destruction.  I take offense from anyone who don't seem to
care about the pianos they sell, or sell something that will cause you to
empty your wallet and doesn't even work properly and sell the
unsuspecting public something that will hurt all of us in the long run.

If I buy a $8000 piano I expect new strings and a perfect operating
action; it should sound like new.  When the piano tuner tunes it, the
pins should feel like a new piano.  If I have it, I don't mind spending
the bucks but I want to get what I pay for.

You need to copy some of the old original instruments.  Forget about just
throwing a bunch of stuff in a old player.  I should have known better
than to try to cut corners.  It will take much more than that.  I tried
to save time and cut corners and now I have something I won't even start
up because I don't want people to think that is what kind of work I do.
As it is now I am ashamed of it.

Andy Taylor
Missouri