Gee, thanks for all the interesting info on the O-roll instruments so
far.  I agree fully with Art Reblitz and others who said that a buildup
will never be worth as much as the real thing nor sound authentic.
I also agree with Craig Brougher's statement that one should not
scavenge valuable old parts for a buildup and that a buildup can still
be a very nice instrument to listen to and have.

Well, for me the decision here is easy, I am going to construct a
buildup.  The reasons are:

1:  There are no originals to be found in South Africa; I have searched
for more than ten years.

2:  I cannot duplicate an original either because no sample is avail-
able and I can't scavenge any old orchestrion parts either, although
I am using an old R.S. Howard player piano for the job.

3:  It does not have to sound like an original simply because
there are none to compare it to.  It must just sound good.

4:  To purchase an original from the USA and bring it here is com-
pletely out of the question because of extremely poor exchange rates.

I know that Peter Coggins back in Australia is also building one.  He
is quite a bit ahead of me and as far as I know, his spoolframe and
vacuum system are complete already.  I am not sure what his motives for
building an orchestrion are.

So, I know now about the layout of the solo instruments and the muffler
felt for the piano in the solo section.  This leads me to the next
question, the mandolin rail:

Let us assume that a muffler felt lowers in the solo section to quiet
the piano.  Does this mean that this felt fits in there with the
mandolin rail?  Won't the two interfere at some stage?  Which notes
exactly does the mandolin rail control?  Is there also a muffler felt
in the bass like the player piano mandolin rails have?

Thanks again and keep all those hints and info coming, every bit,
even if it seems common knowledge to others, will be greatly
appreciated by me.

Regards,
Bernt Damm