Here's the question.  I put the final touches on the Autopiano I have
been working on for months.  Have learned a _whole_ lot about the
secondary valves.  The unit is very tight, but I believe this is
causing a problem with the automation kit I have installed.  The player
is so tight the suction box has to be run almost on it's slowest
setting.  I am very pleased with the outcome of the unit.

Here is the problem; the Full Automation Kit from PPCo. was installed
and the re-roll pneumatic has been installed.  When the re-roll hole
opens, the pneumatic does not have enough power to pull the transmission
into rewind.  Here is what I have done as far as testing.

1.  I disconnected the tracker bar tube at the re-roll pneumatic and
operated it by hand.  Results was the same, not enough power.  This let
me know there is no problem with the tubing.

2.  I checked all transmission linkages for binding and graphited all the
felt-to-metal bushings.  Results was the same: not enough power.  Since
the re-roll pneumatic is placed in the piano floor, the weight of the
movable board puts just enough pressure on the linkage to begin to move
it out of place, but there is still not enough power to throw it into
rewind.  I can install a piano wire spring to hold the unit open, but
I'm not going to spend any time worrying about it until it will perform
well.

3.  I turned up the power.  Results was the piano played TOO loud but the
rewind worked overtime.  When power was reduced to a desirable position
the rewind failed every time.

4.  For your information the supply nipple for the re-roll unit is
installed on the wind chest and there is as much vacuum there as there
is for the hammer rail units.  The supply is not the problem.

My feeling is the unit is not designed to be operated under such low
vacuum.  I think I really need a higher quality pneumatic but I have
been wrong before.  The Soft Bass and Soft Treble units work great.
Wish I had an extra.

Have any of the rest of you had this type of problem?  Would it help
to rework the valves in the unit? Is there another unit on the market
I should know about?

Thanks for your time.

Sam Harris - Greenville, North Carolina - sam@greenvillenc.com
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Ranch/9374