Regarding Paul Ward's request for "O" roll tracker bar information I
would like to offer the following notes:

The "O" roll is a coin piano roll and is intended mainly for use on
coin pianos and orchestrions featuring with at least one extra solo
instrument, usually either xylophone, bells or organ pipes. The roll is
arranged so that it plays solos arrangements on the extra instrument.
"O" rolls are also further orchestrated for various precessions should
they exist in the machine.

The "O" roll was never intended to be used on band organ type machines.
The arrangements are built around the piano as the main instrument, and
tend to sound strange when played on an organ type instrument which
generally needs more sustained notes. I have heard it done and it is a
very different sound. You might like it, although personally I wouldn't
pick the "O" roll for that job. I would go with "G" since the melody is
fuller and does not utilize the weaker solo section. The "G" roll (not
the similar 4X roll) was arranged primarily for coin pianos featuring
pipes.

A certain California manufacturer of new band organ-style (using the
term extremely loosely) machines featured at one time an "O" roll
played instrument, and to me it was entirely unsatisfactory. I think
this was done primarily because the company manufactures coin pianos
featuring the "O" roll, so the rolls and parts were already on hand and
available, making it cheaper for them to manufacture. As with most of
their products, I believe there was little regard for the actual musical
output, with the emphasis placed on novelty.

There are probably more "O" roll frames around than any other, but most
can be modified to fit the roll you eventually choose to play. The
hardest part is either finding or making the tracker bar for an odd or
unusual roll type. I certainly wouldn't let the availability of a
certain type of roll frame determine what I chose to use in my
instrument.

Wurlitzer's 105 organ is also extremely non-chromatic. How were you
planning to make a piano roll play an organ with such a limited scale?
Were you planning on expanding the Wurlitzer 125 scale? If you are
building a 105 Wurlitzer reproduction, why aren't you searching for
Wurlitzer roll frame and drive parts, and using Wurlitzer 125 rolls?

I wouldn't even consider an "O" roll, although I will say Dave Wasson
in southern California has built a beautiful organ that I think at one
time did play "O" rolls, although I think they were specially arranged
by him for use on organ-type instruments. The results were great, so
you might try contacting him. Maybe he has a recording of the organ
playing standard "O" coin piano rolls that you could hear to see if you
like that sound. I know he has tapes for sale of the machine playing
the newly arranged rolls which are terrific. Bear in mind though that
his organ is much larger and extensive than a 105-type organ, being
that it is fully chromatic.

Looking for a copy of Art's "Treasures?" (chortle) Good Luck!

The Stinson organs are contemporary instruments and will not appear in
the historic literature such the "Encyclopedia of Automatic Musical
Instruments".

Hope this helps you out.

John D. Rutoskey