There has been some discussion about band organs and the "O" roll.
I believe everyone has concurred that the "O" roll is for a coin piano
and would not play a band organ very well.  One person suggested the
"G" roll.

The Wurlitzer Pianino roll was also mentioned and I remember the
Wurlitzer that played them from my days working for Tom Fretty.  It
was a really neat little organ.  Pianino rolls have been hard to find.
I personally think that if I were to build a band organ then I would
want it to have that good ole American band organ sound.  This would
only be possible if the organ played a band organ roll.  The Herschell
Carrousel Factory Museum in North Tonawanda, New York, cuts band organ
rolls from the old master rolls.

The band organs that are sold from a manufacturer in California are
not very representative of the old band organs of the past, and in my
experience are not very good.  Don Stinson in Ohio builds a very nice
organ today and it would not be found in many of the reference books.
He may be mentioned in Ron Bopp's nice new book, so contact Ron Bopp
who reads MMD.

There are other individuals that have built band organs from scratch.
One really  good builder is Ken Smith of Ohio.

It would be wise to make a trip to a band organ rally and hear some of
these great old and new organs.  The rallies are a great experience and
unfortunately I can not go to them.  I have only been to two rallies.

Jack Hewes of Washington state used to have a set of plans that a
friend of his sold detailing a small organ and its construction.  The
Bob Stanoszek plans are good set of plans and can be found in ads in
the MBSI bulletin.  I believe but do really know for sure that most of
the drawings in the Stanoszek book were drawn by Ken Smith.  They
certainly look like Ken Smith had a hand in them.

A roll frame could be made new from your own design and the tracker
bar could easily be drilled and made on a milling machine.  I seem
to remember the Johnson Organ Co. in South or North Dakota made 125
replicas for G. W. Mackinnon at one time.  They drilled the holes in
the tracker bar and use a nail set tool ground square to make the holes
in tracker bar square like the old ones.  They used a simple gearing
system to drive the rolls.

Building an organ of any kind would be a challenge.  It would take
great skill to make all the parts and this should entertain a man with
his children for a long time.

The opinions above are my own and I assume no responsibility for them.
After all, it's been thirty-plus years since I first started collecting
these old music makers and my memory is not what it used to be.

Don Teach
Shreveport, LA
318 798 6000

(Wurlitzer Pianino rolls wanted for my Wurlitzer Pianino)