Gary L. Heckman wrote:

> I have completely rebuilt a Starr player piano. The bottom bellows
> are tight and pump up to 14".  The valves and pouches have all been
> rebuilt, along with the pneumatics.

How are you measuring the 14"?  I am guessing it would be with the
stack attached and tracker bar closed.  That pressure would only be
about a mezzo piano or medium volume, and if that is the most suction
you can get then you have a system that is full of leaks.  A good
player system will play loud at 40-60 inches, and some grands will put
out over 100 inches.

A better test of the bellows would be to detach all the hoses to the
bellows system and tape them up completely and don't attach your
pressure gauge.  Pump up the bellows 'til the reservoirs close all the
way.  Click your stopwatch as you stop pedaling and see how long it
takes for the reservoir to open completely.  If it takes 10 seconds or
less, you've got Durrell's ten-year-old bellows cloth and it has gone
over the hill.  If it takes a minute to open, then you do not have
a bellows problem.

To test the airtightness of your stack, crank up your suction box to
exactly 30 inches water lift with hose closed completely except for the
tube to the gauge.  Attach the supply hose directly to the stack port.
Connect your gauge to one of the tracker bar hoses or the tracker unit
supply. You want to monitor the pressure inside the stack.  If you get
a reading of 29-30 inches your stack is fine.  If the pressure is 10 or
more inches lower than the 30 you are putting in, then plan to rebuild
again with the right leather this time.  If it is airtight then open
10 or more tracker holes in the center and see how leaky the pneumatics
are.  If you have bad pneumatic cloth pressure will drop drastically
more than is escaping through the bleeds.

How long ago was the rubber cloth replaced?  Did you check your valve
leather for airtightness?  If your cloth came from Player Piano Co. and
is 10 or more years old it is now toast and must be replaced.  If your
leather is seeping too much then it must be replaced again.  I am doing
this kind of re-rebuild all the time these days.  We thought our
supplies were quality and now we know they were not.

This week I was checking out a Duo-Art I rebuilt in 1986 (with Player
Piano Co. precut valves and cloth).  It has played very little --
probably 30 hours since that time.  However, the cloth was flaking off
at the creases and showing the cloth through the holes.  They all
seeped; not badly yet, but they seeped nonetheless.

Any more questions email me directly.

D.L. Bullock    St. Louis
www.thepianoworld.com