-- non-subscriber, please reply to sender and MMD --

Hi all,  I just acquired another player piano (I told my fiancee that
my 1919 Autopiano was getting lonely!).  It's a Wurlitzer player piano,
serial number 46401, which according to one reference was manufactured
between 1921 and 1930.  The piano itself is in excellent shape -- it
has a nice feel to the action and the tone is sweeter than some new
Yamahas that I've heard recently.  The ivory is in nice shape as well.

At first glance, the stack looks similar to my Autopiano with some
minor differences.  The bellows portion of the tracking mechanism on
the Wurlitzer sits on top of the spoolbox, whereas on the Autopiano it
sits to the left of the spoolbox.  The airmotors are similar as well,
both being a 5-bellows configuration sitting to the right of the
spoolbox and with the slide valves facing forward.

Is the player stack in the Wurlitzer another variation of the Standard
Pneumatic action seen in so many players of this vintage?  I read
another posting with some references to Wurlitzers having some kind
of crazy valve setup like this: http://www.carousels.com/valve.htm

Assuming that this old girl uses these crazy unit valves, is it
possible to refurbish the existing ones, or is there a source for
replacements?  The player is missing on a few notes, and not playing
at all on a couple of others.  I used the troubleshooting methods as
described on John Tuttle's Player-Care web site and have eliminated the
other possibilities.  I have pictures of my new old Wurlitzer available
if it would help.

Both of my players are playing, but not really well; I know that
they are both ready for refurbishment.  I'd like to attempt it myself,
however, I know the risks and understand the challenges involved in
such an undertaking.  Fortunately I have somewhat of a gift for
understanding, troubleshooting, and repairing things mechanical.
Also, I don't give up easily, and this trait may come in handy should
all of the warnings regarding attempting to restore a player yourself
come true.  A dream come true would be to work with someone on the
restoration who has experience in the field.

Thanks in advance for any help that anyone can provide,

Colin Cooper
Pleasant Hill, Calif.