On 10/16/2008 Robbie writes:

>[ The original Tangley players I've seen with unit valves were
>[ made by Amphion.  What maker used die-cast valves?

Wurlitzer used die-cast valves in at least some of their player pianos
and some coin operated pianos.  Many years ago I rebuilt the player
action of a 1920s vintage pumper player piano by Wurlitzer.  The valves
were constructed using two die-cast pieces for four valves, therefore
there were 22 of these die-cast assemblies for an 88-note piano.

The four valves were arranged in a square and the 22 assemblies were
screwed directly to the chest.  There was a gasket between the main body
and the wood chest and a second gasket between the valve body and
a cover plate.  They looked a bit like gaskets for a 4-barrel carburetor
on a car but smaller.

Like many zinc or white metal die castings, they exhibited some
instability.  Of the 22 valve assemblies, 17 were almost like new and
I had no trouble using them.  Three more had some minor cracks and
irregularities and I was able to salvage them with epoxy.  Two were
a total loss and unrepairable.

I basically made block-off gaskets for them and made cosmetic repairs
so that they would appear normal.  I installed these at the bass and
treble ends which meant that the top and bottom four notes were
inoperable.  Since the majority of piano rolls omit the top and bottom
three notes, I decided that this would be good enough.  A few years
later, I saw some for sale that had been salvaged from a coin piano
that had been destroyed.  I wished I had had a few of them when I redid
that Wurlitzer.

Just an old memory of mine.  Has anyone else run across these Wurlitzer
die-cast valve housings?

Cheers,
Bob Conant
Bradenton, Florida