Hello everyone.  I think I need your help.  I am currently rebuilding
my 1902 Wilcox & White push up piano player with organ reeds, and I'm
at the point where the continuous pouch board needs to be re-leathered.

When I rebuilt my 1909 Heintzman Aluminum Action player piano about
twenty years ago (and had no one to ask), I encountered a similar
continuous pouch board and wasn't sure of the best way to cover it and
get dish in the pouch (the Reblitz book was vague on this).  I finally
just ended up applying glue to the board and laying the pouch leather
over the wells, pressed it with a warm iron and, after the glue had set,
I rubbed a little mink oil into the leather and literally pressed it
into the well with my thumb.  The leather did stretch -- it didn't
really have that far to go.  The piano is still playing fine 20 years
later (probably stupid luck!).

Now that I've made you all cringe, please tell me the _right_ way to do
it.  Dropping a washer or other weight into the well pulls the leather
in fine for that well, but it affects the way the leather settles into
the next well, and so on.  It all seems to pucker and fold all over the
place as you move down the board.  I just know I'll have glue everywhere!

I know I had tried several ideas on the 88-note player, but I finally
gave up and went with what seemed to work.  I could do the same again,
but I'm sure there must be some other way that I'm just not getting.
I'm sure the "thumb method" isn't right.

I have checked the MMD Archives, but the only entries for continuous
pouches are basically my same question -- no answer seems to have been
posted.  I'm sure I'm not the first to encounter this, and probably
won't be the last.  All your feedback is welcome.  Help!

Paul-André Lawrie
Toronto, Ontario, Canada