Noel Butler asks about roll repair tape.  The industry standard
bible on pianola repairs refers to the use of a 3M's plastic tape
(page 205/206).  My advice differs from that in the good book.

Paper, as a material, is characterised by having a low elongation
(up to about 4 percent maximum) and is hygroscopic.  Plastic tape
used for roll repairs is highly extensible with an elongation of
at least 30 percent.

My experience with rolls repaired with plastic tape is that they
are _always_ puckered and never work properly and are always going
to fail.  They will fail because the glue fails, or they will fail
because the plastic tape was stretched when applied and the paper
edge will crumple, or the changing humidity of the environment in
which the roll is stored will vary and cause the glue bond to the
paper to be stressed.

The fundamental problem with roll repairs is that the paper edges,
And also across the width of the roll, _must_ be maintained absolutely
Flat to allow a gas seal between the paper and the tracker bar.

The paper used for music roll production is generally 0.09 mm (0.0035")
to 0.11 mm (0.0043" thick.  Any repair tape used will need to be thin
to avoid increasing the paper thickness at the roll edges.  This will
give a wound roll which is soft in the centre due to the extra
thickness at the edge.  Use of a thin tape is mandated.

My roll repairs are based on the use of paper tape glued with dilute
white glue, which is a water soluble glue.  The thinnest paper ribbon
I found was used to manufacture paper insulated telephone cable.  I have
a good supply of 0.05 mm (0.0020") tape which is slit into 4 mm width
and can be used to repair roll edges of rolls with up to 98 holes.

I have recently repaired some Artecho rolls and these have 100 holes
and the width between the tracker bar and the edge of the roll is less
about 2.5 mm to 3 mm, so there is a need to be careful around this
particular hole.  (The same would apply to Ampico B rolls.)

I use the glue diluted by about 20 to 25 percent because the thickness
of the glue needs to be as thin as possible and still maintain a bond.
I have no idea where it is possible to obtain such paper any more.  The
thinnest paper I ever saw was 0.038 mm (0.0015") made by an American
company whose name I forget.  Getting the paper is one thing; getting
it slit is another.

The technique also is easy to use because the glue takes time to set and
it is possible to apply the glue and tape to do up to around 12 inches
in one glue application.  The sudden death nature of the modern glues on
plastic tapes makes their application quite difficult because of the
tape sticking to itself or to the wrong spot on the roll.

I have rolls which have been repaired along the full length on both
edges.  I have often had to make a larger size box.  I am soon to send
some repaired Artecho rolls to the USA and the technique can be
assessed by my USA friends.

Regards to all,
Paul Rumpf
Melbourne, Australia