In response to Kenneth Christ's questions [130329 MMDigest], while
I can't name any of the other tunes, I can answer a few of the other
questions.  This mechanism was made to be in a slot machine -- that's
why it has an unusual spring barrel setup.  Someone later made a case
for it.

The part in question is a "safety check."  The theory is that if
something happens to the governor and the cylinder starts to spin under
the spring power remaining, the centrifugal force will throw the ball
outward and it will hit one of the bars, thus stopping the cylinder
from spinning and preventing damage to the cylinder pins and/or comb
teeth.  With a large enough spring, this theory, unfortunately,
sometimes proved faulty, in that the rod that the ball is on will bend.

Personally, I think all mechanisms that haven't been restored in
the past 50-100 years definitely are in sore need of some TLC!  New
dampers, pin straightening, taking the spring out and cleaning all the
old grease off, putting new grease on, checking all the bushings and
repairing the wear that happens over 100+ years will not only make the
box sound better, but also help it last another century or more.

The speed doesn't sound all that bad on the "Washington Post" march,
but it could be slowed down just a tad if desired.  This is done by
adjusting the fan blades, but it's not something for an amateur to do;
you could break the worm or worm pivots if you put undo force on it.

You'll find that professional restoration people will not do 'partial
restorations'.  Everything's connected and it all needs to be done at
least once in every hundred years!  Replacing that one tooth tip would
be part of the restoration too.

I'd be happy to talk to you more about it; contact me as below if you
like.

Happy listening!
Nancy Fratti - Nancy Fratti Music Boxes
Canastota, New York, USA
http://www.nancyfrattimusicboxes.com/