Hello again.  I've had some recent success in my efforts to restore
a Lester action since my last input to this site.  I was fortunate
enough to talk with Craig Brougher about my problems and he was
wonderful to speak with and aid in my efforts.

The first thing I did was remove all the valves I had spent so much
time on and yank off the leather I had bought.  I tested it and it
leaked like crazy.  No wonder I couldn't get a vacuum up.

Mr. Brougher suggested that I purchase a material that is a tight
celled foam rubber about 1/16" thick and to use that instead since you
can't buy decent leather these days.  I found this in a craft store for
around $8 for a huge sheet of it.  I then punched my own leather seals
(that go on to seal the stem hole) and punched new leather valves.

This stuff is 100% air tight.  I used a bubble jar to test these
once they're all assembled.  Yeah, I know you can't tell what's leaking
with this jar (facing or stem seal) but it gives you an idea that it's
leaking anyway, so you know enough to go back and fix it no matter what
it is.

I asked Mr. Brougher about the longevity of this stuff and he stated
he had a player with 30 years on the rebuild and it's still going
strong to this day.  I was convinced.

The bubble jar I made is nothing more than a pickle jar about 6" tall
with a metal lid.  I punched 2 holes in the top of it.  The larger one
is 1/2" and I inserted and glued a 1/2" x 6" long PVC pipe in this hole
with the pipe running to within an inch from the bottom with about 1"
above the lid.  The jar is filled with water.  I then glued a "seat"
to this that matches the exact size of the valve seats.  This is
polished smooth too and perfectly flat.

The second hole is about 1/4" and I glued a brass elbow into this
and attached tracker bar tubing to it.  On the other end of this tube
I have a hand vacuum pump like the one they use on cars.  It'll draw
up to 25" of vacuum.  I merely place the valve assembly gently onto
the 1/2" seat and use the vacuum to check for bubble in the jar.  If
I get bubbles, I have a leak.

It's time consuming to do but worth it.  You can usually tell if
it's the valve face or the stem seal by pushing slightly on the valve.
If the bubbles stop it usually means it's the stem seal is too loose
(just my experience on this one).  Simple adjustment fixes this but
I have to be careful to make sure I have enough wobble in the valve,
too.  It's a balancing act.

I also discovered that some of the glue I used didn't seem to take very
well.  On one deck, the left hand side had a bunch of loose pneumatics.
I was very careful when I did them but I think I got too much movement
when I glued them on.  Odd that it was only on the one end.  I use
weights now after Mr. Brougher's suggestion and it works so much better
I'll never use clamps again.  I made these up by melting old lead wheel
weights into 4" lengths of 1" copper pipe.  Perfect -- so much easier!
They fit on the pneumatics perfectly.

I'd like to thank everyone for their input on this problem.  I've done
six players in the past but this one threw me for a loop.  I don't do
it for money as this is just a hobby of mine.  I'll leave the money end
to the pros.  But this piano is for a close friend as a 25th anniversary
present.  I was his best man in his wedding.  I did the action over and
made some repairs to the piano and now it sounds like a new one.  I love
playing it by hand.

I'll try to post a couple of pictures for you folks.  Wish me luck in
finishing it.  I'll hate to let this one go but it's going to a good
home.

Doug Vensel

 [ Bubble jar
 [ http://www.mmdigest.com/Attachments/15/08/22/150822_192302_IMG_20150819_175323_055.jpg 

 [ Valve assembly
 [ http://www.mmdigest.com/Attachments/15/08/22/150822_192302_assembly.jpg 

 [ Valve holes
 [ http://www.mmdigest.com/Attachments/15/08/22/150822_192302_VALVE%20HOLE.jpg