I have been trying to use Bruce Clark's Ampico regulation instructions
on my 1930 Marshall & Wendell Ampico 'A' grand. (Yes, it is an 'A',
one of the very last, I expect.) The instructions are clear, except
there are several things that simply don't work. Frustrating!

1. There is absolutely no way to get at the intensity valves on the
expression units to trip them into a locked position without completely
removing the units from the piano. They are buried in such a way that
access is utterly impossible.

2. My amplifier is of the unusual (and irritating) type with a sleeve
pneumatic; adjusting the spring on it one way or the other seems to make
no difference in vacuum whatsoever on Medium, consequently --

3. Adjusting the large screw on the end to increase vacuum for Brilliant
does nothing as well.

Everything has been rebuilt and I and my technician Jeff Vincent have
gone over the instrument thoroughly to find leaks. The pump has been
rebuilt and should pull enough vacuum to make a fortissimo that will
rattle the windows and be able to come down to a whisper pianissimo.

The expression units show movement as do the crescendos, but setting
them properly seems near impossible for me. I am fussy because I am
a touring pianist and know what these instruments are capable of;
I grew up around orchestrions and automatic pianos of all sorts, and
have even helped a friend of mine in Syracuse regulate his 1914 Mason
& Hamlin upright T-100 Welte-Mignon to a nicety.

But my Ampico is simply driving me mad, and there is no-one else to
help me in New York State except one person about 120 miles away,
and doing Facetime while buried under my instrument (I'm 6'3", which
doesn't help) is a daunting prospect.

Should I remove the amplifier from the pump? The sleeve pneumatic was
recovered and looks good, but perhaps the unit isn't working and the
sleeve needs resealing. With a roll going the most vacuum I can pull off
the stack is 7" to 9", which seems pathetically low.

If anyone could recommend a path to take I would be most grateful.

Sincerely,

Philip Carli
Upstate New York
carliphilip@gmail.com.geentroep [delete ".geentroep" to reply]