Hi, The fact that the British designed a lot of their player pianos
to not move the keys is a real shame. Some German players are the
same. By not adding the lock lever they likely intended to minimise
wear and also cut cost.

But, they have made the pianos horrible to watch and completely
unspectacular. When the keys move on a piano, people are enthusiastic
about a self playing piano. When they do not move you may as well
play a recording.

Yes, remove the leads or part of them and see how it works. Keep the
lead and if need be, cast it back in. I would drill them just enough
to get the keys to fall.

Bear in mind that removing the leads will change the characteristics
of playing the piano. If it gets too light, you may need to change
the point where the action engages the keys' rear a bit more forward
by moving the sticker bottoms forward -- easier said than done!

You can also add weights to the action stickers ro compensate for the
loss of lead. Also, not all keys will have leads.

When done, you need to have a system that requires the same lifting
force for all keys, where the player action lifts the wippens.
Otherwise the piano will play unevenly and your Duo-Art zero adjustment
will have to be set too loud so the heavier notes do not skip.

Best regards,
Bernt Damm
Sydney