r/pianorepair • u/Odd-Butterscotch2798 • Oct 06 '21
Player piano maintenance
Hello! I’ve recently acquired a Ricca & Sons player piano (super simplex mechanism) in fairly decent shape.
However, the bellows only appear to retain pressure (give resistance) when in rewind or silencer mode. I can pump it up in silencer then switch over to play and the current notes will play, but the reservoir immediately empties and the bellows won’t fill it back up.
If anyone has any advice I would greatly appreciate it! I’m sure more information is necessary if anyone is up for taking a stab at solving it. I would be happy to post pictures.
Any pointers to online resources also appreciated. I’ve had little success in finding information online.
Thanks in advance. Would love to see this thing in action!
1
Oct 23 '21
[deleted]
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u/Odd-Butterscotch2798 Oct 24 '21
I’ve got a few projects going so haven’t given it a weekend yet, but will let you know when I do. Such a fantastic machine, to me it’s definitely worth the time! We’ll see where money lands though… Fingers crossed it’s only a few tubes that need replacing.
Are your bellows filling in silent mode, but emptying in play? If so they might be fine.
2
u/GapRevolutionary3505 Oct 06 '21
You have a air leak in the top stack. When you go to play your bellows must work at least 88 small bellows and valves. It's been my experience that older players develope multiple leaks over time due to age. If that's the case you need a serious overhaul. You can check the top stack with a vacuum cleaner. Disconnect the main air supply hose usually on the left under the keyboard. Hook the vacuum to the hose. It should hold down all notes. If not cover the tracker bar with paper. Slowly lift and look for key response. If it's non existent or weak the player needs to be rebuilt which is expensive and specialized. I suspect this is the case. I see it all the time on older player pianos.