Music Trade Review

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
SEPTEMBER 25, 1920
UMammMMmmzffiiiHUfflu^^
The Wood Problem a Vital One in Connection With Player Mechanism—Has
Not Received Proper Consideration From Pneumatic Engineers—Importance
of Woods in Action Making—Good Work by Forest Products Laboratory
There has been very little general discussion quent dissection of parts for purposes of adjust-
of the wood problems which enter into the art ment and repair.
of the pneumatic engineer. In a good many
It will thus be seen that the maker of player
ways this has been a pity, for these problems mechanisms must select his wood carefully. The
are both complex and important. Upon their sort of woods he needs must be close-grained,
solution depends the success or failure of any constant and sturdy. Such a wood as maple,
player mechanism in which wood forms the for instance, presents an almost unsurpassable
main material—that is to say, of nearly all the material for player manufacturing. It is, how-
player mechanisms now on the market or in ever, expensive and many manufacturers have
use. It is a pity that there has not been more turned to basswood and other soft woods for
discussion, because there is really a great deal the body work, using strips of hard wood where
to discuss. Nobody who knows the facts will joints are to be fastened with screws or where
pretend that the player mechanism of to-day is for any other reason there is likely to be much
perfect. No one will pretend that it cannot be strain upon the lumber.
vastly improved. Therefore, the present short
Soft Wood Facts
attempt at an entering statement may have some
Now it ought to be realized from the start
value. It can, of course, serve only as the that the use of basswood and poplar, or similar
merest foot-note to a comprehensive survey of woods, although it is certainly not illegitimate,
the great field.
constitutes a practice which the best makers
realize must be conducted with the greatest care.
The Foundational Facts
The player action consists in effect of a series These woods are durable, when no great strain
of chests and bellows. The chests are intended is put on them, but they cannot stand the con-
to link up the bellows so that the latter's activi- stant drawing and withdrawing of screws. Fur-
ties may be co-ordinated by groups. These ele- thermore, they are not impervious to either
ments are limited by two conditions—air-tight- moisture or air. With regard to air, they may
ness and size. The most important property be rendered impervious for a longer or shorter
which the material of the player action must time by the use of fillers like shellac. Even
possess is what may be termed imperviousness. then, however, the shellac dries out in time.
The chests and bellows, built of wood or of With regard to moisture, however, the story
wood and flexible leather, must, above all, be is quite different. Even the hardest woods are
pervious to moisture, and moisture is one of
air-tight.
Now this quality of air-tightness implies the the subtlest enemies of the player mechanism.
Moisture
existence of other qualities. Wood, as is well
Few persons realize this until they have had
known, shrinks and swells under the influence
of atmospheric conditions. Then the fact that practical experience with the behavior of the
it is necessary to build the chests up with re- player-piano in domestic conditions. Tuners
movable covers means that there must be air- and player repairmen, however, know all about
tight joints where wood is squeezed against it; and are under no illusions on this score.
wood, with leather packings between the sur- They know that the influence of moisture is
faces. Furthermore, the wood must be strong deadly and that leaks, sticking valves, and a
and durable enough to withstand somewhat thousand other evils flow from this one single
rough usage; and especially the strain of fre- source.
In fact, of course, what is good for wood in
respect of rendering it moisture-proof is good
for it in respect of making it air-tight. That
does not mean that the two processes are iden-
tical, but rather that they are parallel. Player
manufacturers are complaining that wood is ex-
pensive and scarce and that they do not get the
for the finest
results from it which they had come to regard
as customary. They are discovering that the
lumber they are using is not standing up to its
work as it ought to, and they are hard put to it
for explanations, especially for such explana-
tions as may lead them to a better understand-
ing of the necessary remedies.
The ideal lumber for the player-piano would
be impermeable either by air or by moisture.
It would also be highly resistant to weakening
from screw penetration and capable of operation
successfully in very small dimensions. In view
New York
San Francisco
of the prohibitive price of the best hardwood, it
is necessary to find out what can be done with
Chicago
less valuable species in order to fit them for the
FOTOPLAYER
Motion Picture
Theatres
AMERICAN PHOTO
PLAYER CO.
work which distinctly demands the aforemen-
tioned properties.
The Forest Products Laboratory
First, then, moisture penetration should be
studied. The extremely valuable work which
the Forest Products Laboratory of the United
States Forest Service has performed at Madi-
son, Wis., bears on these problems from many
directions. For instance, a most valuable meth-'
od of making various woods moisture-proof in
the process of manufacture has been worked
out at the Laboratory through the use of thin
aluminum leaf. This has been wonderfully use-
ful in airplane propellers. Again, the use of
ply-wood, when a moisture-proof glue is used,
presents many similar possibilities and much
work of the most practical and valuable nature
has been done on this subject at the Laboratory.
Alternate Species
There are hundreds of species of wood which
abound in the forests of the United States and
which have the physical properties necessary to
fit them for superior service in mechanisms that
must be impermeable by air and moisture alike.
F.ew of these have been used as yet because the
lumber producers have not been able to secure
from makers of player mechanisms enough ex-
pert collaboration. The Forest Products Lab-
oratory is already in possession of much valu-
able data concerning all these species—data
which the makers of player mechanisms would
do well to consult.
Lastly, in this brief view of the field, may be
mentioned the various moisture-proof and wa-
terproof glues which are being worked out,
some of which, like casein glue and blood albu-
men glue, have already been developed to the
practical stage. All these deserve the most
careful examination and experiment. The manu-
facturers ought to abandon the old attitude of
exclusiveness or of supposing that they do not
need special expert knowledge from outside
their own walls. It would be a great deal better
for the player mechanism if more of a careful
and scientific study were now being given; espe-
cially when all sorts of information is on hand
waiting only to be used.
PLAYER ROLL MEN_AT CONVENTION
YOUNGSTOWN, O., September 17.—To the uninitiated
the big gathering at the convention of the Piano
Merchants' Association of- Ohio here this week
had much of the appearance of a meeting of
music roll men, in view of the numerous repre-
sentatives of the various manufacturers present.
Among the concerns who had officials or trav-
elers on the ground were: Connorized Music Co.;
Imperial Player Roll Co.; Bennett & White,
Inc.; Melodee Music Co.; Republic Player Roll
Corp.; Q R S Co., and the Vocalstyle Music Co.
Some of the concerns had several representa-
tives in attendance, and the retailer who did not
receive the latest information on the player roll
situation was indeed deaf.
•nMiriiiiiiiiminiiiiiiiiiiiiiHiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiuiiiia
STANDARD PLAYER ACTIONS
STANDARD PNEUMATIC A C T I O N C O .
O38 - €>52 WEST 52 ^STREET
iiiiuniiiiiiiiiiiiumuiJimiiiiitiiiMiiiimmiiimiiiMiiiHiu
iminnii iiiuiiiiiiiijtnimf iiiiiiiiiiiiiirii in mi ifli
-
NEW YORK
CITY
ininniuiiuNniiiniiiriiiiiMMiiHHiiHiiiiiiiiai