Hi!  I'd like to reply to Robert Linnstaedt on my 'cleaning a music box
movement' letter.

It really makes no difference if you use alcohol or mineral spirits.
I was talking about the _movement_, not the case of the music box.
Alcohol is a good de-greaser (though any degreaser will work) and leaves
little if no residue when it dries, and it dries quickly.  It also
doesn't smell as bad (to me) as mineral spirits.  Alcohol on the case
is a definite no-no, unless you want to soften and remove the finish
(which was usually shellac and/or varnish).

To D. L. Bullock, regarding shellac on the comb leads --

I've not seen any evidence of shellac on any combs I've worked on.
It might have been a good idea for them to have used, as it might have
stopped some of the lead oxidation so prevalent in some boxes.

I have had boxes that were used in pubs where the leads were literally
'cemented' together with cooking grease!  The grease didn't seem to find
its way into other parts of the mechanism though.  This might have been
the case with the Regina thread we've been following.

Fortunately, with enough experimentation, there's usually a way to solve
most problems!  Thanks for the recipe for the Burned Shellac!

Nancy Fratti