Amidst all this discussion of old and possibly unrestorable players,
I attended an auction yesterday at Stratford-upon-Avon, England.  Six
instruments had been stored in a barn for some years by a collector who
had partly restored them at some time in the past.  Most player actions
were in non-working order, the cases were fair, and the piano actions
were fair to good, but had suffered from damp storage conditions.  The
results were:

1. Weber pedal Duo-Art in fair but unrestored condition -- sold at $50
2. Monington & Weston standard player ditto -- sold at $15
3. Autopiano standard player in poor condition, offered at =L=8
-- unsold
4. Steck pedal Duo-Art in fair but unrestored condition, offered at $8
-- unsold
5. Steck pedal standard player, offered at $8 -- unsold

6. Kastner & Co. Rachals of Hamburg 65/88 note player in light coloured
mahogany, together with organ type sloping stool, offered at $150.  Bid
for by me and acquired at $200.  Thought to be in non-working order by
everyone, but in fact I tested it the day before the auction and found
it to be fine.  A beautiful instrument.

As to the fate of the wrecks -- I really do not know, but storage space
is the problem.  The auctioneers were _desperate_ to sell them.

Roger Waring
Solihull England