Hello all,  I just had to be part of the list of unusual player piano
benches.  I have a Bush and Lane upright with a Welte system.  The case
is massive and there is a big piano sound to match!  Everything about
this piano was very high end.  All the controls and levers are solid
brass.  Even the sliding doors that cover the spool box are mechanically
tied together so when you move one side, the opposite side makes the
identical motion.

It is an original electric powered player, so by rights, it did not
need a "player bench" but one with all cabinet details matching the
piano case was included.  This is a duet bench that looks like any
piano bench you have seen, but when you raise the seat to expose the
sheet music storage space, there is a mechanical latch that catches the
seat board to hold it open at about an eighty degree angle.  If you
want to close the lid, you release the latch with your finger.

Now the good part!  If you don't release the latch but attempt to close
the lid, the mechanics take over.  As you do the motion to close the
lid, the entire bench changes dimensions!  In the closed position the
seat top is 21" off the floor on all sides.  When you engage the latch
and the mechanics, the front edge of the bench lifts to 23 inches and
the rear edge lifts to 24-1/2 inches.

It is a really outstanding piece of engineering and a source of
amazement and amusement.  Definitely a contender for a Rube Goldberg
award.

Yours in mechanical music
Ken Vinen, Aylmer, Ontario, Canada