•I recently obtained a spinet Ampico in need of a complete restoration. I'd like to ask a simple question. The spinet Ampico has a single crescendo unit and yet it is a model A. How is that connected in the tubing? I'm guessing that the crescendo is connected to both expression mechanisms, but what ...

•For piano historians: I found an ad in the June 6, 1944 copy of the Lancaster (Ohio) Eagle-Gazette from Heaton's Music Store of Columbus, Ohio. It bemoans the poor condition of most pianos, and then: "How easy to rectify all this by spinetizing, reconstruction, rehabilitation into lovely MirrA pian...

•I read with interest Mark Kinsler's post yesterday about "spinetizing" upright pianos. When this practice was commonplace in the 1940s and '50s, it was called "restyling". This was done with old upright pianos of all types (not just player pianos). When my father left the U.S. Army in 1953, he foun...

•Greetings all, The inquiry about the spinetizing reminded me of my first player: a 1924 Schultz, that had a mirror at the top of the case. The case ends had been cut down to just above the spool box. The top had also been modified by decreasing the width, so it would accommodate the mirror at the b...

•Spinit-ized and Mirrored pianos There was a time in the 1950s that it seemed to be popular to try to "modernize" old upright pianos. My parents gave their upright to my brother around 1953 and he had someone come and cut it down so that the front board laid back at a slight angle. They were going t...

•Hi folks, Here is an article in June 1964 Mechanix Illustrated on how to "Do your upright up right". The gentleman doing the work in the pictures is none other than R. J. Leonard of Minneapolis -- my grandfather, or "Uncle Lenny" to others -- who had a nice business in restyling old uprights for so...

•I repair antique clocks, clocks that are maybe as old as your player pianos, and these accounts of 'spinetizing' are simply agonizing to read. But as I think about it, a 'spinetized' piano is as representative of the past as any other old instrument. No, they had no business wrecking nice old uprig...

•On several occasions I have had requests to work on an Ampico Spinet piano. They are one of the most difficult units to service because everything is compressed into a very small space. Were these pianos an afterthought to use up old parts toward the end of the Ampico era? They contain many old sty...

•After reading Tom Hutchinson's post seeking an Ampico spinet, it is clear that the exact description of these little pianos is once again necessary. The Ampico Spinet is an Ampico "A" lacking duel crescendo devices. It has stack valves unique to the spinet. They are a small, single unit valves that...

•Ampico spinets are not all the same. Many, such as the one on eBay, have 'A' expression with 'B'-style valve blocks. The spool box is basically an 'A'-style drawer with wind motor. Some have one crescendo pneumatic. The larger uprights can be found with full expression but still all 'A' parts. The ...

•Hello all (particularly those along NY Interstate 81 from Syracuse south to 380 to Rte 33 south to Bethlehem PA), I'm the most-fortunate and still-beaming Canadian winner of that 1938 Steck Ampico spinet listed on eBay (MMD 05.04.24) by an owner just north of Bethlehem, Pa. I have admired these com...

•I am working on a Wurlitzer #1203 spinet piano. Everything is up and running, all of the notes work and the volume is strong and adjusts well, but the Tempo is slow with the Tempo knob turned all the way up. Is there another adjustment somewhere to speed it up? Jim Hockenberger

•Greetings from Oregon, I am working on a 1950s era Wurlitzer spinet player piano. It plays the standard type of player piano roll but that's where the similarity ends. It uses solenoids instead of striker pneumatics, small electric motors to operate the "Play" and "Reroll" mode, and the tracker bar...

•I think the Wurlitzer Spinet Players were introduced in the mid-1960s and were not made in the 1950's. The electronics were developed by Teledyne, I think. I remember seeing them when they were introduced at a NAMM show in Chicago. Seeburg also had a room with their player but I seem to remember it...

•In answer to the post about the Wurlitzer Spinet Player Piano re-roll problem, the re-roll hole is #89. Yes, they added an extra hole. There are a lot of piano rolls that don't have a number 89 hole at the end for re-roll. Check to see if the re-roll is working by uncovering the last hole in the tr...

•Dear Jody, A very good friend and very serious collector who is not yet on line had asked me if I would ask the MMD group if anyone knows of anyone interested in selling an AMPICO Spinet, and a Steck or Fischer Duo-Art "Concertola". The Spinet's were actually made at one time although not very many...

•I was lucky enough last week to pick up for a reasonable price a 1960-ish spinet Pianola (probably 1962) in a fruitwood case with decorative banding. It is in wonderful shape, and needed no repairs. Probably owned by a little old lady who only had energy to pump one rolls per week over these last y...

•-- non-subscriber, please reply to sender and MMD -- I'm a piano technician with service experience on player pianos in Lockport, New York. I have a customer with a Wurlitzer spinet player that has an electronic player unit in need of repair that nobody in New York can fix. Is there anybody that ha...

•I am servicing a Kimball P792 Electramatic spinet player with transmission problems. Apparently the small gear (which is inside a sealed box) attached to the motor shaft has lost some teeth and causes a jumpy (8-10 jerks per second), slow drive. Does anyone know if Kimball (no longer building piano...

•I would like to purchase an Ampico spinet piano. Prefer it to be in original non-rebuilt condition but will consider others. Must be complete but need not be working. If you have one for sale or know of one for sale please contact me. Also if you have any sales literature or service information on ...