•Hi, can anyone recommend a material to use to replace the belt / strap connectors that link the bellows to the crank in the four-lobe Welte Licensee pump? After having many problems with my Licensee, this is now sorted and it is now air tight so to speak; unfortunately this put a strain on the mate...

•Hi, I just purchased a 14-note Melodia organette, made by Gately, and found that it has one broken brass reed. This reed is marked C# and is the fourth reed from the lowest note. Can anyone recommend someone who could repair this, or possibly have a replacement reed? Thanks, Greg Farmer ...

•I speak from total ignorance, but how can a brass reed break, unless someone maybe hooked it with a cleaning cloth or something? Do they fatigue? Mark Kinsler

•Brass reeds can grow old and the metal crystallizes. A new reed can be hand made by removing the rivets holding the reed in place and obtaining the same thickness of brass, cutting it to slightly larger in size and filing it to fit the slot in the reed base. Once the tongue fits the base, the reed ...

•For replacement reeds, measure the frame exactly and try Robert Linnstaedt at or http://members.aol.com/linnstaedt/organ.html Note that it's not enough to just find a reed with the same frame size, (even if it's stamped with the same note designation); it must be tuned exactly to match your existin...

•Yes, organ reeds break. They do not fatigue, but brass is an alloy of zinc and copper. As you have seen in a zinc organ pipe, after some years the solid gray color of the zinc turns into a multifaceted crystallized look found on pipes older than a few decades, and if you crease the zinc it will bre...

•Brass reeds don't usually break (at least not the kind you see in regular organs). They use brass because it is easily workable, and can be manipulated to have the correct curve, which is important in voicing reeds of the kind I mentioned. However, if you work the reed back and forth at an extreme ...

•By far the best solution is to try and find a replacement reed. I have quite a selection of brass reeds but (a) I'm in the UK, and (b) I haven't seen Melodia reeds, so I couldn't be sure of a replacement without some additional information. Greg, if you want me to try and find a replacement, e-mail...

•In the 06.08.12 MMD I made reference to Gary Stevenson's article on tuning and repairing organette reeds. I just heard from Gary, and he kindly provides a PDF version of the article I referenced, on his web site, available for your use. See http://www.studio801.com/Article04.pdf Since Gary has pers...

•Thanks to all who have offered suggestions. Luckily, Harold Draper responded to me directly and has the exact reed that I need, along with instructions for how I can tune it to the pitch of my organette. Greg Farmer

•-- non-subscriber, please reply to sender and MMD -- Hello, do you know how to repair a Sankyo music box for a doll? It is for one that has a pull cord. Thank you, Kimberly Murray cheapnreliable@cox.net.geentroep [delete ".geentroep" to reply]

•-- non-subscriber, please reply to sender and MMD -- Colleagues, I have a Piano Melodico that needs some restoration (or could be for sale). The rubber rollers which pull the cardboard music books through need repair or replacement. Any suggestions on getting new rubber rollers? Thanks. Arnim Whisl...

•In MMD 060908 Arnim Whisler asked how to replace rubber rollers of Piano Melodico. Arnim, I could give you precise answers how to do it for the smaller (30 notes) Piano Melodico as well as for the larger ones (48 and 73 notes). But you should wait for my answer until about October 10 because I will...

•I also have a 30-note Melodico whose rollers need fresh rubber and I would appreciate any hints. This must be a common problem with book-operated organs as well. I had thought of buying some rubber tubing of the largest diameter that would fit over the metal core of the rollers, but I haven't pursu...

•The rubber rollers in fairground organ keyframes can be recovered by a firm that restores rubber rollers in printing presses. There are a number of these firms around the world. They will ask for the diameter and hardness required. Remember that the original rubber has probably hardened, so don't g...

•-- non-subscriber, please reply to sender and MMD -- Hello, I write to you from Mar del Plata, Argentina. My name is Abel Aguilera, I am a piano tuner-technician. Please, I need your help in the following matter. I bought a Melodant Angelus Cabinet [push-up player] and I need your help to be able t...

•-- non-subscriber, please reply to sender and MMD -- I need to repair the electrical connection for my Lador musical Christmas tree stand. The cup is frozen to the shaft and I cannot remove it. Does anyone have experience working on this item? The repair cannot be made unless the cup can be removed...

•Hello MMD, I have a bit of a predicament. I removed the front board on the second tier of striker pneumatics to check for debris and clean the nickel tubing, when one of the nickel-plated copper (brass?) tubes broke off of its base 'nipple connector'. Is there anyway that I can reattach it? Can I g...

•> I need to repair the electrical connection for my Lador musical > Christmas tree stand. The cup is frozen to the shaft and I cannot > remove it. Hi, Dissimilar metals stuck together. There's probably some corrosion between them, so -- I'd wrap some aluminum foil around the part below the cup to k...

•I have had unbelievable success with a product available from The Rust Store at https://www.theruststore.com/ It's cataloged as SKU T90012, Boeshield T-9, 12 oz. Aerosol, $12.99 + $6.95 S&H. If you have a marine supplier near you, more than likely you will be able to get it there and save the shipp...