This 1919 Cable Player Piano belonged to Suann's Grandfather Dick. It was in his San Francisco house. It was on loan to a friend of the family in Tracy for a number of years. We got it back in 2019 and I started restoring it. At that time it was 100 years old.
This vintage player piano is powered and controlled by vacuum. Each of the 88 hammers have a small bellow to strike the keys. Each key bellow is connected to a valve. When a hole in the paper roll passes over a tube in the trackbar, the vacuum is released on one side of the valve. This opens the other side of the valve, supplying a vacuum to the key bellow and sounding the note.
This is the player action removed from the piano. It consist of (1) A six bellow vacuum slide valve motor to advance the paper roll, (2) A trackbar which the paper roll slides over and instigates the playing of a note. (3) A valve body which contains a valve for each key. The valve supplies vacuum to the key bellow. The valves are actuated by a pressure difference across a diaphragm. When there is vacuum on both sides of the diaphragm, the valve is closed. When the trackbar and paper roll opens the lower side of the diaphragm to the atmosphere, the valve body moves up and connects the bellow to the vacuum manifold.
Many of the old lead tubes were badly corroded. Most of the 3/16" rubber tubing was broken and brittle.
The old lead tubes were replaced with aluminum tubes.
All the 1/16" rubber tubes were replaces. All 135 feet.
Valve block removed and separated
On the far right of this photo are the diaphragms. The underside of these diaphragms are connected to the trackbar. The space between these two layers is connected to the vacuum supply. When a hole in the trackbar is opened to the atmosphere by a hole in the paper passing by, the valve body is pushed up connecting the appropriate key bellow to the vacuum manifold. Thus sounding the note.
I replaced the old 100 year old paper seals with neoprene.
The trackbar
New felt washer were installed on the linkage to the keys.
Here is my granddaughter Emily running the test roll. As you can see she is working hard. Even though I had fixed the major vacuum leaks, there were still numerous other small leaks.
I decided to buy an electric vacuum pump kit.
In San Francisco
Autumn Leaves
Clair_de_Lune
The Alley Cat Song
Baby Elephant Walk
Twelve Street Rag
Maple Leaf Rag
Hernandos Hideaway