Post by herchenx on Aug 8, 2015 21:25:01 GMT -5
My Friend Ben is a member of AMICA (Automatic Musical Instrument Collector's Association) www.amica.org/Live/index.htm
He collects and restores player pianos. His Brother is also a member and creates replica Band Organs www.amica.org/Live/Instruments/Organs/Band_Organs.htm
Last week Ben asked me if I'd like to join him (and bring some or all of my family) - in part because he needed a large enough truck to haul the large enclosed trailer that his brother lent him so he could take one of his brother's Band Organs to an event in Boulder.
I knocked off early last Thursday and headed to Ben's to pick up the trailer. 3 of my kids and Ben's daughter came along so we had a full truck.
We made the hour or so drive to Boulder and unloaded the organ. Ben had an idea that since this event was old tractors and steam engines, that he would try to power the piano from a tractor, so he made a pulley with plywood, 2x4s, a heavy shaft and pillow bearings:
As you can see, he staked it to the ground and ran one large belt to a tractor and a v-belt to the organ:
After getting things lined up, he got out his tachometer and adjusted the timing by having the fellow who owned the old John Deere adjust the throttle on the tractor:
He did a test run of one song, and then a gentleman who I didn't get to meet, but as I understand it is THE authority on Band Organs helped him hand-tune every one of the dozens of pipes and instruments within the organ:
- if you look at the link to AMICA's Band Organ page, I believe this gentleman is shown on that page.
Hundreds of folks were in Denver this past weekend for a big AMICA convention, and on this particular day a large group of them were on a tour of Eastern Colorado looking at steam machines, steam trains, old instruments and other fun vestiges of times gone by. This location - Cottonwood Farms in Boulder is owned and run by a family who has restored and owns some amazing old steam engines used for threshing demonstrations and hay rides. Ben's brother sent the organ as a bit of a showpiece. This organ is an exact replica of an original organ and was build by hand by Ben's brother.
Once the organ was tuned, a large crowd had gathered and was anxious to hear it do its thing.
Ben fed it a roll of music and let it rip
goo.gl/photos/C7XDkPbTxG7615wz5
He winced as it started to play as it was a little out of tune, but it sounded pretty good and ran and entertained folks for most of the evening.
Folks came up all evening and asked questions about how various parts of this worked, and it was pretty impressive to watch.
I wandered over to the chuckwagon where a cook was preparing a chuckwagon dinner for the large group. Here you see the Dutch Ovens with dessert, a delicious apple cobbler
All the kids had been keeping entertained playing cards and walking around the farm, but finally ended up on a hayride. My 3 and Ben's daughter are the closest to me in this photo. The machine pulling them is a 12 HP Case Steam Engine.
A better view of the engine
After wagon rides were over the cook rang the dinner bell and folks lined up.
Dinner was delicious! Beef tips on roasted potatoes with beans and biscuits. After dinner the cobbler was perfect.
The cook is an award-winning cowboy poet, so after dessert he finished the day by telling stories and reciting old cowboy poems. We were loading up the organ and I had to track down a blown fuse keeping the running lights on the trailer from working.
It was a long day, but fortunately the weather was perfect, a little cloudy and the temperature was very nice. We made it home with no problems and dropped Ben and his daughter and the trailer off at his farm before getting my own family home.
It was fun to be around a group of folks very dedicated to their hobby. It made me realize I need to to better at meet ups when they happen within travel distance. Some other take-aways were most of this group was much older, and generally had a fair amount of money (they all collect these instruments and they are expensive to buy, restore and maintain) but without them this hobby faces an uncertain future.
SO when's the next meetup
He collects and restores player pianos. His Brother is also a member and creates replica Band Organs www.amica.org/Live/Instruments/Organs/Band_Organs.htm
Last week Ben asked me if I'd like to join him (and bring some or all of my family) - in part because he needed a large enough truck to haul the large enclosed trailer that his brother lent him so he could take one of his brother's Band Organs to an event in Boulder.
I knocked off early last Thursday and headed to Ben's to pick up the trailer. 3 of my kids and Ben's daughter came along so we had a full truck.
We made the hour or so drive to Boulder and unloaded the organ. Ben had an idea that since this event was old tractors and steam engines, that he would try to power the piano from a tractor, so he made a pulley with plywood, 2x4s, a heavy shaft and pillow bearings:
As you can see, he staked it to the ground and ran one large belt to a tractor and a v-belt to the organ:
After getting things lined up, he got out his tachometer and adjusted the timing by having the fellow who owned the old John Deere adjust the throttle on the tractor:
He did a test run of one song, and then a gentleman who I didn't get to meet, but as I understand it is THE authority on Band Organs helped him hand-tune every one of the dozens of pipes and instruments within the organ:
- if you look at the link to AMICA's Band Organ page, I believe this gentleman is shown on that page.Hundreds of folks were in Denver this past weekend for a big AMICA convention, and on this particular day a large group of them were on a tour of Eastern Colorado looking at steam machines, steam trains, old instruments and other fun vestiges of times gone by. This location - Cottonwood Farms in Boulder is owned and run by a family who has restored and owns some amazing old steam engines used for threshing demonstrations and hay rides. Ben's brother sent the organ as a bit of a showpiece. This organ is an exact replica of an original organ and was build by hand by Ben's brother.
Once the organ was tuned, a large crowd had gathered and was anxious to hear it do its thing.
Ben fed it a roll of music and let it rip
goo.gl/photos/C7XDkPbTxG7615wz5
He winced as it started to play as it was a little out of tune, but it sounded pretty good and ran and entertained folks for most of the evening.
Folks came up all evening and asked questions about how various parts of this worked, and it was pretty impressive to watch.
I wandered over to the chuckwagon where a cook was preparing a chuckwagon dinner for the large group. Here you see the Dutch Ovens with dessert, a delicious apple cobbler
All the kids had been keeping entertained playing cards and walking around the farm, but finally ended up on a hayride. My 3 and Ben's daughter are the closest to me in this photo. The machine pulling them is a 12 HP Case Steam Engine.
A better view of the engine
After wagon rides were over the cook rang the dinner bell and folks lined up.
Dinner was delicious! Beef tips on roasted potatoes with beans and biscuits. After dinner the cobbler was perfect.
The cook is an award-winning cowboy poet, so after dessert he finished the day by telling stories and reciting old cowboy poems. We were loading up the organ and I had to track down a blown fuse keeping the running lights on the trailer from working.
It was a long day, but fortunately the weather was perfect, a little cloudy and the temperature was very nice. We made it home with no problems and dropped Ben and his daughter and the trailer off at his farm before getting my own family home.
It was fun to be around a group of folks very dedicated to their hobby. It made me realize I need to to better at meet ups when they happen within travel distance. Some other take-aways were most of this group was much older, and generally had a fair amount of money (they all collect these instruments and they are expensive to buy, restore and maintain) but without them this hobby faces an uncertain future.
SO when's the next meetup
