Skinner Solo division restoration pictures

The crew at Quimby has been hard at work restoring the mechanics of our Skinner’s Solo division.

Restored pouch boards for the Solo sitting within their chest. Each of these little leather pouches with a felt and leather valve at its center sits directly below an individual pipe. When the corresponding note is played at the console, the air channel below the pouch is exhausted, which causes the pouch to collapse under the air pressure inside the wind chest, and the pressurized air makes its way up through the pipe causing it to play.

Solo pouch boards awaiting restoration. By this stage, the 99 year old leather had all been removed from the boards and then were appropriately cleaned awaiting application of springs and new pouches.

Restored Solo stop action with new white leather gasket along the top edge.

More of the stop action...

New pitman valves for the Solo chests. Looking at a wind chest from above, it is a large X-Y grid. Notes of the keyboard are the Y-axis, and each stop (English Horn, French Horn, etc.) are the X-axis. The pitman valves are what engages the X-axis, allowing particular sounds to play when an organist presses a key, which would engage the Y-axis (primary valves).

Restored primary board for the Solo division. Just as the pitman valves for the X-axis, the primary forms the Y-axis. When an organist presses a key, signal is sent to and energizes an electro-magnet on the wind chest, which moves a tiny metal armature, which exhausts a tiny channel, which causes the pressurized air in the chest to engage the primary. Once a note is engaged on the primary, that note can play on each stop on that chest, so long as the pitman valves (stop action) are also engaged. With both primary (Y) and pitmans (X) engaged, the note valves are exhausted and pipes will play. Yes, there are lots of moving parts!

New gasket along the bottom edge of one of the Solo chests.

The bottom of a restored an assembled wind chest in the Solo division. Each of the little pieces of brass seen sticking out are part of the primary and are screwed into a tiny leather nut on the inside of the primary pouches (now completely hidden inside the chest). When a note is played, these little brass wires can be seen moving slightly up into the chest as the valves are exhausted.

Side profile of a restored wind chest in the Solo. Note the new leather gasket material between the various components of the chest.