Vintage Synth Repair

My beloved Wurlitzer piano is totaly out of tune, and a bit quirky and
noisy. Does anyone have instructions on how to get to the
tuning-staves? They are quite well hidden in there. Do I have to
dismantle the entire instrument? Can a regular piano-tuner tune the A200?

Also: If anyone have any mods to make it quieter and/or funkier in a
way, I would aprecciate some tips.

Peace & love
Trond

--- Ill tell you in private <trondned@...>
wrote:

> My beloved Wurlitzer piano is totaly out of tune,
> and a bit quirky and
> noisy. Does anyone have instructions on how to get
> to the
> tuning-staves? They are quite well hidden in there.
> Do I have to
> dismantle the entire instrument? Can a regular
> piano-tuner tune the A200?
> 
> Also: If anyone have any mods to make it quieter
> and/or funkier in a
> way, I would aprecciate some tips.
> 
> Peace & love
> Trond
> 
> 
The noisy part - the early Wurlitzer electric pianos
used a fairly high voltage (about 300 v if I remember
correctly) in the sensing circuits. As the instrument
got older and dirt, etc. got inside, it would create
leakage paths. The mechanism needs cleaning. Its been
20 years since I was inside one - be SURE that power
is off and give it enough time for circuits to
discharge.

Each tone is made by a little "tine"  The standard
method of tuning is: to raise pitch, one must use a
file and remove a bit of the lead weighting at the end
of the tine. How much is determined by trial and
error. To lower pitch, one must use a good size
soldering iron to add lead weighting to the end of the
tine so that it will lower the pitch, then file it off
until it is on pitch.

The tuning process takes a large amount of time, and
skills that most current piano tuners will not have.
It is also fairly easy to break a tine (playing or
fixing). All Wurlitzer parts were bought by a service
company when Wurlitzer went bankrupt. The company is: 
Morelock's Organ Parts (Parts and Service for all US
built  Wurlitzer Organs and Electronic Pianos)
Mark Morelock
37-A Main Street
Rienzi, MS 38865
662-462-7611 - Phone
662-462-7611 - Fax
morelocksorgan@... 

I do not know if they still have the tines or not,
they probably have some of them. Each one has a
number, sequential from the lower end of the keyboard.

Good luck,

Jim Cason
Former musical instrument technician

Thanks for your reply.

...so, if a piano-tuner can't tune it, I guess i'll be stuck with my
own ears and a chromatic tuner I guess :-)

Off to find my soldering-iron...

Trond
 
--- In vintagesynthrepair@yahoogroups.com, James Cason <jlcason@...>
wrote:

>
> 
> --- Ill tell you in private <trondned@...>
> wrote:
> 
> > My beloved Wurlitzer piano is totaly out of tune,
> > and a bit quirky and
> > noisy. Does anyone have instructions on how to get
> > to the
> > tuning-staves? They are quite well hidden in there.
> > Do I have to
> > dismantle the entire instrument? Can a regular
> > piano-tuner tune the A200?
> > 
> > Also: If anyone have any mods to make it quieter
> > and/or funkier in a
> > way, I would aprecciate some tips.
> > 
> > Peace & love
> > Trond
> > 
> > 
> The noisy part - the early Wurlitzer electric pianos
> used a fairly high voltage (about 300 v if I remember
> correctly) in the sensing circuits. As the instrument
> got older and dirt, etc. got inside, it would create
> leakage paths. The mechanism needs cleaning. Its been
> 20 years since I was inside one - be SURE that power
> is off and give it enough time for circuits to
> discharge.
> 
> Each tone is made by a little "tine"  The standard
> method of tuning is: to raise pitch, one must use a
> file and remove a bit of the lead weighting at the end
> of the tine. How much is determined by trial and
> error. To lower pitch, one must use a good size
> soldering iron to add lead weighting to the end of the
> tine so that it will lower the pitch, then file it off
> until it is on pitch.
> 
> The tuning process takes a large amount of time, and
> skills that most current piano tuners will not have.
> It is also fairly easy to break a tine (playing or
> fixing). All Wurlitzer parts were bought by a service
> company when Wurlitzer went bankrupt. The company is: 
> Morelock's Organ Parts (Parts and Service for all US
> built  Wurlitzer Organs and Electronic Pianos)
> Mark Morelock
> 37-A Main Street
> Rienzi, MS 38865
> 662-462-7611 - Phone
> 662-462-7611 - Fax
> morelocksorgan@... 
> 
> I do not know if they still have the tines or not,
> they probably have some of them. Each one has a
> number, sequential from the lower end of the keyboard.
> 
> Good luck,
> 
> Jim Cason
> Former musical instrument technician
>

> ...so, if a piano-tuner can't tune it, I guess i'll be stuck with my
> own ears and a chromatic tuner I guess :-)

Your ears will serve you well, but the tuner will only get you in the ball 
park.
There are so many notes and it's so painfule to do that (I think) it's a big
enough challenge getting  them tuned to each other -- making it absolutely 
on
pitch is very tough.

> Off to find my soldering-iron...

It better be a big soldering iron.  The process is more like soldering 
copper
pipework than electronics. You need a LOT of heat.

I haven't done one since the early 90's and I can't say I miss it.

GB

Yeah, tried tuning a grand piano once using a combination of a tuner
and my ears. Got it better than it was, but not at all good enough for
studio-use. No wonder there's a four year long education for being a
piano-tuner. The tempered scale is a harsh mistress ;-)

Trond



--- In vintagesynthrepair@yahoogroups.com, "GB" <grantbt@...> wrote:
>
> > ...so, if a piano-tuner can't tune it, I guess i'll be stuck with my
> > own ears and a chromatic tuner I guess :-)
> 
> Your ears will serve you well, but the tuner will only get you in
the ball 
> park.
> There are so many notes and it's so painfule to do that (I think)
it's a big
> enough challenge getting  them tuned to each other -- making it
absolutely 

> on
> pitch is very tough.
> 
> > Off to find my soldering-iron...
> 
> It better be a big soldering iron.  The process is more like soldering 
> copper
> pipework than electronics. You need a LOT of heat.
> 
> I haven't done one since the early 90's and I can't say I miss it.
> 
> GB
>

On Sunday 26 August 2007 15:09, GB wrote:
> > ...so, if a piano-tuner can't tune it, I guess i'll be stuck with my
> > own ears and a chromatic tuner I guess :-)
>
> Your ears will serve you well, but the tuner will only get you in the ball
> park. There are so many notes and it's so painfule to do that (I think) it's
> a big enough challenge getting  them tuned to each other -- making it
> absolutely on pitch is very tough.

A strobe tuner helps.  :-)  Wish I had one these days...

> > Off to find my soldering-iron...
>
> It better be a big soldering iron.  The process is more like soldering
> copper pipework than electronics. You need a LOT of heat.

It's not _that_ bad.  I use an Ungar with a 45W element and that's plenty!

> I haven't done one since the early 90's and I can't say I miss it.

Nor do I,  though it's been some time for me as well.  Not only is the process 
of tuning them cumbersome,  but you get to align the thing in the slot each 
time you have a go at it,  making it more time-consuming.

-- 
Member of the toughest, meanest, deadliest, most unrelenting -- and
ablest -- form of life in this section of space,  a critter that can
be killed but can't be tamed.  --Robert A. Heinlein, "The Puppet Masters"
-
Information is more dangerous than cannon to a society ruled by lies. --James 
M Dakin

Thank you for the replys on my post. I'll go try and fix it as soon as
I have the time.

Trond




--- In vintagesynthrepair@yahoogroups.com, "Roy J. Tellason"
<rtellason@...> wrote:
>
> On Sunday 26 August 2007 15:09, GB wrote:
> > > ...so, if a piano-tuner can't tune it, I guess i'll be stuck with my
> > > own ears and a chromatic tuner I guess :-)
> >
> > Your ears will serve you well, but the tuner will only get you in
the ball
> > park. There are so many notes and it's so painfule to do that (I
think) it's
> > a big enough challenge getting  them tuned to each other -- making it
> > absolutely on pitch is very tough.
> 
> A strobe tuner helps.  :-)  Wish I had one these days...
> 
> > > Off to find my soldering-iron...
> >
> > It better be a big soldering iron.  The process is more like soldering
> > copper pipework than electronics. You need a LOT of heat.
> 
> It's not _that_ bad.  I use an Ungar with a 45W element and that's
plenty!
> 
> > I haven't done one since the early 90's and I can't say I miss it.
> 
> Nor do I,  though it's been some time for me as well.  Not only is
the process 
> of tuning them cumbersome,  but you get to align the thing in the
slot each 
> time you have a go at it,  making it more time-consuming.
> 
> -- 
> Member of the toughest, meanest, deadliest, most unrelenting -- and
> ablest -- form of life in this section of space,  a critter that can
> be killed but can't be tamed.  --Robert A. Heinlein, "The Puppet
Masters"
> -
> Information is more dangerous than cannon to a society ruled by
lies. --James 
> M Dakin
>