Automatic Musical Company
Pipe Chests

(Photograph courtesy of John Rutoskey)

Automatic Reliable piano with pipes #20634, made in 1907. The compact pipe chest is shown in front of the piano action. The toe board is drilled for symmetrically-arranged metal pipes.

(Photograph courtesy of John Rutoskey)

Automatic piano #20634 with the pipe chest removed. The capstans mounted in the keys behind the balance rail push up on valves in the pipe chest, blowing air into the pipes.

(Photograph courtesy of John Rutoskey)

Valve on left end of the pipe chest in Automatic piano #20,634. The spring normally holds the valve shut. The metal rod descending from the wooden lever connects to a lever on the underside of the keybed, for manually turning the pipes and off. There is no automatic control.

(Photograph courtesy of John Rutoskey)

Because the piano keys actuate the pipe valves and are in musical order from left to right, but the pipes are arranged symmetrically with the lowest notes in the middle, the pipe chest has tubing crossing from left to right to conduct the air from the valves to the correct pipes.