<HTML><BODY style="word-wrap: break-word; -khtml-nbsp-mode: space; -khtml-line-break: after-white-space; "><DIV>Hey Fred</DIV>That's exactly the machine, but she only has one barrel for this one. Faventia barrel piano, made in Barcelona. The "hammers" are mounted on what look like the plastic damper levers we love to hate. Here's another one from a recent Ebay listing that shows some detail.<DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV><A href="http://cgi.ebay.com/Rare-Antique-Faventia-Barrel-Piano-Hurdy-Gurdy-W-Cart_W0QQitemZ320022817107QQihZ011QQcategoryZ359QQcmdZViewItem">http://cgi.ebay.com/Rare-Antique-Faventia-Barrel-Piano-Hurdy-Gurdy-W-Cart_W0QQitemZ320022817107QQihZ011QQcategoryZ359QQcmdZViewItem</A><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>The "hammers" on this one actually rested on the string, in a way serving as both the hammer and the damper simultaneously and what sustain exists happens because the hammer becomes like a fret, like "hammering on" with a fretted instrument. Although I started out trying to do it like you described, there was no way to pluck them without holding back the hammer and that gave nearly a whole step lower tone. Each hammer has a sort of "lip" on top that appears to be made just for the purpose of pulling back on the hammer and letting go for tuning, although there gets to be a pretty small space in the treble. I tuned them that way as best I could with my SAT and it turned out sounding exactly like the one on the rebuilder's web site, so I figured I'd gotten it right.</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>I was able to use my APSCO/Hale size 1 tuning tip. I don't know if a Schaff #1 would have worked. I didn't have one with me. The pins may have indeed been smaller than 1/0. I don't see many 1/0 pins in our part of the world and I didn't measure them. I wasn't aware an in-between size existed, so I just assumed they might be 1/0. The lady did tell me she'd tried to have another piano tuner tune it once before, but that tuner apparently didn't have a tip that small.</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>I wound up with this customer after putting magnetic signs on my truck. She saw my truck in her neighborhood and called. Paula actually set up the appointment for me and I didn't get to talk to her until either late Friday or early Saturday. But that was the first time I began to be suspicious that we weren't talking about a real hurdy gurdy. She was so thrilled I was able to get her "hurdy gurdy" going, she insisted I accept $50. It's not far from my house, so I didn't mind that at all. It turned out to be an "icing on the cake" finish for a decent Saturday's work, and I was home early enough to rest a while before the UGA/USC game.</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>Jeff</DIV><BR><DIV><DIV>On Sep 12, 2006, at 10:14 AM, Fred Sturm wrote:</DIV><BR class="Apple-interchange-newline"><BLOCKQUOTE type="cite">Hi Jeff,<DIV><SPAN class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </SPAN>I have a similar "hurdy gurdy" in my "client base" (referral from a close friend), though mine is made in Barcelona (name escapes me), has the crank on the side, and has six settings: each cylinder has six songs on it, and it has two cylinders. Fascinating little device. Hammers made of that elbow plastic (though none breaking yet) with a slip of wood in a slot at the tip which actually hits the strings. The hammers are close to the strings, and are mounted much like upright damper levers that don't quite touch the strings, with similar springs. The nubs on the cylinder act on the bottom of the lever to move the hammer away from the string, then suddenly release, and the flex in the system allows the hammer to hit the string and rebound. Troublesome to tune, as the pins are much smaller than 1/0 but larger than zither (my smallest piano tip just barely doesn't strip), and the space available to pluck the strings is minute. A bit of music wire is the best plucker I've found.</DIV><DIV><SPAN class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </SPAN>Nice aspect of tuning it: the client brings it to me.<BR><DIV> <SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: auto; -khtml-text-decorations-in-effect: none; text-indent: 0px; -apple-text-size-adjust: auto; text-transform: none; orphans: 2; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: auto; -khtml-text-decorations-in-effect: none; text-indent: 0px; -apple-text-size-adjust: auto; text-transform: none; orphans: 2; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; "><DIV>Regards,</DIV><DIV>Fred Sturm</DIV><DIV>University of New Mexico</DIV><DIV><A href="mailto:fssturm@unm.edu">fssturm@unm.edu</A></DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><BR class="Apple-interchange-newline"></SPAN></SPAN></DIV></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></DIV><BR></DIV></BODY></HTML>