Posted 3 years ago
AnythingOb…
(1778 items)
Since I showed a bucketful of my chime TUBES a little while ago, and since I came across this the other week too, I thought y'all might be interested to see one (only) of the varieties of the various and asundry *mechanisms* that people have otherwise designed and manufactured alongside them -- so's to be able to play the chimes from a keyboard somewhere instead of manually via-hammer like the ones in the Symphony Orchestra.
https://www.collectorsweekly.com/stories/303499-cathedral-chimes-tubular-bells
This one is as made by the J. C. Deagan Co. of Chicago (like my chime tubes, some Company history is along with their showing too) but I don't believe any of my chimes were ever on it -- that was another set somewhere with little doubt, that are actually likely to be still located in an organ chamber someplace, just with a newer sort of action banging on them now. I'm guessing this one left the Chicago factory in the 1950's sometime.
Pic 1 is the entire assembly consisting of 21 essentially identical double-solenoid mechanisms mounted side by side to a sturdy wooden rail. (and wired to the electrical connections on the left upper edge) The DEAGAN serial number plate in the middle is shown in pic 2 with the topside of a "damper" solenoid, in its at-rest position. The chimes themselves are suspended from each one of these on the funny little brackets, and hang with the top of each tube directly underneath its "damper" which gently rests atop it.
Pic 3 shows the whole thing laying on its back, the "damper" is lifted closer to its coil and I've used a screwdriver handle to wedge the "striker" outside of its own solenoid coil of the mechanism on the end. This mimics what would happen when one of the mechanisms is actuated -- a "note is played", that is -- both coils work together, and the "damper" moves up off of its chime tube as its "striker" bounces out of its coil (against a spring) and whacks the top edge of it at the same time. Ring-a-ding-a-ling...?! (and the little old church ladies swoon and wilt, then donate a little extra to their weekly offering check, so they can afford to pay somebody like me to keep all those likewise elderly electrical parts in proper working order, yada yada, LOL)
Pic 4 is one more related thing that's not so interesting to look at, just a box full of a couple banks of little relays that go between various parts of low voltage stuff. Its hard to see, but that box also carries the DEAGAN name in a small logo applied at top center of the box cover, which is made to be removable by undoing thumbscrews. The cable coiled up with it connects that box to the chime rail itself, and wiring from the organ's mechanism in turn connects to it.
