This action was used in Steger, Artemis and other players made by the Steger Piano Co. of Steger, Ill. The stack of the 1920's has unit pneumatics with pushrods for the lower two decks and metal fingers for the top deck. The pouch board is on the front of the stack. Each valve hangs vertically from a zephyr skin tab which is glued between the wood valve button and inside leather facing; the valve has an adjustable threaded stem with a tiny wood pouch button. The inside seats are wood; the outside seats are rectangular aluminum plates, gasketed to the chest with various layers of blotter paper and pouch leather which control the valve travel. The pneumatic screws onto the outside of the aluminum plate, with another leather gasket; the two long pneumatic screws plus two shorter ones hold the valve plate to the stack. The natural tendency of the valve is to hang at a slight angle, since the zephyr skin tab is not over the valve's center of gravity. If the zephyr skin tabs are stretched, replace them so the valves are centered on their seats. In some examples, the original inside valve facings appear to be in new condition. with no signs of flaking or deterioration, but the leather is so porous that the piano could not have been very airtight when it was new. When re-leathering the valves, choose new leather which is as smooth as possible, and be sure it slides on the valve seat enough to pull tight when suction is applied. Some Artemis players which work well otherwise will not build up suction at

Illus. 6-142. An Artemis pneumatic, valve and valve plate.

Credit for this information goes to Arthur Reblitz, from his fine book 'Player Piano Servicing & Rebuilding'.

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