There is a tool in America called an “easy out” that could have removed those broken screws. If they are available to you, invest in one for future use. Also, possibly if there was enough to attach to, a set of “vise grips” would work also.
My dad used to call them "easy outs" as well. He picked that up from his time in the RAF. There are lots of UA-cam videos about screw extractors. Basically, you carefully drill a hole in the sheared bolt then insert the extractor which has a left-hand, tapered thread. You screw that in to the newly drilled hole (remember to turn the "wrong" way to screw it in) then you keep turning and the bolt will come out. You just need to be careful when drilling the hole so as not to let it slip into the wood. Here is a video: ua-cam.com/video/8bHLfisarN0/v-deo.html Here is a set of ectractors from Halfords: www.halfords.com/tools/hand-tools/automotive-tools/laser-6-piece-screw-extractor-set-694448.html
The replies to your dilemma here are "spot on," for sure. So, if you are able to find an "easy out" screw extractor, then you will be left with two empty holes. Oh, what do you do? I'm a retired woodworking teacher and have shown hundreds of students how to repair just this very kind of problem. Well, to restore your pedal board surface so you can insert a new screw into or near where the now-extracted screws were located, you can glue a wooden golf tee (or similar solid wooden piece) into that hole. Slice off any top to the inserted piece which might be protruding, then get your drill ready, make new screw holes, and replace the proper kind of screw so your "Middle D" pedal is restored to "good as new" condition and you can Bach all day!! Best of luck! --Dr. Larry Anderson • Tupelo, MS (birthplace of Elvis)
Try searching for "remove broken screw from wood no head" on UA-cam - tons of videos. What have we learned from this episode? 1) If it ain't broke, don't fix it, especially before a major recital. 2) You really need that new organ.
This reminds me of the time when one of our cats got into my console through the swell pedal opening, and trod around on the contacts of the pedalboard. It took ages to re-align all the little contact wires. Not my favourite cat.😆😆😆🙀🙀
If I had a spare wooden leg, it would now be winging its way to sunny SLOUGH's AirFreight's Shed (Steady on, Trevor, Steady on)! So Bless-ed be that special wooden leg, no longer longer to languish in Trevor's shed, but now (metaphorically) winging its way across the Oceans so deep, so our dear Leader Richard can shape it and play the pedal's ..... D-PEEP???? (GET THE TUNERS IN .... NOW!)
As someone who has never played the organ, it was still interesting to see how you managed to damage yours multiple times 😆 I can imagine the look on your face during the damaging and the colourful language that ensued! 🤣
Lucky you, that the screw was the thing to break. I was working with my former choir director and long time mentor on repairing the pedalboard for the organ at the cathedral we perform at. Multiple of those brackets at the back of the pedal were snapped during the endeavor, unfortunately. Do you have a supplier that you got your brackets from? It's been nearly a year and we're looking for a reliable source for some.
I was an apprentice organ builder in the early 1970's before digital was even dreamed of. Those pedal boards had to have a contact wire for each stop in the pedal division. They all had to "fire" at the same time, which meant actually "tuning" each pedal key AND all it's contacts. Took such a long time, and it had to be done in the shop with test equipment. The design was a little different from yours. As I recall, each pedal key had a copper plate on the front that was the same width as the key itself. When you pressed a key, that plate came in contact with wire "fingers", which were mounted in blocks and attached to the pedal board frame. Organ part suppliers sold these wire blocks in their catalogs. Wiring was a nightmare. So, if you had 5 stops in the pedal division, each pedal key would contact 5 wires in the frame. Plus the ground cable was there too, which had to be bigger to carry the current. 5 wires per note at 32 notes, that's a bundle of 160 individual wires, all the same color (cloth covered copper), so no coding -- and testing took such a long time! EVERY wire had to be labeled individually. Oh, and for connectors, sometimes we used 50 pin telephone connectors. They were hard to get though. Older organ installations not so nice, -- no connectors, so they just ran miles of wire into the relay room! So, YAY for MIDI and ribbon cable! Makes everything so much easier! Glad you got it fixed.
At what resistance do you have your pedal set? AGO is 2-1/2 to 3 pounds resistance (which I find to be too light). I checked with a number of builders, many of whom use 3 pounds. However, Joe Dzeda has the Yale organs (at least Woolsey Hall) set to 3-1/2 pounds resistance (which I find to be about right). Hill, Norman and Beard set theirs to 4 pounds. Just wondering....
Check out some wood screw extractors. They are tubular with saw teeth and drill around the broken screw. Then fill the hole with an epoxy-based woof filler.
I do miss the days when I used to crawl around inside pipe organs to fix ciphers and other failed connections. DIY means no bill from repair service! It also educated me for the future.
Thanks for this! I have 3 pedal notes not playing on my Rodgers 350, and now I am confident that I can get down on my knees and give it the "once over.
remove the old broken screw head, then reuse the original hole by placing a piece of wood, like a match or two and glue the into the hole. When dry place the screw in place and you should have it! Bloody good fix! The same fix goes for door hinges that become loose from the frame. This should last forever!
Really pleased I found this video. My son has just acquired a Viscount DK900 which hasn’t been played for over a decade. It has a completely non sounding pedal, a pedal that sticks down and a pedal that bounces around a lot. I am hoping that I will be able to fix them though am a bit scared I will do more damage than good… I have no DIY skills and minimal budget. Any advice gratefully received!
Good to see how the pedal mechanism works Richard, surprisingly simple, but obviously does the trick...for future ref you can buy a kit on eBay for removing broken screws, under £10. ( Smoothsilk )
I had the exact same problem with my pedal problem when I first got my organ. Used the same exact fix. I have an Eb that is not making good contact, now I know how to repair it. On my Great, I have about 5 notes that make this horrible clacking sound when they are played.
If not entirely happy with your own DIY work, would a good local cabinet maker be less expensive for a job like this than a registered organ builder? A cabinet maker would know the best grade of screws to use as well as thread inserts to avoid stripping.
Good grief. Get yourself a long piece of ribbon cable and two connectors to replace that dog's breakfast you have created here. The connectors simply snap on under pressure (use a vise) and pierce the insulation in the process.
I see the easy out has already been suggested, with a piece off hack saw you could turn it into a slotted screw. Some 25 years ago I built a 11rank pipe organ into my home in Victoria BC CA. A few month after I completed the organ my eldest Daughter came to visit and brought her cat mc Gyver the next day he dissapeared and later that day when I played my organ I realized GMcyver hadn't liked the sound of the organ and decided to retune it, and now I didn't like it. He found his way into the pipe room through the swell pedal.It took most of the next day to repair and tune. Enjoyed your pedal repair D I Y
Golden rule is to never over tighten a screw or nut & bolt. Experience has taught you how important this is! Keep up the good work communicating your success and problems you encounter while bringing us so much pleasure with the music you play. DIY repairs can bring a nice feeling of achievement and pleasure as well as being challenging at times. You are a real inspiration to us!
“Overtighten” is a bit of a unspecified statement. Every nut/bolt has its own specs on how much torque can be applied. In case for the nuts of car wheels, you can stand with your entire bodyweight on the wrench without problem. For a pedalboard there is probably no specification for the momentum so its just guessing and learning by experience. The only scientific proper way of tensioning bolts/nuts is looking up the amount of newtonmeter (torque) in a manual and using a torque wrench. Any other method is just gambling & fingers crossed & chance for failure (either bolt too loose or too tight, both not good)
@@Engineer9736 You are quite right, how tight is tight before it breaks! After watching your video about increasing the amount resistance you feel when playing the pedals on your organ, this bright spark decided to copy what you did. I have a 20 year old Viscount Prestige 5 and the screws on the pedal board have hexagon nut heads. Methinks Viscount may have used some stronger screws because of the problem you have experienced (this is assuming your organ maybe slightly older possibly). Thankfully I didn't break any screws. Nor will I attempt to tinker with it any more! I have however connected 4 studio monitors and a sub woofer to the external outputs, because the internal speakers were not working properly. Sounds good now too and plenty of real bass!
Very interesting insight into the working and adjustment of pedals. If you had drilled a pilot hole for the second (subsequently broken) screw, its head would have been less likely to snap off - important when screwing into hardwood. I admire your patience in using a "chocolate-block" strip to join the two ribbon cables; but wouldn't solder joints have been quicker? Some strain-relief (e.g. clamp the ribbon to the frame) would make ripping the ribbon from the plug less likely.
Actually, it was originally designed in such a way that both black screws are completely tightened in order to ensure the best possible contact between the spring and pedal, so that the retaining screw does not have to go so far and with so much pressure into the wood - since the holes have to be pre-drilled very tightly. Otherwise, that's exactly what happens 🔩💥⚰️. If they are so loose it is only because no one has tightened them for 25-28 years. These are the first to look if you lose the keystroke or if you suddenly hear strange noises. In any case, it was a dangerous experiment by Viscount to completely do without the front torsion springs. What pleases and fascinates me, however, is that the contact springs still work so well 👍 As a precaution, I always throw them out of the pedals and replace them with reed switches. But nice to see them still working.
Very interesting about the 2 black screws. By looking at them, I'd assumes that the rear screw was meant to be loose to allow it it flex? It's a very odd design and the result is an inconsistent feel across the pedalboard. Do you have experience in this?
I have the same pedalboard on the organ I'm currently building so this is really most interesting! The Viscount Pedalboards are good aren't they? (except when they malfunction as here!)
Well that’s what happens when you get a cheap console. Seriously that organ is from a cheap company. Should’ve gotten an Allen console and I bet that would’ve never happened.
haha there simply weren't many organs around at a price I could afford at the time. It's done me well though, and it shows people what amazing things can be done on a modest budget.
Oh my goodness, why do people play around adjustments with no feelings for the forces and mechanical know how. Try to imagine, what for forces occure through this lever. And then you bend the leaf springs in that great angle. So the screw head will get bending forces cause it seats not flat on the leaf spring. Axial forces for the screw... OK, but not the bending forces. That occurs the break of the screw. Often these screws are hardened like spax screws. So they don't like bending. The best would let the pedal be in original adjustment. Or you need special washers that bring no tension forces to the screw head. Avoid bringing high forces at only one Side of the screw head. A better idea to generate higher pedal forces is to install additional normal pedal springs at the front end (contact side of the pedal)
The problem was that the pedals were so loose that I'd barely need to even touch them before they sounded. I usually try to do my own fixes (this is how I learn how things are made) and if I make it worse I pay for the expert to come and fix it. By the way, the builder of this organ (Visount) is coming to my house soon to give the organ a service, so I wasn't too worried about getting my hands dirty as I knew that soon the experts will be here :)
Fantastic video. Thank you for sharing your trials and tribulations. That is a rather elegant contact solution that viscount has on that organ. I know reed switches are more common now but I like the simplicity and adjustability of that!! Loved your production elements in this video. Bravo!
Yes indeed.... But the screw genuinely wasn't very tight. I think it had just rusted over the years and it makes me worried that the other ones might do the same!
That cable which you had to repair is a typical computer cable. There are replacement connectors which you can get on web sites like Amazon.com. Just get one male and one female of the right size and they usually are designed so that, using some tool, one can simply clamp the whole thing onto the nonseparated and nonstripped wires and little needles will bite through the wires, connecting them to the connectors, and the snap clip included with the connectors will hold the cables into place.
Cheers Steven. When I broke the cable, I was so short on time before my online concert that I just did the best I could in the time frame. Now it's working, I'm happy to leave it like it is until Viscount themselves come round to give the organ a service (which is in the near future).
Really good presentation and ingenious repair. I've able to do 5he same thing by substituting a disk magnet and reed switch in lieu of mechanical switches. This is the Allen Organ pedalboard configuration, which works really well. Again, thank youn
Nice to see, you can help yourself :) As I built my full console as a DIY project, I do know exactly what you are talking about. And I am a bit "shocked" to see the simplicity of viscounts pedal construction ;) Feel free to watch all of my DIY-videos on my channel! Maybe you may get some ideas for your future console?
If you find yourself having to disassemble and re-assemble any wooden structure, PLEASE remember when restarting screws to turn the COUNTERCLOCKWISE first until they slip into the previous threads, then tighten as usual. Otherwise you’ll end up with stripped out screw holes.
Having been an organ builder it's good to see the insides a bit. My organ story. Install a moved organ I made a cable from the console to the windchest. I measured every dimension in the route the cable would take. Got to the end, short 3 inches! I made a junction board, wired it up, problem fixed. From then on I was introduced, "This is Lawrence. (always a slight pause here) He makes cables too short, (with emphasis) but only at one end." Your cable extension work looked familiar. Two questions: 1) Is your pedalboard in the AGO standard? It looks a bit straighter, less radiating. 2) Will you splurge for new blocks for the new organ? Paul Callaway, organist at Washington Cathedral for 30 years or so, was short of stature so the pedal board was mounted on a hydraulic lift. No more hymnals under the bench. Thanks for this; it was great fun.
Thanks for the DYI video .Helpful to know a few adjustments a non organ technician can do with adjusting a few scews. Agree--DON'T make any minor changes that end up major on the DAY of the recital.
Very interesting! Quite a process. Loved the stories: moral: don't start adjustments/repairs on day of recital: "Murphy's Law": there will be extra problems! I admire your knowledge & ability at EVERY level of organs ! Continue using your wonderful talents!
That all looked so familiar. I moved my beloved (but very old) Viscount to my new house. After lugging the thing up two flights of stairs, and re-assembling it everything worked...almost. A few of pedal switches (the same design as on your pedal board) had broken off in transit. A quick repair, but these things happen. Stewart
Good evening, I just wondered if you in your new instrument have considered a pedalboard that uses toe springs in stead of heel springs. If you’re putting screws in and out may I suggest you firstly drill a pilot hole, then put the screw into some Vaseline to aid the screw going in and less likely to shear off! Cheers! ross
Very grateful for this video. I have been wondering how I was going to repair a pedal note which doesn’t always sound immediately when played. I recognised this as a Viscount of the same vintage as mine. I had asked the agent over here who is very helpful but he hadn’t taken apart a pedalboard. After seeing this I pulled the covers off to expose the connectors. The first thing to do was to thoroughly clean as much as possible. The connectors are fragile so great care is needed to remove dust and cobwebs from the chamber with a small dry clean paint brush. Then using cotton sticks and alcohol such as methylated spirits gently clean the contacts. Surprising how much dirt had collected on them but everything now works fine. Yes it is a cheaper way of manufacture than other makes using magnetic switches and the chamber is not completely dust proof so advise cleaning when opened up and obviously some TLC.
Your pedal board is considerably easier to work on than the one on my little three-rank pipe organ. The pedals in mine are hardwired with a thick umbilical electrical cable to the console because under each pedal is a six-finger contact block. One of those tiny tiny fingers broke off one of the pedals (middle F) so I am now lacking the second note in the pedal mixture on that key. I need to either replace the contact block (egad) or do some electronic trickery with a diode. Oh, and did I mention that the pedal board is a full-size AGO radial pedal board and it weighs a bl**ding ton! It doesn't help that the swell pedal is also mounted on it, adding to the weight and complexity of disassembly for service. Despite my organ being around 40 years older than your Viscount, the pedals are sprung in a similar fashion and can be tricky to adjust. My low D has to be tweaked with the seasons to adjust to changing humidity. Great stuff, and thanks for the video, count me in as one who enjoys organs both inside and outside!
Interesting; I had no idea how pedals were tensioned, and didn't know they could be adjusted. Will your new console have a contact-less pedal board (I think it's called "Hall-effect")? I've seen this on Allen pretend-organs, and they seem to survive rough stage-hands (at least for a while)!
Great video, very helpful. I have a couple of pedal notes that can sometimes be intermittent depending on how they are played. Perhaps they are loose and aren't always making contact. Now you've given me the confidence I'm going to open up the pedalboard and attempt the DIY..wish me luck!
I’ve had a lowrey to practice on for a long time now and so far the only thing that ever happened to it was a tiny bulb over the controls doesn’t light up anymore. At that point I decided it was useless and threw it away (I’m kidding)
Lower G Pedal on tracker organ I play, the wood separated, so wobbled about. The organist at the time went off to get some wood glue. Meanwhile, a DIY'er at the church knowing about the problem, decided to fix the problem by screwing the wood back together. Like you, I play in socks, and get splinters in my foot every now and then from that pedal.
Always fun to see other folks deal with those little repairs which snowball from simple to aggravating. I remember when your ribbon connector broke just before your recital. I'm paranoid about ribbon connectors, so tedious to repair. Thanks for sharing your successful fix, Richard!
My high G on my pedal doesn't work; but then again, it doesn't matter too much. It's good to know that a bit of too much tension might break the heads off those screws/bolts. Yes, there are tools to take the thread residue out and then your screw would could be in a better original location.
Maybe if you apply the tip of a soldering iron to the end of the broken screw, for about 30 seconds it will expand the metal which after cooling will shrink and allow you to dig it out
You will need to use an screw extractor and replace it with the correct screw. The head of the screw could be the problem. The one you replaced it with was not wide enough.
I am surprised to see the pedal contacts are wire, my Wyvern console, built in 2003 has hall effect switches mounted on PCB's and also toe springs. I would have expected to see reed switches with magnets, perhaps Viscount were experimenting
It is a cheaper way of manufacture and in my earlier post I described how to clean them. The chamber is not completely sealed so dust and cob webs will sneak in - a disadvantage to reed switches with magnets. A spring bends over the wire when pedal is depressed to make contact. Still it is surprising how long they last as it certainly looked flimsy when I opened up my pedalboard
Pedal boards normally have a spring under the front of the pedal (into the front pedal peg board) which provides the 'real' return pressure, and allows the pedal foot pressure to be adjusted. Cannot see that here? Probably worth fitting a set.
@@Engineer9736 From my experience , well built pedal boards will usually have front springs underneath each pedal. Yes, as you say, what you have must be a different design, although I am surprised you can get the correct amount of top pressure without front springs, and by just adjusting the back plates. Anyway, if it works for you - it is good!
Hi Richard, small world! I fixed the identical issue today on my VTPO that I built last year. The difference is where the leaf springs attach, I'm using 70mm M5 bolts that go all the way through the wood, to the underside of the pedalboard. That way if any shear off (as happened today!) you don't run the risk of the screw getting stuck in the wood. It was a modification I made last year when I bought the pedalboard 2nd hand. When I got it home, I had to clean out all the bits of foam, sponge, corrugated card folded in half.... suffice to say I did a total strip down and refurb!!
May I suggest . 1) Buy a new identical cable from Viscout. 2) You ought to drill out broken bolts. Purchase a small set of taps with left hand threads to screw into the centre of broken bolts having drilled a small hole into both stubs. Screw in small taps purchased. When both broken bolts removed glue in small dowels of wood. Allow to dry overnight. Redrill new hole replace same bolt as used by manufacturer. Job done ! You give me a few brush up your organ playing lessons and I will sought your repairs jobs for you. YES ?
Cheers for the help. The organ is being serviced by Viscount in the coming weeks so I'll leave it to them. It just makes me more eager for the new organ!
Carefully drill a hole in the broken screw and then use a left hand threaded extractor to screw the offending piece out. This is a painstakingly difficult process and needs much care. Maybe near impossible on small screws.
To remove broken screws, cut a slot in the embedded part using a Dremel tool, then use a common flat head screwdriver to take it out. Insert a wooden dowel in the hole where the broken screw was originally, drill a pilot hole in the centre of the dowel and use a fresh screw with hex head (you can also fit a penny washer under the new screw). As to the MIDI cable, that’s an IDC header connector. Cut the ribbon cable exactly square, fit in the new IDC connector and press uniformly so that the V-shaped pins will cut through each of the individual cables making up the ribbon.
Even though I think that by now you have solved the problem, if you ever come to it again (or rather it comes back to you) just let me know and I will send you detailed information.
Yes I agree it would seem a better option as long as they were not breaking any patent at the time which is hard to imagine . Yamaha tried to snatch some of the digital technology from the Allen Organ Co which had the sole patent for a number of years. It resulted in litigation with Yamaha having to pay royalties until the patent expired and I think an agreement in the settlement that Yamaha would not enter the classical organ market
Pedals will not play properly if the back mounting screws are loose, or sagging. If a screw snapped off, try to carefully dig around the screw so that you can get a vise-grips around the the screw and back it out. Reinstall a longer, larger diameter screw to remount. You might want to think about putting compressions springs like those found on pneumatic chests under the screws with a washer to give you some adjustment on the pedal tension. You also need to use a screw with a big enough head to NOT break off. You can back the broken screws out with a vise-grips pliers which locks on the screw as you tighten the grip. See hardware store. You can use the vice-grips pliers vertically instead of horizontally to back the screw(s) out. It is time-consuming and knuckle-busting. I know, I've done it. Once again, use a compression spring under the screw head with washer, which will give you more adjustability without tightening so hard. Should really do the whole pedal board with springs. This is not an uncommon problem with pedal boards, when you have rear-mounted spring steel suspension.
@@beautyinsound Yes. I have a Rodgers pedal board. The contacts are magnetic reeds on the front end, but the back mount is the same. I have had a number of the screw heads snap off. I've seen pedal boards with a compression springs under the screw head. Gives you a softer constant tension, which has greater adjustment. I bought springs on Amazon....haven't had the energy to install them, yet. Organ builders use similar springs on the wind chests to keep the bottom boards tight to avoid air leaks as the weather makes the wood swell or shrink. Virtual organ console enhancements are endless.... more pistons, more toe studs, more expression pedals.. adjustable music rack, bench, etc, touch panel screens for stops or launch pad additions!!!!!
Indeed. I own an Allen, and there is no cable between the pedals and the console: magnets in the pedals which butt up to the console, where there are reed switches or something similar. Of course, they are not as adjustable, as the equivalent of the "hook" contact doesn't exist. But I'm not experienced enough to need that kind of fine control.
@@beautyinsound No, in the workshop visit video, your builder clearly said "hall effect sensors" and showed the long, narrow circuit board under the keys populated with hall effect sensor chips. These are semi-conductor devices that detect magnetic fields. Reed switches consist of pairs of iron reed contacts in glass capsules, which attract and touch each other in the presence of a sufficient magnetic field.
I had one of those wiper contacts snap this week, so tried soldering a reed switch on to replace it (with some very small magnets 5mmx1mm from Amazon). Now works very well. And very satisfying to fix myself.
Seems like you could have accessed that tension screw from underneath the pedalboard? Would have saved you undoing and redoing 12 (or so) other screws. Though then the video would have been quite short 😉
i guess We have the exact same pedalboard at "my" organ in the church and (definitly a Design flaw) you can't access the screws from the backside the whole constuction is not Carefully considered
Thank you so much for sharing!! This brought back happy memories of my oldest brother Lupe. He loved music and was always tinkering with his keyboard & guitar. I lost him last October to brain cancer, 73 yrs young. I trust he is with God..so it's all good
When i bought my organ 2nd hand from someone one of the pedal notes sometimes needed almost kick like force to play a note. so i took some contact cleaner to it and voila... it works again the built in organ sound also sometimes cuts out, but i fix that by (not joking here) a hammer to the reverb slider and magically the built in sound works again. I do use hauptwerk mostly
Musician, technician, DYI specialist, dad - a renaissance man!
Best comment, fully agree!😁👍
Does DYI stand for Do Yourself In?
all organ-playing is ... manual labor ;-)
There is a tool in America called an “easy out” that could have removed those broken screws. If they are available to you, invest in one for future use. Also, possibly if there was enough to attach to, a set of “vise grips” would work also.
My dad used to call them "easy outs" as well. He picked that up from his time in the RAF.
There are lots of UA-cam videos about screw extractors. Basically, you carefully drill a hole in the sheared bolt then insert the extractor which has a left-hand, tapered thread. You screw that in to the newly drilled hole (remember to turn the "wrong" way to screw it in) then you keep turning and the bolt will come out. You just need to be careful when drilling the hole so as not to let it slip into the wood.
Here is a video: ua-cam.com/video/8bHLfisarN0/v-deo.html
Here is a set of ectractors from Halfords: www.halfords.com/tools/hand-tools/automotive-tools/laser-6-piece-screw-extractor-set-694448.html
Easy Out for sure. Usually first have to grind down any sharp points to enable a hole to be drilled for the Easy Out.
The replies to your dilemma here are "spot on," for sure. So, if you are able to find an "easy out" screw extractor, then you will be left with two empty holes. Oh, what do you do? I'm a retired woodworking teacher and have shown hundreds of students how to repair just this very kind of problem. Well, to restore your pedal board surface so you can insert a new screw into or near where the now-extracted screws were located, you can glue a wooden golf tee (or similar solid wooden piece) into that hole. Slice off any top to the inserted piece which might be protruding, then get your drill ready, make new screw holes, and replace the proper kind of screw so your "Middle D" pedal is restored to "good as new" condition and you can Bach all day!! Best of luck!
--Dr. Larry Anderson • Tupelo, MS (birthplace of Elvis)
No so easy out when you've got to drill a hole into the bolt to put the easy out into.
GOOD! I need you to come to my house and fix mine! I can offer milk and cookies and some laughs!
I am building a virtual pipe organ console, so it is great to see UA-cam videos that dive into technical aspects like this!
Try searching for "remove broken screw from wood no head" on UA-cam - tons of videos.
What have we learned from this episode?
1) If it ain't broke, don't fix it, especially before a major recital.
2) You really need that new organ.
This reminds me of the time when one of our cats got into my console through the swell pedal opening, and trod around on the contacts of the pedalboard. It took ages to re-align all the little contact wires. Not my favourite cat.😆😆😆🙀🙀
If I had a spare wooden leg, it would now be winging its way to sunny SLOUGH's AirFreight's Shed (Steady on, Trevor, Steady on)! So Bless-ed be that special wooden leg, no longer longer to languish in Trevor's shed, but now (metaphorically) winging its way across the Oceans so deep, so our dear Leader Richard can shape it and play the pedal's ..... D-PEEP???? (GET THE TUNERS IN .... NOW!)
Oh my goodness, you are SO much more daring than I am with this kind of stuff! I call someone to HELP! LOL
As someone who has never played the organ, it was still interesting to see how you managed to damage yours multiple times 😆 I can imagine the look on your face during the damaging and the colourful language that ensued! 🤣
I was a bit miffed, put it that way! When 2 screws broke, I couldn't believe it. I thought this would never happen to GetRevved!
Lucky you, that the screw was the thing to break. I was working with my former choir director and long time mentor on repairing the pedalboard for the organ at the cathedral we perform at. Multiple of those brackets at the back of the pedal were snapped during the endeavor, unfortunately. Do you have a supplier that you got your brackets from? It's been nearly a year and we're looking for a reliable source for some.
Luckily, Viscount themselves sorted it for me and afterwards felt like a new pedalboard.
I was an apprentice organ builder in the early 1970's before digital was even dreamed of.
Those pedal boards had to have a contact wire for each stop in the pedal division. They all had to "fire" at the same time, which meant actually "tuning" each pedal key AND all it's contacts. Took such a long time, and it had to be done in the shop with test equipment.
The design was a little different from yours.
As I recall, each pedal key had a copper plate on the front that was the same width as the key itself. When you pressed a key, that plate came in contact with wire "fingers", which were mounted in blocks and attached to the pedal board frame. Organ part suppliers sold these wire blocks in their catalogs.
Wiring was a nightmare.
So, if you had 5 stops in the pedal division, each pedal key would contact 5 wires in the frame. Plus the ground cable was there too, which had to be bigger to carry the current.
5 wires per note at 32 notes, that's a bundle of 160 individual wires, all the same color (cloth covered copper), so no coding -- and testing took such a long time! EVERY wire had to be labeled individually.
Oh, and for connectors, sometimes we used 50 pin telephone connectors. They were hard to get though. Older organ installations not so nice, -- no connectors, so they just ran miles of wire into the relay room!
So, YAY for MIDI and ribbon cable!
Makes everything so much easier!
Glad you got it fixed.
At what resistance do you have your pedal set? AGO is 2-1/2 to 3 pounds resistance (which I find to be too light). I checked with a number of builders, many of whom use 3 pounds. However, Joe Dzeda has the Yale organs (at least Woolsey Hall) set to 3-1/2 pounds resistance (which I find to be about right). Hill, Norman and Beard set theirs to 4 pounds. Just wondering....
Check out some wood screw extractors. They are tubular with saw teeth and drill around the broken screw. Then fill the hole with an epoxy-based woof filler.
I do miss the days when I used to crawl around inside pipe organs to fix ciphers and other failed connections. DIY means no bill from repair service! It also educated me for the future.
Thanks for this! I have 3 pedal notes not playing on my Rodgers 350, and now I am confident that I can get down on my knees and give it the "once over.
remove the old broken screw head, then reuse the original hole by placing a piece of wood, like a match or two and glue the into the hole. When dry place the screw in place and you should have it! Bloody good fix! The same fix goes for door hinges that become loose from the frame. This should last forever!
JSB must be looking down in hilarious laughter ……..
I have a feeling JSB may have done a few "DIY's" in his day as well - it comes as part of being ... "organ-ized"
@@aBachwardsfellowha ha, puntastic!😁👍
to remove the broken screw, use a drimal drill and make a slot so a screw driver can unscrew it, then remove the screw.
Really pleased I found this video. My son has just acquired a Viscount DK900 which hasn’t been played for over a decade. It has a completely non sounding pedal, a pedal that sticks down and a pedal that bounces around a lot. I am hoping that I will be able to fix them though am a bit scared I will do more damage than good… I have no DIY skills and minimal budget. Any advice gratefully received!
Good to see how the pedal mechanism works Richard, surprisingly simple, but obviously does the trick...for future ref you can buy a kit on eBay for removing broken screws, under £10. ( Smoothsilk )
My "100 days of Passacaglia" came to a screeching halt this week due to a broken pedalboard. The low C gave out.
I had the exact same problem with my pedal problem when I first got my organ. Used the same exact fix. I have an Eb that is not making good contact, now I know how to repair it. On my Great, I have about 5 notes that make this horrible clacking sound when they are played.
If not entirely happy with your own DIY work, would a good local cabinet maker be less expensive for a job like this than a registered organ builder? A cabinet maker would know the best grade of screws to use as well as thread inserts to avoid stripping.
Good grief. Get yourself a long piece of ribbon cable and two connectors to replace that dog's breakfast you have created here. The connectors simply snap on under pressure (use a vise) and pierce the insulation in the process.
OH NO !!!!!!
I see the easy out has already been suggested, with a piece off hack saw you could turn it into a slotted screw. Some 25 years ago I built a 11rank pipe organ into my home in Victoria BC CA. A few month after I completed the organ my eldest Daughter came to visit and brought her cat mc Gyver the next day he dissapeared and later that day when I played my organ I realized GMcyver hadn't liked the sound of the organ and decided to retune it, and now I didn't like it. He found his way into the pipe room through the swell pedal.It took most of the next day to repair and tune. Enjoyed your pedal repair D I Y
I loved the cat!
She's a regular contributor to my videos, as is her little sister :)
Golden rule is to never over tighten a screw or nut & bolt. Experience has taught you how important this is! Keep up the good work communicating your success and problems you encounter while bringing us so much pleasure with the music you play. DIY repairs can bring a nice feeling of achievement and pleasure as well as being challenging at times. You are a real inspiration to us!
“Overtighten” is a bit of a unspecified statement. Every nut/bolt has its own specs on how much torque can be applied. In case for the nuts of car wheels, you can stand with your entire bodyweight on the wrench without problem. For a pedalboard there is probably no specification for the momentum so its just guessing and learning by experience. The only scientific proper way of tensioning bolts/nuts is looking up the amount of newtonmeter (torque) in a manual and using a torque wrench. Any other method is just gambling & fingers crossed & chance for failure (either bolt too loose or too tight, both not good)
@@Engineer9736 You are quite right, how tight is tight before it breaks! After watching your video about increasing the amount resistance you feel when playing the pedals on your organ, this bright spark decided to copy what you did. I have a 20 year old Viscount Prestige 5 and the screws on the pedal board have hexagon nut heads. Methinks Viscount may have used some stronger screws because of the problem you have experienced (this is assuming your organ maybe slightly older possibly). Thankfully I didn't break any screws. Nor will I attempt to tinker with it any more! I have however connected 4 studio monitors and a sub woofer to the external outputs, because the internal speakers were not working properly. Sounds good now too and plenty of real bass!
Very interesting insight into the working and adjustment of pedals. If you had drilled a pilot hole for the second (subsequently broken) screw, its head would have been less likely to snap off - important when screwing into hardwood. I admire your patience in using a "chocolate-block" strip to join the two ribbon cables; but wouldn't solder joints have been quicker? Some strain-relief (e.g. clamp the ribbon to the frame) would make ripping the ribbon from the plug less likely.
I didn’t have a soldering iron to hand, and I was very short of time so had to do what I simply could in the time. It was a nightmare!!
Actually, it was originally designed in such a way that both black screws are completely tightened in order to ensure the best possible contact between the spring and pedal, so that the retaining screw does not have to go so far and with so much pressure into the wood - since the holes have to be pre-drilled very tightly. Otherwise, that's exactly what happens 🔩💥⚰️.
If they are so loose it is only because no one has tightened them for 25-28 years. These are the first to look if you lose the keystroke or if you suddenly hear strange noises.
In any case, it was a dangerous experiment by Viscount to completely do without the front torsion springs.
What pleases and fascinates me, however, is that the contact springs still work so well 👍 As a precaution, I always throw them out of the pedals and replace them with reed switches. But nice to see them still working.
Very interesting about the 2 black screws. By looking at them, I'd assumes that the rear screw was meant to be loose to allow it it flex? It's a very odd design and the result is an inconsistent feel across the pedalboard. Do you have experience in this?
Need work my elec argan
Very peaceful video!
Sorry, but that's not manual labor, that's _pedal_ labor! (Well, I _did_ say I was sorry, didn't I?)
haha!
I have the same pedalboard on the organ I'm currently building so this is really most interesting! The Viscount Pedalboards are good aren't they? (except when they malfunction as here!)
They're ok. I'd prefer them to be a little sturdier, but this one is from the 1990s. Their new pedalboards are undoubtedly better-made!
Well that’s what happens when you get a cheap console. Seriously that organ is from a cheap company. Should’ve gotten an Allen console and I bet that would’ve never happened.
haha there simply weren't many organs around at a price I could afford at the time. It's done me well though, and it shows people what amazing things can be done on a modest budget.
Those bare metal pedal switches are awful. I'd replace them with reed switches and magnets for sure.
Luckily, the new organ will have a pedal board with magnets
Oh my goodness, why do people play around adjustments with no feelings for the forces and mechanical know how. Try to imagine, what for forces occure through this lever. And then you bend the leaf springs in that great angle. So the screw head will get bending forces cause it seats not flat on the leaf spring. Axial forces for the screw... OK, but not the bending forces. That occurs the break of the screw. Often these screws are hardened like spax screws. So they don't like bending. The best would let the pedal be in original adjustment. Or you need special washers that bring no tension forces to the screw head.
Avoid bringing high forces at only one Side of the screw head. A better idea to generate higher pedal forces is to install additional normal pedal springs at the front end (contact side of the pedal)
The problem was that the pedals were so loose that I'd barely need to even touch them before they sounded. I usually try to do my own fixes (this is how I learn how things are made) and if I make it worse I pay for the expert to come and fix it. By the way, the builder of this organ (Visount) is coming to my house soon to give the organ a service, so I wasn't too worried about getting my hands dirty as I knew that soon the experts will be here :)
Fantastic video. Thank you for sharing your trials and tribulations. That is a rather elegant contact solution that viscount has on that organ. I know reed switches are more common now but I like the simplicity and adjustability of that!! Loved your production elements in this video. Bravo!
Just one more thing, don‘t know how to say in Englisch: Erster Hauptsatz der Mechanik: Nach ganz fest, kommt ganz lose…. ;-)))
Yes indeed.... But the screw genuinely wasn't very tight. I think it had just rusted over the years and it makes me worried that the other ones might do the same!
I have a Wyvern organ which is broken for 2 years do you know any electronic engineer who could fix it ?
I'm having my organ serviced in the near future by Viscount themselves. Perhaps they might fix yours? Google 'Viscount Wales'.
That cable which you had to repair is a typical computer cable. There are replacement connectors which you can get on web sites like Amazon.com. Just get one male and one female of the right size and they usually are designed so that, using some tool, one can simply clamp the whole thing onto the nonseparated and nonstripped wires and little needles will bite through the wires, connecting them to the connectors, and the snap clip included with the connectors will hold the cables into place.
Cheers Steven. When I broke the cable, I was so short on time before my online concert that I just did the best I could in the time frame. Now it's working, I'm happy to leave it like it is until Viscount themselves come round to give the organ a service (which is in the near future).
Really good presentation and ingenious repair. I've able to do 5he same thing by substituting a disk magnet and reed switch in lieu of mechanical switches. This is the Allen Organ pedalboard configuration, which works really well. Again, thank youn
😊😊😊
Nice to see, you can help yourself :) As I built my full console as a DIY project, I do know exactly what you are talking about. And I am a bit "shocked" to see the simplicity of viscounts pedal construction ;) Feel free to watch all of my DIY-videos on my channel! Maybe you may get some ideas for your future console?
If you find yourself having to disassemble and re-assemble any wooden structure, PLEASE remember when restarting screws to turn the COUNTERCLOCKWISE first until they slip into the previous threads, then tighten as usual. Otherwise you’ll end up with stripped out screw holes.
Well, it was a bit of fix-it with yoga stretches down there doing all that, win-win!
haha! Caroline does a lot of Yoga (as is Hugo now!!!), but yes - some rather stretchy positions in this video!
Having been an organ builder it's good to see the insides a bit. My organ story. Install a moved organ I made a cable from the console to the windchest. I measured every dimension in the route the cable would take. Got to the end, short 3 inches! I made a junction board, wired it up, problem fixed. From then on I was introduced, "This is Lawrence. (always a slight pause here) He makes cables too short, (with emphasis) but only at one end." Your cable extension work looked familiar.
Two questions: 1) Is your pedalboard in the AGO standard? It looks a bit straighter, less radiating. 2) Will you splurge for new blocks for the new organ? Paul Callaway, organist at Washington Cathedral for 30 years or so, was short of stature so the pedal board was mounted on a hydraulic lift. No more hymnals under the bench.
Thanks for this; it was great fun.
Thanks for the DYI video .Helpful to know a few adjustments a non organ technician can do with adjusting a few scews. Agree--DON'T make any minor changes that end up major on the DAY of the recital.
Very interesting! Quite a process. Loved the stories: moral: don't start adjustments/repairs on day of recital: "Murphy's Law": there will be extra problems! I admire your knowledge & ability at EVERY level of organs ! Continue using your wonderful talents!
That all looked so familiar. I moved my beloved (but very old) Viscount to my new house. After lugging the thing up two flights of stairs, and re-assembling it everything worked...almost. A few of pedal switches (the same design as on your pedal board) had broken off in transit. A quick repair, but these things happen.
Stewart
Good evening,
I just wondered if you in your new instrument have considered a pedalboard that uses toe springs in stead of heel springs.
If you’re putting screws in and out may I suggest you firstly drill a pilot hole, then put the screw into some Vaseline to aid
the screw going in and less likely to shear off!
Cheers!
ross
Very grateful for this video. I have been wondering how I was going to repair a pedal note which doesn’t always sound immediately when played. I recognised this as a Viscount of the same vintage as mine. I had asked the agent over here who is very helpful but he hadn’t taken apart a pedalboard. After seeing this I pulled the covers off to expose the connectors. The first thing to do was to thoroughly clean as much as possible. The connectors are fragile so great care is needed to remove dust and cobwebs from the chamber with a small dry clean paint brush. Then using cotton sticks and alcohol such as methylated spirits gently clean the contacts. Surprising how much dirt had collected on them but everything now works fine. Yes it is a cheaper way of manufacture than other makes using magnetic switches and the chamber is not completely dust proof so advise cleaning when opened up and obviously some TLC.
Your pedal board is considerably easier to work on than the one on my little three-rank pipe organ. The pedals in mine are hardwired with a thick umbilical electrical cable to the console because under each pedal is a six-finger contact block. One of those tiny tiny fingers broke off one of the pedals (middle F) so I am now lacking the second note in the pedal mixture on that key. I need to either replace the contact block (egad) or do some electronic trickery with a diode. Oh, and did I mention that the pedal board is a full-size AGO radial pedal board and it weighs a bl**ding ton! It doesn't help that the swell pedal is also mounted on it, adding to the weight and complexity of disassembly for service. Despite my organ being around 40 years older than your Viscount, the pedals are sprung in a similar fashion and can be tricky to adjust. My low D has to be tweaked with the seasons to adjust to changing humidity. Great stuff, and thanks for the video, count me in as one who enjoys organs both inside and outside!
Interesting; I had no idea how pedals were tensioned, and didn't know they could be adjusted.
Will your new console have a contact-less pedal board (I think it's called "Hall-effect")?
I've seen this on Allen pretend-organs, and they seem to survive rough stage-hands (at least for a while)!
Great video, very helpful. I have a couple of pedal notes that can sometimes be intermittent depending on how they are played. Perhaps they are loose and aren't always making contact. Now you've given me the confidence I'm going to open up the pedalboard and attempt the DIY..wish me luck!
I’ve had a lowrey to practice on for a long time now and so far the only thing that ever happened to it was a tiny bulb over the controls doesn’t light up anymore. At that point I decided it was useless and threw it away (I’m kidding)
Fantastic video. No wonder you want a new console.
I'm desperate for the new one to arrive! It'll really enhance my playing, and will also allow me to invite other organists to play it.
Obviously the naughty cats are to blame. Thanks for the repair lesson.
Lower G Pedal on tracker organ I play, the wood separated, so wobbled about. The organist at the time went off to get some wood glue. Meanwhile, a DIY'er at the church knowing about the problem, decided to fix the problem by screwing the wood back together. Like you, I play in socks, and get splinters in my foot every now and then from that pedal.
Always fun to see other folks deal with those little repairs which snowball from simple to aggravating. I remember when your ribbon connector broke just before your recital. I'm paranoid about ribbon connectors, so tedious to repair. Thanks for sharing your successful fix, Richard!
My high G on my pedal doesn't work; but then again, it doesn't matter too much. It's good to know that a bit of too much tension might break the heads off those screws/bolts. Yes, there are tools to take the thread residue out and then your screw would could be in a better original location.
Maybe if you apply the tip of a soldering iron to the end of the broken screw, for about 30 seconds it will expand the metal which after cooling will shrink and allow you to dig it out
Digital cipher?! This is amazing episode.
You will need to use an screw extractor and replace it with the correct screw. The head of the screw could be the problem. The one you replaced it with was not wide enough.
heal springs a good idea up to a point, what you might be able to do is drill right through with bolt thread going into thread
I am surprised to see the pedal contacts are wire, my Wyvern console, built in 2003 has hall effect switches mounted on PCB's and also toe springs. I would have expected to see reed switches with magnets, perhaps Viscount were experimenting
It is a cheaper way of manufacture and in my earlier post I described how to clean them. The chamber is not completely sealed so dust and cob webs will sneak in - a disadvantage to reed switches with magnets. A spring bends over the wire when pedal is depressed to make contact. Still it is surprising how long they last as it certainly looked flimsy when I opened up my pedalboard
Pedal boards normally have a spring under the front of the pedal (into the front pedal peg board) which provides the 'real' return pressure, and allows the pedal foot pressure to be adjusted. Cannot see that here? Probably worth fitting a set.
Maybe it’s a different design
@@Engineer9736 From my experience , well built pedal boards will usually have front springs underneath each pedal. Yes, as you say, what you have must be a different design, although I am surprised you can get the correct amount of top pressure without front springs, and by just adjusting the back plates. Anyway, if it works for you - it is good!
Fascinating! But always helpful to have the advice of a cat! :-)
Nala always provides sound advice, often with the offering of a mouse...
😁
Can I get that sheet music? ;)
Hi Richard, small world! I fixed the identical issue today on my VTPO that I built last year. The difference is where the leaf springs attach, I'm using 70mm M5 bolts that go all the way through the wood, to the underside of the pedalboard. That way if any shear off (as happened today!) you don't run the risk of the screw getting stuck in the wood.
It was a modification I made last year when I bought the pedalboard 2nd hand. When I got it home, I had to clean out all the bits of foam, sponge, corrugated card folded in half.... suffice to say I did a total strip down and refurb!!
we live and learn...
May I suggest . 1) Buy a new identical cable from Viscout. 2) You ought to drill out broken bolts. Purchase a small set of taps with left hand threads to screw into the centre of broken bolts having drilled a small hole into both stubs. Screw in small taps purchased. When both broken bolts removed glue in small dowels of wood. Allow to dry overnight. Redrill new hole replace same bolt as used by manufacturer. Job done ! You give me a few brush up your organ playing lessons and I will sought your repairs jobs for you. YES ?
Cheers for the help. The organ is being serviced by Viscount in the coming weeks so I'll leave it to them. It just makes me more eager for the new organ!
I trust there is a way to get out the broken screws with the right kind of tool..
Carefully drill a hole in the broken screw and then use a left hand threaded extractor to screw the offending piece out. This is a painstakingly difficult process and needs much care. Maybe near impossible on small screws.
To remove broken screws, cut a slot in the embedded part using a Dremel tool, then use a common flat head screwdriver to take it out. Insert a wooden dowel in the hole where the broken screw was originally, drill a pilot hole in the centre of the dowel and use a fresh screw with hex head (you can also fit a penny washer under the new screw). As to the MIDI cable, that’s an IDC header connector. Cut the ribbon cable exactly square, fit in the new IDC connector and press uniformly so that the V-shaped pins will cut through each of the individual cables making up the ribbon.
Even though I think that by now you have solved the problem, if you ever come to it again (or rather it comes back to you) just let me know and I will send you detailed information.
Richard, are you getting an adjustable height bench for guest organists?
Of course!
Yes as said before, a very basic method of having a contact, should have been a reed switch or microswitch
Yes I agree it would seem a better option as long as they were not breaking any patent at the time which is hard to imagine . Yamaha tried to snatch some of the digital technology from the Allen Organ Co which had the sole patent for a number of years. It resulted in litigation with Yamaha having to pay royalties until the patent expired and I think an agreement in the settlement that Yamaha would not enter the classical organ market
Wow Richard - I think you should do a stop demo of the original viscount organ and compare it to one of the fleet via a hymn or piece ?!?
That would be hilarious! But one of the first things I did to the organ was disconnect all the speakers. It wouldn't have been very pleasant...
🤣🤣🤣
lol
Oh my, the new organ can't come soon enough!
here here
Pedals will not play properly if the back mounting screws are loose, or sagging. If a screw snapped off, try to carefully dig around the screw so that you can get a vise-grips around the the screw and back it out. Reinstall a longer, larger diameter screw to remount. You might want to think about putting compressions springs like those found on pneumatic chests under the screws with a washer to give you some adjustment on the pedal tension. You also need to use a screw with a big enough head to NOT break off. You can back the broken screws out with a vise-grips pliers which locks on the screw as you tighten the grip. See hardware store. You can use the vice-grips pliers vertically instead of horizontally to back the screw(s) out. It is time-consuming and knuckle-busting. I know, I've done it. Once again, use a compression spring under the screw head with washer, which will give you more adjustability without tightening so hard. Should really do the whole pedal board with springs. This is not an uncommon problem with pedal boards, when you have rear-mounted spring steel suspension.
Some really great advice there, thank you. Do you have experience with organ repairs?
@@beautyinsound
Yes. I have a Rodgers pedal board. The contacts are magnetic reeds on the front end, but the back mount is the same. I have had a number of the screw heads snap off. I've seen pedal boards with a compression springs under the screw head. Gives you a softer constant tension, which has greater adjustment. I bought springs on Amazon....haven't had the energy to install them, yet. Organ builders use similar springs on the wind chests to keep the bottom boards tight to avoid air leaks as the weather makes the wood swell or shrink. Virtual organ console enhancements are endless.... more pistons, more toe studs, more expression pedals.. adjustable music rack, bench, etc, touch panel screens for stops or launch pad additions!!!!!
Too bad that the contact is not a magnetic Reed switch - My Rodgers 760 doesn’t not hav this physical contact.
Indeed. I own an Allen, and there is no cable between the pedals and the console: magnets in the pedals which butt up to the console, where there are reed switches or something similar. Of course, they are not as adjustable, as the equivalent of the "hook" contact doesn't exist. But I'm not experienced enough to need that kind of fine control.
@@WardenL yes and it seems that many DIY pedal building I projects lodged online use this technology.
I have to assume that your new organ will be magnetic Reed switches for the pedal board.
Yes, and on the manuals
@@beautyinsound No, in the workshop visit video, your builder clearly said "hall effect sensors" and showed the long, narrow circuit board under the keys populated with hall effect sensor chips. These are semi-conductor devices that detect magnetic fields. Reed switches consist of pairs of iron reed contacts in glass capsules, which attract and touch each other in the presence of a sufficient magnetic field.
That pedalboard makes me happy for magnetic Reed switches
The new organ will have those.... phew!
@@beautyinsound that’s good. They make removing the pedals less painful
I had one of those wiper contacts snap this week, so tried soldering a reed switch on to replace it (with some very small magnets 5mmx1mm from Amazon). Now works very well. And very satisfying to fix myself.
Seems like you could have accessed that tension screw from underneath the pedalboard? Would have saved you undoing and redoing 12 (or so) other screws. Though then the video would have been quite short 😉
Agree. It seems that the tension screws would be accessible without removing the pedals.
i guess We have the exact same pedalboard at "my" organ in the church
and (definitly a Design flaw) you can't access the screws from the backside
the whole constuction is not Carefully considered
Thank you so much for sharing!! This brought back happy memories of my oldest brother Lupe. He loved music and was always tinkering with his keyboard & guitar. I lost him last October to brain cancer, 73 yrs young. I trust he is with God..so it's all good
When i bought my organ 2nd hand from someone one of the pedal notes sometimes needed almost kick like force to play a note. so i took some contact cleaner to it and voila... it works again
the built in organ sound also sometimes cuts out, but i fix that by (not joking here) a hammer to the reverb slider and magically the built in sound works again.
I do use hauptwerk mostly