This is the picture from which I purchased the instrument from the museum. It ‘s original finish is blond which is highly unusual. The wooden box behind the expression pedal contains the vacuum pump. Note that even the wood sides of the chime keyboard is finished blond. The speaker is an old Leslie 30A Vibratone.
The keydesk of the console. Note the chorus generator drawbar to the left of the start switches. It closes a set of 37 contacts to bring the slightly detuned chorus generator tone wheels on line to give the sound a slight undulating effect.
The identity plate between the manuals. Note that the Aeolian name comes first!
The presets, notice that they are numbered rather than given instrumental or organ ensemble names. Tremulant control is above presets. The tremolo gives an intensity rather than a pitch change.
The player spool box above the drawbars. Little rectangular labels above drawbars identify which preset controls that section of drawbars
the player control panel
This shows much of the player mechanism. In the lower left hand corner is the pneumatic air motor for the spooling mechanism. Behind it are the two primary stacks that supply vacuum to the individual pneumatics located under the keyboards. Center top shows the pedal pneumatic above the 12 note pedal contactors.
Here is a closer view of the air motor, chain drive and the two primary stacks.
The front left interior view or the pedal player pneumatics that push through the red felt to the pedal contactors.
Here is the full rear view of the console. On top is the player primary stack with tubing going to the tracker bar and /or the secondary pneumatics under the keys. At the far left of this compartment is the speed control mechanism for the air motor. The next section down contains the stacked chorus and main generators with the chorus on top. In the lower section you see the player vacuum pump, the organ preamp (to left of large wheel) and the swell pedal expression box below that. The little brown box at the very bottom is the chime multi tapped step-down transformer.
The center and right side of the console rear. The black tube is the vacuum supply to the player. Note the stacked oiling cups in the center of the picture. Oil put in these cups is distributed throughout the tone generators.
Another view of the pneumatics and pulls that operate the normal key contacts. The keys do not depress when the player is operating.
Aeolian-Skinner evidently purchased the Hammond mechanisms and installed them in their own cabinets designed to look similar to the “B” model. This plate inside the tone generator section identifies the mechanism as Hammond.
This plate mounted on the outside of the rear of the console clearly indentifies the organ first as an Aeolian then as a Hammond. This instrument was serial #9181. Note also the manufacturer, The Aeolian-Skinner Organ Company.
A view of the top portion of the Leslie 30A speaker. The little brown bottle is an original Leslie speaker oiling bottle! Note that the horns on this early model were made from paper mache’.
