Kevin Scott, your plans sound interesting (as, I must admit, do
*anyone's* residence organ plans!).  Regarding your windchest design,
have you seen the diagram in Junchen's Encyclopedia showing Morton (?)
pit organ chests?  They sit on the floor, with the rack board forming
the top of the windchest, whose sides are between the 2 rows of pipes.
The action opens valves into grooves in the bottom board, which grooves
extend outward to the toe holes.  Of course, to service the chest
you have to pull all the pipes.  Dave Junchen also talks about
Hinners Vox Humanas (or, more exactly, Voxes from the Illinois Organ
Pipe Company, an adjunct to the Hinners shop); he claims that those
Voxes have a "buttery" sound, almost like a Brass Saxophone.  Perhaps
the folks at Trivo could revoice an existing Vox to get that effect,
or you could buy one of their Brass-less Saxophones.  (Yes, that is
what they call them, and they have a Brass-less Trumpet as well.  The
pipes are shaped much like the Wurlitzer brass ranks although they
are soldered up from several conical section rather than being spun
like the original brass ones; they are reputed to sound VERY nice.)
 
Your 16' Gamba could have a Haskell bottom octave with the last few
pipes placed horizontally (you can't miter a Haskell pipe except
below the inner tube).  Haskell-ed string basses speak very quickly;
I'm going to experiment with making my own 16' Dulciana bass octave
by Haskell-ing a Moller Open Diapason bass (wooden from CC to BB).
There are some details in the Callihan book on G.D.Harrison in a letter
from the tonal director of Estey.
 
I also enjoyed Kevin Chun's plans, especially the idea of building
standardized chests for 2 or 3 ranks.  For hobbyists who want to
constantly make changes to the organ (or who don't have enough room
in install all the miscellaneous pipework they've gathered over the
years), that plan makes a lot of sense.  (Admittedly it might appeal
less in some other cases.)  Fredrick Hohman, in a lecture on Lemare's
organ transcriptions, commented that a French Horn can often be
simulated by an Open Diapason, perhaps in unison with a Flute.
 
From Michael Davidson's specifications, the second one contains
something I'd also like, a 16' pedal reed.  If that organ's 8' Regal
is somewhat on the mild side, it would make a fine classical residence
organ, even for a small room.
 
Wow, this all is very exciting.  Now, if the weather would just
warm up (my shop is in the -unheated- barn and it was -5 this morning)...
 
Larry Chace ([log in to unmask])