I chose to build a pipe organ. I am still choosing to build a pipe organ, in progress since March of 2023.
Please enjoy these photos and videos of progress so far. If you’re curious as to what in tarnation got up my rear end to make me want to do this, that detail is written out meticulously below the pretty pictures, just scroll down.
Specifications (as of right now that I am building towards):
5-6 Ranks, 1 Division
1 Manual, 1 Pedal
Stops:
16′ Bourdon (Pedal)
8′ Principal (Pedal C2-G4, Manual C3-C7)
8′ Trompete (Manual C3-C7)
4′ Octave (Manual C3-C7)
2′ Octave (maybe, Manual C3-C7)
Couplers: None as of right now; the mechanics may be too hard at this point.
Painted PVC and 3D-printed PLA+ pipes, brass reeds, may attempt a wood rank, wood casework, direct mechanical key action, mechanical stop action, all on 2″-3″ W.C. wind
Me glancing up from trying to deal with aligning the pallets in the windchest. One of the first photos of the wind reservoir.Wind reservoir with a hinged topThe wind reservoir with air inputI used sheet vinyl from the craft store to make the “bladder” on the wind reservoir and the lid is weighted with spare weight plates from my workout gear. This is blow-and-dump; the reservoir fills and once full opens a valve at the bottom to dump the excess air.My very first pressure gauge in literal inches of water. I upgraded to actual wc/in gauges after this but it was fun to see in principle.Wind reservoir complete, first iteration. This is still in service, just with a downstream fine tuning from the wind regulator.My blower (for now); a retired inflatable jumpy castle blower, which works rather well, and is designed for partially-static loads and long duty cycles.The wind regulator/reservoir inline with the blower.The wind regulator; unlike the reservoir, this has a spring-loaded bladder and the center pin pulls a 3D-printed plunger that opens/shuts the air valve based on the spring loading. Right now it is tuned to 2″ WC.I think this is iteration….2?…of the keyboard? I reprinted the keyboard 3 times, redesigning the keys each time (from scratch, nobody had 3D printed a keyboard before).One of many keyboard printings.An initial pipe printed off the original posting on Thingiverse; I went from here to modify it to PVC piping.Not my first pipe but a complete one. You’ll notice the mouthpiece is a circular one; not what I ended up for the final design for this rank, this is more of a flute/whistle rank sound.One of the pipe mouths that I started to print; this was the design that I eventually settled on.The first mouth for 1.5″ PVCA couple of pipes that work.A large pipe with a very, very small pipe on top.A good portion of the first rank printed and assembled.A “family photo” of the completed first rank, C2 through C7.This is pallet board…..4? 5? I tell you, if I never have to design another windchest……but I’ve learned a lot? I guess?2nd or 3rd pallet board drilling. I think I’m on the 4th or 5th now.Placing and cutting proper slots for the windchest is an effort in patience and frustration.Working out how to lay out the windchest pallets. This was a nightmare to sort out. I eventually redesigned and reprinted the keyboard to have even spacing so the pallets would also be even-spaced.Winchest pallets Mark I setup. I used aluminum angle stock to provide the upper stop for the springs and to give some rigidity. I’ve now completely torn this down twice.A few of the pallets in the windchest from the side. These have now all been reprinted yet again.Adding self-adhesive craft felt to the pallets as a seal against the air channel slotsMark II of the assembled pallets; they are lined up on a center line so they are interweaved.A closeup of the pallet/spring setupShowing how the aluminum corner stock is above the pallets to contain the springs. The pallets hinge on a metal rod and are spaced with 3D-printed spacers.Troubleshooting leaks on the windchest. Note the 3D printed piping flanges, some removed to debug leaks.Fitful attempts to remediate pallet leaks; leaks would be ok (I have plenty of air) but the pipes speak in low whistles so it’s a no-go until solved.FINALLY redid the slots a third time and reassembled AGAIN and I get consistent pressure and few leaks. I still have some whistling pipes but that will be solved downstream.The assembled windchest. One side is clear acrylic so I can see what’s happening, the rest wood. The wires that pull the pallets are model airplane control surface wires; stiff but thin. 3D printed guides seal off all but right around the wires.Toeboard on the left where the pipes will mount; stop slider on the right. The thin sheet will slide between the two heavier to turn on/off the stop by the stop pull.
Current Status as of July 25, 2025:
Here’s an unordered list of things I have accomplished with this project and where I am working on it so far:
Blower identified and tested (bouncy-house blower)
Wind reservoir and regulator constructed (3″ W.C., weight-loaded)
Downstream wind regulator constructed (2″-3″ W.C., spring loaded)
Manual keyboard designed (FreeCAD), printed, and constructed, 61 keys, C2 – C7
Pipes in the 8′ principal on the manual rank are done (C3 – C7)
Manual windchest is done after 3 iterations; pallet valves printed, leaks fixed, key linkages done.
Working on building the pipechest and the stop action for the first rank.
An organ? WHY!?
Because I could. And because I think pipe organs are fascinating machines and some of the prettiest sources of music out there. They are literally the largest instrument in the world by a long shot, and yet the fundamental technology is so very old school. Air, controlled by a valve (key), blown through a pipe, vibrating a reed or across a lip, produces a note. You can only have one note per pipe, so for a full keyboard, you have to have 61-88 notes, and then to create harmonies and colors and fullness, you duplicate that, over and over and over, going octaves above and below and in harmony, until you get a cacophony of sound that is nothing less than glorious. This results in a massive machine literally filling up entire rooms, stadiums, or shopping malls, all controlled by one lone operator at a console somewhere.
The reality is that the art of pipe organ construction is very, very old (3rd Century BCE) and has gone through many iterations and yet still remains a bit of an engineering feat and, because I’m an amateur and have never done this before, of course I thought I’d try it and learn through trial and error and error and error and error, because why not?
Specifically, I chose to primarily 3D Print a pipe organ, or at least a good portion of the parts. The pipes would be PVC (because it’s cheap and easier to deal with than melting and shaping lead-tin pipes), the mouths 3D printed, the keys 3D printed, and much of the windchest, valves, etc. would also be printed. The rest would be wood and a bit of metal and springs and bits and bobs.
It also turns out that nobody has tried this before, which is always a good omen. I mean, people have built organs before, but not out of PVC, and certainly not at this scale. I want at least a few ranks (sets of pipes), a pedal board and one manual (keyboard), and stops, etc. to go with it. WHAT COULD GO WRONG!?
“Lots”. “Lots” is the correct answer. It has been nothing short of an engineering puzzle and curiosity and fabricating a lot of things that didn’t go right and I had to redo. I’m only on my…..5th keyboard….and 3rd windchest? I think. I try not to think about the time wasted. 🙂 But I’m learning a lot and having fun, so that’s what counts, right?
