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My community band has a set of chimes that I maintain. You're probably right thinking you can fabricate the pedal and dampening mechanism. On chimes I'm experienced with, a felt-covered bar between the two chime banks revolves and is normally in contact with the tubes. Pressing the pedal brings the bar to a vertical position.

If you need a chime tube, you might contact these guys: http://www.centurymallet.com/