[CAUT] Yamaha sharps

[David Ilvedson]

Been there...done that...like you I just couldn't bring myself to dump them...

I believe I gave that box of keys to Mr. Love for key plugs?....



David Ilvedson, RPT

Pacifica, CA 94044









Original message

From: "Michael Magness" 

To: "College and University Technicians" 

Received: 12/14/2007 5:26:32 PM

Subject: Re: [CAUT] Yamaha sharps











On Dec 14, 2007 11:00 AM, Jeannie Grassi <jcgrassi at earthlink.net> wrote:



Alan,

This also happened with a Kawai grand.  I ended up buffing out the whites

just fine, but Kawai opted at the time to replace the sharps.  Same Japanese 

key maker supplying both companies??



Now I am taking care of a mid-80 C3 with unusually dirty keys and I think it

might be the same thing.  Does anyone know the exact years that this problem

existed?  Thanks 

jeannie







-----Original Message-----

From: caut-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:caut-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf Of Alan

Crane 

Sent: Thursday, December 13, 2007 4:10 PM

To: College and University Technicians

Subject: Re: [CAUT] Yamaha sharps



At 08:53 AM 12/13/2007, you wrote:

>  Yesterday I had an unfortunate experience cleaning keytops. Yamaha 

>C-2 about 20 years old. ... a very thin clear finish on the sharps -

>blistered so as to look somewhat

>white.



Fred,



This is probably way off-the-wall but...

In the mid-80s, about 20 years ago, I was working for the local 

Yamaha dealer (actually on staff there).

Yamaha had just recently come out with their "Ivorite" keytops

________ wonderful feel to the plastic, supposedly a milk-based

formulation (at least that was the hype at the time). 

But it wasn't too long before they began having problems with the

Ivorite keytops getting dirty and being impossible to clean.

It was a real problem for them and they even had technicians going

around the country replacing entire key sets under warranty with the 

same problem cropping up again and again until... they discovered

that the Ivorite wasn't getting any more dirty than normal plastic

keytops do and it was cleaning up just fine.

The stuff that wasn't coming off the keytops (that everyone had 

thought was dirt) was the stain from the black keys, a new

formulation which evidently wasn't as stable as it was supposed to be

and was being transferred to the Ivorite by the pianists fingers

and/or the cleaning cloth. 

We were told that Yamaha immediately fixed the stain formulation and

I never doubted it since the problem went away.

However... I'm wondering if it isn't possible that, prior to finding

the "right" stain formulation, the factory didn't start spraying on a 

clear-coat sealer in an effort to keep the problem stain on the

sharps where it belonged.

Now, this is all just daydreaming on my part and I have no evidence,

anecdotal or otherwise, to support it.

Its almost certainly not what you're dealing with... but... OTOH, the 

stain problem was very real while it lasted... and the time frame is

about right...

Just a thought.







Regards,



Alan B. Crane,  RPT

School of Music

Wichita State University

alan.crane at wichita.edu









Hi Jeannie,



I have a C3 from early 1977 that just missed having those type of keys, I have replaced them on a C3 from '86, a C5 from '84 and I'm about to ship a set for a C7 from '87 so I would say from late '77 or early '78 through the late '80's probably '89, when they began replacing the key sets which is what they did when the pianos were still in warranty. I still have the old keys from the "86 C3, they were barely 3 years old and Yamaha told me to throw them away! Except for being gray not white they were in excellent shape and I couldn't bring myself to do it. I repacked them in the box they shipped the new ones in and I've had them ever since!  



Just call Yamaha with the serial number and they will tell you. If they are in that group they'll send a shipping box and an address to ship them to. Figure on about 2 or 2 and a half weeks downtime for the piano. The person that recovers them doesn't remove any wood from the keys so there is no adjustment to be made just removal, packing, shipping and replacement. At least that's what they claim, I'm shipping after Christmas, I'll let you know.  <grin> 



Mike

-- 

People who say it can't be done, should not interrupt those of us who are doing it.

Michael Magness

Magness Piano Service

608-786-4404

www.IFixPianos.com

email mike at ifixpianos.com 
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