Yamaha flanges (was hammer butt springs)

[DaleP34429@aol.com]

In a message dated 96-02-04 09:22:02 EST, you write:

> I don't like resolving problems in this manner. I'm confident that
>     mine is not a unique "find", especially in school environments. I'm
>     aware that I could replace all the flanges (convenient place to tie
>     back to to this thread), then keep the butt plate screws tightened.
>     However, budgets (and technicians) do change.
>
>     My question then becomes, is there a cost-effective or, at least
>     efficient method of dealing with this situation? Is retrofitting
>     with new butts (without plates) and flanges in order?

Jim,
We took over a school district & a university for a retiring friend who did
minimum maintenance. His philosophy was if the tuning hammer was not in
motion he was not making money. So we have ended up doing a lot of these type
of repairs- repinning, replacing broken parts, etc. We have reparied Yamaha
hammer butts with creeping center pins by the method you outlined and by
repinning. It's a judgement call. Factors- how many flanges, how far it is to
the repinning kit, how often we see the piano, the over all condition of the
piano, and budget. We tend to run through, tune everything, gather parts
list/information, and go to the truck/car to get appropriate parts/tools.
Then go back and fix what we can. Walking to the truck beats carrying a heavy
tool case and still not having the "Right Stuff" with you, IMO. Yes, even in
bad weather when you're parked at the opposite end of the campus and have to
climb three flights of stairs. We charge for repairs (as contractors) but our
situation may be unusual because of the relationship we have established with
our schools. It is our experience that technician's must create their own
budgets by contacting the appropriate authority. In one case, this turned out
to be the purchasing agent for the school district rather than an
administrator in the music department. The purchasing agent was much easier
to deal with as he was constantly authorizing maintenance expenditures in
other departments and had a positive concept of maintenance.

Dale Probst
Registered Piano Technician
Ward & Probst, Inc.
Piano & Organ Service
Wichita Falls, TX