Sticking styrene flanges

[DBHersh@aol.com]

In a message dated 96-07-23 16:57:46 EDT, you write:

>You mentioned above that the pin tight doesn#t all ways produce the
>desired results, did you have to recentre?  and if so what effect did
>the centre pin lubricant have on your reamers.  Did it gonch them up?
>or is the amount you#re using very small.  As I pinted out in my earlier
>post I have had very little experience with centre pin lubricant. Back
>in the 80's I was brought in to a company to upgrade their quality
>control in the action department and the thing I found was the 25
>technicians were using gallons of the stuff.  In one case a young Lady
>picked up an action literally dripping placed it in the piano and
>proceeded to cast the hammers with a naked flame and of course the
>actiion caught on fire I found this to be the last straw and banned it
>from the company.  This may of course may have been an over reactioon on
>my part but I had necver come accross this stuff befopre and was totally
>alien to the way I was taught.  However, I do agree with you that there
>are times when an action has seasonal sluggishness that this product
>could possibly be the prayer that one was looking for.  Also sometimes
>clients do not have the financial word for all to pay for a full
>recentre and this may be a cheaper alternative.
>
>What are the amounts you place on each side of the flange and how long
>is it before you receive the results and does it cause sqeaks in the
>future.
>
>Barrie and list,
   I don't want to promote using lubricants because I think re-pinning is the
best way to correct tight or loose centers, however, as you stated sometimes
the piano is just of an inferior quality or the person or place that owns the
piano does not want to go to the expense. Hopefully we all have the luxury of
being able to choose to work on pianos that are worth the time and expense.
   Barrie, your message was kind of garbled when I read it but I'll try to
answer as best I can. Yes, I did have to repin the parts that were made too
tight by the lubricant. You never know what someone else may have used
earlier. That is why if I am going to use a center pin lube I will try a few
samples before I treat all the affected parts. How much do i apply to each
part? As little as possible. I just try to point a hypo-oiler or something
like it right at the center. If the product is going to work, it doesn't take
much. You will get some of the solution on the other parts but if your
careful it won't cause any problems. I try to use only a drop or two on each
side of the center pin bushing when I'm using Methyl Alchol and water. You
don't want to put too much and get too much shrinkage. Also when using alchol
and water I let it dry for 24 hours (maybe that is overkill 2 or 3 hours is
probably enough). The Silicone/Naptha solution works instantly and so does
Pro-tek. The reamers I was speaking of come in about six diameters and have a
sharp point and then 2 or 3 inches of smooth burnisher followed by a section
that is roughed up that is wide enough that you can remove a little felt from
both sides of the flange at once. I hope I answered your questions.
Doug Hershberger