In a message dated 98-05-02 11:36:27 EDT, you write: I went to tune a Storey and Clark spinet today, finding it about 150 cents flat. It had thuddy bass strings, and several which had a bad buzz- caused by a major split in the bridge. The split, about five inches long, probably close to an eighth of an inch wide,was enough that I could remove bridge pins with my finger. The strings had moved because of this broken bridge, the old lines indicating where the strings had been being very clear. The break is along the line of the top bridge pins. I suggested the owner come home from work, look at it, and decide if he wanted to spend money to fix it. I've never done one of these, but my suspicion is that one would have to remove strings, clamp and glue the bridge, then redrill and replace pins. In the process, replacing the bass strings would seem obvious since the labor required wouldn't be that much more. Opinions, please. Appreciatively, Leslie lesbart@juno.com If you can remove the strings without taking them off the tuning pins, remove the bridge pins in the area that is split out. Clean out the loose maple. You should still have enough of a hole to reinsert the pins. Mix up some slow dry plastic steel epoxy (Devcon is what I use), and apply in the groove where you removed the material. Then reinstall the bridge pins. You should be able to feel where the holes are. In around 4 hours, trim the excess epoxy off the bridge and around the bridge pins. Allow 24 hours to cure, then reinstall the strings. I usually charge around 4-6 hours. If the bridge cap is split out, then you may have to recap the bridge. That is another can of worms. Hope this helps. Dave Peake, RPT Portland, OR
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