Plastic parts

[Joe & Penny Goss]

Bob,
That seems a little slow. The most difficult thing was the dampers for me.
Your idea of leaving the straps off is interesting. BTW does anyone out
there know the order and procedure of building an action that is used in
the factory?
Joe Goss
----------
> From: fndango@azstarnet.com
> To: pianotech@ptg.org
> Subject: Plastic parts
> Date: Tuesday, November 03, 1998 3:07 AM
> 
> When I posted a query for the time to replace a set of plastic damper
> levers a month ago, I got no takers. But I have seen some posts on the
> subject of plastic parts recently, so perhaps this info will be valuable
> to someone:
> 
> I recently finished replacing hammer & wippen flanges, backchecks,
> jacks, and damper levers on a 1948 M & H console. Here are the
> approximate times for replacing various parts: damper levers - 12/hr.,
> backchecks - 60/hr., flanges & jacks- 40/hr.
> 
> For those who may not have tried this, here are some suggestions:
> 
> If you haven't invested in wire-bending pliers yet, do so. The
> side-to-side kind is the most useful. The backwards-and-forwards type
> can also be useful. The recently-available parallel reamer sets are
> great for a $12 investment. I have found them at Schaff and APSCO. 
> 
> Procedure-wise, my first step was to replace the damper levers. Take out
> an old one, snap off the part above the flange, and hold it against the
> new lever while you approximate the bend of the old one. Install the new
> lever, mount the head, and do a finer bending to match the neighbors.
> Then cut off the excess wire. Next, I repinned the hammer flanges, using
> the neighbors and the string cuts as guides. Chucking a backcheck tool
> into a power drill saved some time in installing the new backchecks.
> 
> I should mention that I removed the hammer rest rail, the hammer spring
> rail, and the letoff rail before doing any work. This action had a metal
> action rail, and it was more difficult to work with than a wooden one.
> Action screws don't go into a metal rail easily unless they are
> perfectly straight and match the threading of the rail. Before turning
> the screws in, back them up until they "click" into the right position.
> 
> I left the bridle straps disconnected and the keys out of the piano when
> I reinstalled the action(as well as leaving out the aux. rails). This
> left easy access for final regulation of the dampers, and for spacing
> and traveling of the hammers. Then I installed the letoff rail,
> connected the bridle tapes(making sure that the jack springs were
> seated), set letoff, installed the hammer spring rail and hammer rest
> rail, set rest rail position, lost motion, keydip, and damper lift from
> key.
> 
> I think that covers the main items. If I've missed something important,
> I think I can count on someone to spot it. Installing the action and
> regulation took 8 hours (there was key easing and misc. minor stuff to
> deal with, too).
> 
> This is a nice piano and well worth the effort. It's not easy to work
> efficiently enough to make it pay very well, but it can be done.
> 
> Bob Anderson
> Tucso, AZ