hammer realignment

[Jeff Tanner]

>In a message dated 98-11-19 00:16:46 EST, you write:
>
><< Is there any trick of the trade when realigning hammers after a hammer
> shank breaks?  I recently fixed a broken hammer shank, eyeballed the
> alignment, glued the two parts back together and what do you know, the
> hammer was only hitting the left two unisons instead of all three.  A
> blow to my self-esteem.  Also, the piano had brass flanges.
>
> Is this a hit and miss situation?
>  >>
>
>
>When you glue on a hammer, the glue takes a while to settle. In the process,
>the moisture in the glue will distort the grain of the wood, which will cause
>the hammer to bend one way or another. Since this is imposible to predict, all
>you can do is glue it on straight, and wait for the glue to dry. Once it is
>dry, heat the shank and glue, and realign the hammer.
>
>Willem Blees


Something I learned from Dennis Curtis, a piano technician for over 45
years and an RPT for over 25, is if you are using wood glue, to let the
glue set out over night in a cup to let as much moisture evaporate as
possible (you will have to peel off the top layer).  The glue gets really
thick and sets fast with less warpage of the wood parts.  Apply it with a
wooden coffee stirrer.  I realize though, that this normally isn't
practical in the field, but is good shop practice.

Jeff Tanner

Jeff Tanner, Piano Technician
School of Music
University of South Carolina
Columbia, SC 29208
(803)-777-4392 (phone)
(803)-777-6508 (fax)