Teflon Steinway - Solutions?

[A440A@AOL.COM]

Greetings, 
Keith writes:
>I don't think your test is the same as the one Jon mentions, Ed.  If I
>understand the test he is referring to is a shank and flange that has
>teflon bushings in a glass of water, yes?
>
>Your test of affected length isn't quite the same, yes?

   Well, my test was strictly to measure the dimensional stability of the
teflon.  When you begin to measure the changes from an assembly like the
hammershanks themselves, finite analysis is the first thing to do.   It is
illogical,(to me), to say that the teflon directly undergoes changes because
of moisture when it is the wood that is absorbing moisture and mechanically
changing the teflon.  
    It may be of interest to mention that 15 years ago, I replaced the shanks
in a Steinway with teflon parts, but before I installed them,  I punched all
the bushings out and dipped the yokes in Brookstone's "wood restorer"
solution.  This is the "wood rot cure" that they tout.  It is a very
thin(watery) epoxy.  After it had set up,  I reinstalled the bushings and
repinned the set. ( lawdy, where did I find the time?) 
 This had the affect of rendering the yokes impervious to moisture and there
was never another click. In fact, those shanks maintained their pinning for
the next 12 years with virtually no change between the seasons, as they had
before. 
   Joe Biscellie saw what I had done and said that it was a very interesting
experiment, but that the factory would never consider it, because it slightly
changed the color of the yokes!  
Regards, 
Ed Foote