Tightening the plate...

[Kevin E. Ramsey RPT]

I always tighten the plate screws when I first see a piano. I think it gives
the tuning more stability, and doing floors tunings, you are probably the
first person to see it. You can get screwdriver bits that fit in your tuning
hammer from the suply houses, or, you can also go down to the local hardware
shop and by screwdriver bits that fit in the old style brace hand drills.
They already have a square end. You want to start and the nose of the piano
and skip every other screw, then go back and do the ones you missed. Don't
tighten any more than a quarter turn at a pass. The Baldwin pianos with
accu-just hitch pins should not tighten, but if they do, and you are able to
crank them down, don't I've heard you can disturb the bearing and possibly
break the plate. You'll need sockets for some of the pianos you'll
encounter. Usually a 14, 17 and 5/8's are all you will need.
    Once you have done this to a piano, you probably will never need to do
it again. As far as torque goes, just snug, that's all.
-----Original Message-----
From: pianolover@worldspy.net <pianolover@worldspy.net>
To: pianotech@ptg.org <pianotech@ptg.org>
Date: Thursday, February 24, 2000 10:12 PM
Subject: Tightening the plate...


>Hi all,
>
>What is the proper method for tightening plate screws, and do I need some
kind of tool to measure the amount of torque? As a newbie working as a floor
tuner, I currently service mostly new pianos, but trade-ins, and home
tunings will bring me in touch with older pianos as well. I want to make
sure I follow the correct and best method for doing this, so I can avoid big
problems. Thanks!
>
>Terry
>Los Angeles, CA
>
>
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