agraffes on - agraffes off

Phillip L Ford fordpiano@lycos.com
Tue, 11 Dec 2001 04:09:05 0000


On Mon, 10 Dec 2001 18:05:09  
 Ron Nossaman wrote:

>How can you use shims for both alignment and height control unless you make
>them individually? I know Ron O and JD both had really slick (at least I
>thought so) methods of making the proper thickness shims for alignment, but
>where does that leave you with height? 

>Ron N

Ron,
I'll just ignore all of your questions and pose one of my own, since you mentioned
the names of two people that are designing their own pianos.  Why does this archaic
practice persist to this day?  This belongs up on the museum shelf right next to the
process of putting little pieces of paper under the keys to level them.  Why not just
drill through the plate flange and have an agraffe with a shank long enough to accept
a nut on the other side of the flange?  No removing and reinstalling.  All the agraffes
come out at the same height.  And while you're at it you could build in an
alignment device that's machined into the plate (such as a woodruff key, a flat on the
threaded shank, small drilled hole that mates to a pin on the agraffe flange, etc.), so
your alignment wouldn't be based on the eyesight (and level of frustration after some
period of time putting in agraffes) of the installer?

Phil F


---
Phillip Ford
Piano Service & Restoration
1777 Yosemite Ave - 215
San Francisco, CA  94124





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