This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment ----- Original Message -----=20 From: Farrell=20 To: Pianotech=20 Sent: November 09, 2002 9:49 AM Subject: Re: Chickering 1/4 Grand Action Rebuild Hi Robin. Thanks for responding. I sent this private as the list = appears to have only negative thoughts about this action. My comments = are interspersed below: Terry Farrell =20 Terry, I tend to agree with Robin on these pianos. Yes, they are challenging, = but they are usually so loved by their owners it is worth struggling = through with them. I've not yet encountered a Quartergrand owner that = didn't just love his/her piano! The action is the only real problem and that is workable with some = ingenuity and trial and fit. Joe is also right--fitting a new keyset and = action stack is an exercise in frustration. So, don't bother trying to = do it. Work with the action configuration that is there. If the wood = brackets are coming apart, put them back together. In one case I soaked = a set of these brackets (actually for a piano other than a Chickering) = in a bath of coating epoxy for a few minutes until they were pretty well = saturated, removed them and hung them up to let all of the excess drain = off. Before the epoxy kicked over I inserted well-waxed screws in the = various holes--to thread them--and let the whole mess cure. After = sanding and filing off all of the excess hardened epoxy I had quite a = nice looking and functioning set of brackets. They were/are probably = about a strong and stable as most Select Metal modern brackets. The = process worked well enough I'll be doing it again to my Decker action = brackets. Rather than fussing with the originals, you might consider making new = action rails (without the brass inserts) and setting them up for some = suitable (i.e., modern =3D wooden) hammershank flanges and wippen = flanges. By getting a little creative with these actions there is almost = nothing you can't do.=20 When you're finished you'll have a really happy customer. As I've said = before, the owners of these pianos tend to really love them. And they = will love you for bringing their babies back to life after everyone else = has written them off. Del PS: Yes, their bellywork can also be challenging, but still it's mostly = just good, creative woodworking. Don't be afraid of them just because = they're different. That's why God gave you a brain. The individual = pinblock pieces can be fitted to the plate in pretty much the normal = fashion. And, if you don't want to struggle with installing the pinblock = bolts from the bottom--again, it's difficult, not impossible--it doesn't = take all that much to drill and countersink and install them from the = top per more normal practice. --ddf ---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: https://www.moypiano.com/ptg/pianotech.php/attachments/f7/05/36/ab/attachment.htm ---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment--
This PTG archive page provided courtesy of Moy Piano Service, LLC