Shaving Steinway Double Flanges

[Bill Ballard]

At 11:32 AM -0500 10/23/02, Ron Nossaman wrote:
>Not that specifically, but I've made a whole bunch of little bitty 
>player part replacements through the years with quick and disposable 
>table saw jigs. The principals are the same, as are the risks. The 
>basic choice seems to be whether you spend a whole lot more time 
>than you want to in designing and building a safe OSHA approved type 
>jig, or make a quick and dirty that leaves you working much closer 
>to the blade than you would ideally prefer.

I actually felt quite save with the handheld knife.

I could toss in something about compliance costing at least 60% more 
than mere competence for the same job, but even if I did (which I 
won't), I wouldn't attribute it anyone. <g>

>  The latter certainly keeps your attention from wandering from a 
>false sense of security.

I don't like automatic transmissions, either.

I still have the sliding fence jog which I made two years ago for a 
set of extra-long grand damper posts. The only adaptation would have 
been a small holder for the double flange with no parts pinned 
thereuponst, some sort of flat stock (hornbeam) with a dowel standing 
out from it, just sized for the screw hole. This would slide down 
between the two adjustable fences butted up to either side of the now 
vertical flange, and fastened to the main fence. This sliding fence 
jig is built to run in the slot of the table saw, and a veneer blade 
trims thing very politely. I need a similar holder running against 
the table saw fence for use to the router panel attached to the saw 
table.

Actually it went pretty smoothly with the vice and knife. My Net Time 
on the job is roughly 5 hours (corrected for the learning curve). On 
a Steinway vertical tube action frame all parts on except hammer rest 
rail, spring rail and hammer butts (fasten by brass plate to 1/2 
birds-eye), the steps included removing flanges (with damper levers 
and heads still attached) and de-pin, trim the opening until an "N" 
drill will slip through it with a noticeable pressure as it passes 
the flange bushings, then reload the flanges, assuring their 
squareness and spacing on the hammer rail. (This was what the damper 
regulation was based on, and I sure didn't feel like disturbing that.)

The hammer butts are ready to reload, the hammer shaping being done 
with the entire set of butts loaded into a key clamp for gang filing.

Bill Ballard RPT
NH Chapter, P.T.G.

"Garth, Take me!"
"Where? I'm low on gas and you need a jacket"
     ...........Kim Bassinger and Dana Carvey in "Wayne's World 2"
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