Pinblock too low

[Mike and Jane Spalding]

Wim,

I understand about not hitting the pins with my cutting/grinding tool - what other "one problem after another" would I be letting myself in for?

thanks

Mike

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <Wimblees@aol.com>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Thursday, September 12, 2002 7:59 PM
Subject: Re: Pinblock too low


> In a message dated 9/12/02 11:53:31 PM !!!First Boot!!!, kenrpt@earthlink.net 
> writes:
> 
> 
> > Today I was asked to examine a "rebuilt" piano and figure out why it plays
> > so poorly.  Knabe small grand from mid-1920's.  It was obvious just sitting
> > at the kyboard an playing a little, that the damper timing was way uneven,
> > and drop was way low.  Thought the solution would be failry straightforward.
> > Then I pulled the action, which did not slide out easily, and saw the
> > pinblock hanging 1/4" below the stretcher, and the furrows ploughed
> > (plowed?) by the drop screws.  OK, now we know why the last guy didn't
> > regulate the drop.  Obviously got to make some room to raise the drop
> > screws.  Shanks are original, so I might gain something by bolstering
> > knuckles, but probably not enough.  I could go in there with a disk sander
> > and grind some off the bottom of the pinblock, but I'd prefer not to inflict
> > the noise and mess on the customer's living room.  Anyone else ever faced
> > this situation, and found a neat (i.e. reasonably clean and quiet) solution?
> > >
> > > thanks
> > >
> > > Mike Spalding, RPT
> > 
> 
> Mike
> 
> Although there might be several different ways to get around this problem, I 
> think the best solution is to confront the customer with the real problem, 
> and tell them the only correct solution is to replace the pin block. Anything 
> short of that will cause nothing but one problem after another. Even if you 
> rout off the bottom of the pin block, you might hit the bottom of the pins, 
> which creates another problem. 
> 
> I know this is probably not the solution the customer wants to hear, but I 
> would rather not try to do anything than do any kind of "fix," which is 
> really not a fix.
> 
> Wim 
>