Key Bushing Lubricant

[Mark Schecter]

I suppose I should have said "why would one" instead of "why would you". 
So, OK, why would one use synthetic white grease, or any grease for that 
matter, when cleaner, slipperier substances which have been formulated, 
tested, and proven for use in pianos are readily available?

Any kind of grease, even if it contains teflon, has a very high 
viscosity, and that can only be felt as friction, the opposite of what 
"one" is trying to achieve. Greases are intended for high load/high 
temperature applications, neither of which this is. Grease is too big 
and too slow for key bushings, even if it would last.

No matter what you use to lubricate the bushings, eventually you have to 
replace the bushings. The real question is, how do they feel and 
function between replacements?

-Mark

Farrell wrote:
> Key phrase: /" This isn't my idea!"/
>  
> That's why.
>  
> This job is being done for another technician, so it is not my decision. 
> It turns out the tallow is out and "synthetic white grease from any ACE 
> hardware" is in. So I'm looking at using a mixture of synthetic white 
> grease and teflon powder. Seems the idea comes from a reputable Steinway 
> tech in Europe who overseas pianos that see heavy use. That is the main 
> objective here is to reduce friction in an effort to increase key 
> bushing longevity.
>  
> These are the Yamaha C3 pianos that I had originally posted on regarding 
> leather key bushings. We elected to go with Renner cloth bushings 
> because of the reported problems with the brass key pins.
>  
> Terry Farrell
>  
> ----- Original Message -----
>  >I for one don't know why you would want to use something as goopy as
>  > animal fat, even in a very thin layer. I think it will eventually get
>  > sticky-sludgy, and what good is that? Why don't you use ProTek on the
>  > bushings and the keypins? It's clean, slippery, and repeatable. I wet
>  > the bushings, and use a cloth to wipe it onto the keypins. Since it
>  > coats the cloth fibers, I think it lubricates better than powder.
>  > Barring a too-tight fit, you won't have friction problems. Works for me.
>  >
>  > -Mark
>  >
>  > Farrell wrote:
>  >> Does anyone know anything about using a tallow/graphite or
>  >> tallow/microfine-Teflon-powder mixture as a key-pin/key-bushing
>  >> lubricant? Anyone know where to find a suitable form of tallow?
>  >> 
>  >> Terry Farrell
>  >> 
>  >> FWIW: This isn't my idea!