Hitch Pin Replacement Question

[Ron Nossaman]

>    I wish to upgrade the quality of my restorations by installing new 
> hitch pins (frankly strictly for cosmetic reasons). Perhaps some of you 
> are doing this already. More power to you.
>    My first question of one of removal of the original pins. Getting the 
> ones out that serve the long bridge from the backside of the plate via a 
> drift punch and hammer seems straightforward enough. The problem arises 
> on Steinway (and other) plates, however, where the hitch pins for the 
> bass section do not protrude through the casting. These can not be 
> driven out from the back. How can they be easily/successfully removed?
> 
>    David G. Hughes, RPT


If there's a way to pull them effectively, I haven't found it 
yet. If you do, let me know, will you? There is this though, 
and it does work. Make a rubbing of the bass hitches, and poke 
through the paper at each hitch. Try your impact puller on 
pins until you get a couple to come out, preferably one at 
each end. Drill these holes through, flip the plate over, 
locate the upside down pattern on the holes, mark the other 
hole locations, and drill slightly larger holes down at the 
appropriate angle to intersect the blind holes. Locating the 
pattern on the through holes with long bits gives you a sight 
angle. Then punch them out. There's a ton of iron in most bass 
risers, so you aren't giving up anything important in 
strength, and there's not much breeze under there, so they 
won't whistle - and the mice won't tell.
Ron N