The "Yamaha" method is to rub across the bottom of the key with the wedge portion of the CF tool which will compress the wood in the mortise slightly. It is only good for very small improvements. What can work a little better is to put a key bushing caul in the hole and give it a whack with a hammer. This does the same thing but is more aggressive. It is also possible to do more damage with this method, also! Think of it as a more benevolent form of the draconian key bushing tightening tool that is sold by Schaff. You know, the one with the "fangs"? On Fri, Aug 14, 2009 at 1:41 AM, Gregor _ <karlkaputt at hotmail.com> wrote: > Mark, > > I don´t understand the description of that Yamaha method. Do you insert a > rounded metal into the bushing hole and then press firm to the leather? This > should have the same effect than pliers for easening (not tightening) the > bushing. > > Usually I use a voicing tool with 3 needles and prickle into the leather. > Not from above and parallel to the inside mortise edge as described by Noah > but from the side so that the needle hits the leather with a 45 - 90 degree > angle. That makes the leather smooth again (no noise) and fluffs it up. > Never had problems with that. > > Turning the front pins a little bit works good and does no harm to > anything. After a few years you could turn it the other way round. > > Gregor > > ------------------------------------------ > piano technician - tuner - dealer > Münster, Germany > www.weldert.de > > > > > ------------------------------ > From: perrymark at hotmail.com > To: pianotech at ptg.org > Date: Thu, 13 Aug 2009 03:11:28 +0000 > Subject: Re: [pianotech] Steingraeber & Sohns leather key bushings > > > Hello Andrew, > > I have restored many pianos with leather bushings. Square grands and > earlier european pianos often used leather bushings as if they knew it held > up better. These bushings come in 100 years old, and showing little sign of > wear. It is clearly a better material to implement, but there are a few > serious differences from felt. > > First, as felt is woven for strength, leather is not. If you attempt to > insert a needle behind the leather, you may find the needle to cut cleanly > through the leather without a thought. once the leather is cut, it will not > ride the pin smoothly. If you are careful, it may be just fine, and If you > mess up a bushing, there are a few good websites to point you in the right > direction.... > > second, the leather if it gets wet will turn hard and shrink to nothing. > Likewise, if you apply heat as an attempt to size on a humid day, it can do > the same thing. I believe I would consider Yamaha's method for sizing the > bushing hole. Try a rounded piece of metal to burnish (polish) the wood on > either side of the leather. Press firm, and go back and forth.... this will > mushroom the wood slightly and tighten the bushing. If that does not work, > consider new leather. > > Good luck, > Mark Perry > www.carvedpianoparts.com > > > From > > > > I have a late 30s student piano (a0 to a7) traded into the store for > > piano lessons. The piano case shows some of the age, but when I got > > into it I was surprised at how well made it is. It tunes up > > beautifully and plays great with a regulation close to the strings > > allowing very fine dynamic control. > > > > I'm wondering if the leather front key bushings are original? I > > wouldn't mind if they were a little tighter. Is there an acceptable > > way to "rejuvenate" leather in the context of a keypin? > > > > Andrew Anderson, Artisan Piano > > > ------------------------------ > Get free photo software from Windows Live Click here.<http://www.windowslive.com/online/photos?ocid=PID23393::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:SI_PH_software:082009> > ------------------------------ > Surfen – optimiert für MSN. <http://redirect.gimas.net/?n=M0908aIE_MSN1> > -- Ryan Sowers, RPT Puget Sound Chapter Olympia, WA www.pianova.net -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://ptg.org/pipermail/pianotech.php/attachments/20090814/59db4b70/attachment.htm>
This PTG archive page provided courtesy of Moy Piano Service, LLC