Grand casters

[John Baird]

Dear Mr. Sambell,

Thank you for your timely (for us) tip on the heavy duty Renner casters.
Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois has just completed the expansion and
remodeling of their music school and they have been looking for the right
caster/dolly solution for protecting the new recital hall stage floor.

I contacted Renner. Fortunately, they have three of these casters in
stock--just enough! Unfortunately, _each_ caster costs $394! They are solid
brass with locks on them. The tone advantage of having the piano grounded
directly to the stage floor, and the several advantages of not having the piano
on a dolly, cause us not to dismiss this option out of hand. For now, I'm sure
it's not in the budget, but you never know when an alum might feel generous.
Thank you again for bringing this to our attention.

MILLIKIN UNIVERSITY
For those on the list who may be interested, the new 55,000-square-foot
Perkinson Music Building acquired 41 new Steinway and Boston pianos in
December:
--seven Steinway Bs
--one Steinway L
--ten Boston GP178 grands (5' 10 1/2")
--23 Boston  UP118 verticals

John Baird, RPT
Decatur, Illinois

Ted_Sambell@BanffCentre.AB.CA wrote:

>                       RE>Grand casters                             07/03/0
> Dear Mr. Pollard,
>
> Darnell casters are available from Schaff Piano Supply Co. 451 Oakwood Rd..
> Lake Zurich, Illinois, U.S.A. 60047-1516. As there are a variety of styles,
> I suggest you send for their catalogue; I believe there is a modest charge
> for it.
> The wheels are much as you described, with a ball bearing on top for
> swivelling, The stems plug into a socket which has to be screwed into the
> leg. You may have to first plug the leg hole then rebore a smaller hole for
> the socket. The caster stem is then just pushed in and tapped home. This
> makes the casters easily replaceable in case of damage; just pry the old
> one out and plug in a new one.  Darnells are excellent quality and the
> design lends itself to piano applications very well. But if you are
> considering putting them on a large concert grand, it would be better to go
> to the heavy duty casters supplied by Renner. These are large dual wheeled
> casters which require  an inch or so to be cut off the legs. They are far
> superoir to putting the piano on a dolly.
>
> Should you have any questions, please feel free to e-mail me.
>
> Sincerely, Ted Sambell
>
> Ted_Sambell@banffcentre.ab.ca