Dumb - Dumb - Dumb

[Jim Coleman, Sr.]

Hi Edward:

Of course this has happened to all of us at some time. There are several
possible causes. The most common is that we failed to notice broken bridal
straps and the jacks got caught under the butt felts. I don't suspect 
that was your case though because the hammers would have been jammed 
against the strings. The next possibility is that perhaps the action was not
seated properly upon the ball bolts before you took out the action, and now
that you have properly installed the action, the capstan screw 
adjustment is out in that section. Story and Clark has not made spinets for
a very long time, and when they did, they used the Wood & Brooks action 
with the auxiliary rail for the stickers, tongues and flanges. You may have
taken the opportunity to tighten this rail down. That can cause an 
effect like having higher capstans.

Jim Coleman, Sr.

On Mon, 19 Jan 1998, Edward Carwithen wrote:

>   I was so proud of myself.  I did a really good, and quick (for me) job on
> a Story and Clark spinet, you know, one of those with the rotten plastic
> parts.  I had replaced at least a dozen of those in the past couple of
> years.  Today I didn't break one... until F7.  Then C8 whippen flange
> cracked.  
>   OK, no problem, I had the parts in the truck, took out the action, placed
> it on the convenient picnic table outside, and replaced the parts.  15
> minutes tops.  Cleaned up, and put it back in the piano.  Now 30 or 40
> hammers won't return to the rest rail.  
>   It is a cold and damp day here, and the inside of the house is nice and
> toasty from the wood stove heater.  All I can figure is that the wood and
> felts were reacting to the cold and damp outside and swelled up.
>   I waited 1/2 hour for the action to re-acclimate, and it was getting
> better.  Will check again tomorrow to see if things have returned to normal.
>   If I had only done the work on the kitchen floor (standing practically on
> my head) I would have looked like a champ instead of a chump.  Dum Dum Dum.....
> Ed Carwithen
> Oregon
>