I'm sending this again, hoping someone can help. Thanks! I recently took on a restoration job for a Chickering grand (1883). I will begin in about 8-10 weeks. Everything looks like it will be straight forward except for the soundboard. The piano came from it's home in Colorado to me in Louisiana (it's now adjusted to our humid climate and now I think it's a couple of inches longer). At some point in it's past the bass bridge was reglued/screwed. I am assuming that at this time the technician decided that it was necessary to remove the last two ribs (near the tail) from the soundboard. There is crown in the middle of the soundboard but there is some warpage and inconsistency. My question is: Is it mandatory that I replace those ribs, and how do I do it? They are about 10" and 16"long (?). Can I just shape the ribs for some crown and glue them in with soundboard repair jigs? How do I get them into the rim? The customer is not terribly interested in antique value, just playability/sound. It sounds surprisingly good now, despite the "Adam's rib" extraction. THANKS!! Lance Lafargue, RPT New Orleans Chapter Covington, LA. lafargue@iamerica.net Lance Lafargue, RPT New Orleans Chapter Covington, LA. lafargue@iamerica.net
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