In a message dated 6/23/99 5:50:03 AM Pacific Daylight Time, Billbrpt@AOL.COM writes: << Thanks Zy for your contribution. I have noticed that among the spinet pianos that have the plastic elbows, that the ones that had the weakest, most brittle parts were the ones that had an uncontrolled Dampp-Chaser dehumidifier rod. I have often suspected that the heat from the rod contributed to the degredation of the material but not being a chemist, I had no way of proving or even researching that idea. Any ideas on this anyone? I once replaced the elbows of a Betsy Ross Spinet (one of my favorite little pianos) with the dehumidifier blazing away in Winter where the elbows crumbled as easily as the Christmas candy that I was offered while doing the job. I needed no tools to remove the elbows or even the remnants, I could break out the material with my fingers alone. Bill Bremmer RPT Madison, Wisconsin >> Blazing rods or not, the little buggers did not hold up over time. Once I replaced them on one for a local store, and my fellow techs loved to help break them by pound on the keys. Some pianos including the Betsy Ross, have flanges of the same material. The new space age plastice seems to be a lot better, but I have replace several sets with wood as well. Either way, they should outlast you and me. Dave Peake, RPT Portland Chapter Oregon City, OR
This PTG archive page provided courtesy of Moy Piano Service, LLC