If it worked, the technique is right! Richard L. Hopkins

[Jon Page]

In a bad mood today Bill ?

My hand is raised

I hardly relate applying CA glue to a pin and driving it in,
to the process you described. Your remarks are demeaning
and a touch less than professional. An apology is in order.

As long as a procedure works and does no harm then it
is a good repair. Just because a slightly different application
is theoretically better does not mean it is the only way.
I suppose the "correct' way is 'your way'.

Lighten up,

Jon Page
Harwich Port, Cape Cod, Mass. (jpage@capecod.net)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PS,  Thanks for the tip on bolting the block to the plate.
Although I do not anticipate ever encountering the need
for this application, it is good to explore all options   :-)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
At 10:52 PM 3/9/99 -0500, you wrote:
>Someone wrote:
>
><<If it worked, the technique is right. If it doesn't, you made a mistake. >>
>
>Would any defenders of this sentiment please raise your hands? ( And, your
>voices in support!)
>
> I see an awful lot of this attitude in posts on this list. Why? It is not
>only simple-minded, it is extremely unprofessional.  I thought the whole
point
>to being a “professional” anything, was to do that thing right, to do things
>the “correct” way, the “best” way.
>
>For those with your hands raised, you will love the following quick and easy
>repairs I once saw on a grand piano.
>
>Repair #1 - The repairman tapped all the pins without supporting the
pinblock.
>“It worked” as a technique because the torque increased and he could now tune
>it.
>
>Repair #2 - (later - same guy, same piano) - The bottom lamination of the
>block delaminated, downwards, preventing removal of the action. He pried it
>off with a screwdriver! - “It worked!” The action could now come out! The
pins
>were just high enough not to restrict the action removal.  - the technique
was
>right!
>
>Repair #3 -  (even later - same guy, same piano) - The second bottom
>lamination, now the bottom layer,  also was delaminating, and the pin torque
>was dropping. He drilled small holes through the plate web, around and
amongst
>the tuning pins, put in about forty  #10 machine screws, and  a square nut on
>the bottom of each.  There was clearance for the nuts because the bottom
>lamination was gone now. Then he ran in some white glue and  partially sucked
>the laminations together again by tightening the screws. Then, forty whacks
>with a hammer and a sharp cold chisel made the bolts flush with the nuts, and
>the action could be removed again! 
>
>When I saw the piano, the pin torque was adequate, it could be tuned.  This
>genius repairman had saved this piano! “It worked, the technique was right!”
>
>(((((   IMPORTANT  NOTE!  - For those on this list who believe that all
>opinions are equally valid, that the opinions of morons carries the same
>weight as that of competent technicians, ----let me state categorically - THE
>ABOVE   POST  IS  SARCASTIC!  - I strongly recommend that no one ever
repair a
>piano is such a way. ))))))
>
>Bill “the end does not always justify the means” Simon
>Phoenix
>