RE Grand whippen retrofit

[Jim Coleman, Sr.]

Hi Jack:

This action is probably the old French Prolonge action. It was the favorite
of Iturbi. He had a special Baldwin grand with this type action. he loved
it. There is less friction at the capstan with this arrangement. Sure, the
regulation is a little different, but to him it was worth it.

Jim Coleman, Sr.

On Fri, 28 May 1999 Loftune@AOL.COM wrote:

> I have in my care a George Steck 8'-9'(?) grand with a very unusual 
> whippen/capstan configuration. Instead  of a cushion, the whippens are pinned 
> to a kind of sticker(flange?). One end of the sticker is pinned to the 
> whippen and the other is pinned to the capstan. (Thankfully, this end has a 
> set screw!) The capstan is the double screw type capstan accessible only with 
> an offset screwdriver.
> 
> I don't relish the thought of loosening 88 set screws just to remove the 
> stack, nor do I look forward to regulating the hammer blow once I replace the 
> hammers.
> 
> My question is this:	
> 
> If I replace the odd whippens with conventional ones and replace the old 
> capstans with 1"(?) dowel capstans, am I asking for trouble with the action 
> geometry?
> 
> Does anybody have any experience/suggestions for how to go about changing 
> them?
> 
> Or is it better just to live with the old parts if they are still serviceable?
> 
> Okay, okay, that's three questions, but you get the idea. 
> 
> Thanks,		Jack Lofton, RPT	Seattle
>