loose bridge cap

Jon Page jonpage@mediaone.net
Wed, 22 Mar 2000 01:41:13 -0500


At 05:06 PM 03/21/2000 -0500, you wrote:
>Friends,
>
>Today I tuned a 1972 Baldwin Acrosonic spinet in which the bass bridge
>cap was coming loose for the lowest 5" or so.  The rest of the cap
>appeared to be tight.
>
>Now I've done repairs where the whole cap was loose, removing all the
>strings, screwing and gluing, etc.  But what about this?  Do I need to
>follow the same procedure to do a good repair?  Or can I remove just the
>bottom 10 strings or so and fix the one end?  It is out of position a
>little bit.  Your input will be appreciated.
>
>Regards,
>Clyde Hollinger
> 

How about just screwing it back down to stop further damage and then keeping
an eye on it in future tunings.

A screw placed between the first and second strings will stop any buzzing and
solidify the tone. Drill a hole for the threaded part of the screw and then
drill for
the shank through the cap, that will draw the cap down. Ma bye another screw
a few notes down also.  Heck, a pan head screw will do, after all it may be
too much trouble if the rest is not as loose. A simple fix may end up being a
long term cure. If not, 10 minutes of time was a good try and not a wasted
effort..






Jon Page,   piano technician
Harwich Port, Cape Cod, Mass.
mailto:jonpage@mediaone.net
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