Newton: You got it. The rim was laid up around the plated belly, or perhaps the plate slid in before the pinblock/stretcher assembly was glued up, much the same way that some soundboards (old Bluthner's come to mind) were done, slid into a mortise. You're right, not easy. I danced around this one Boesendorfer for three weeks before taking a saw to the rim. Fortunately I have a superb refinisher to work with who hid all of the cut marks. But the cutting still has to be done very carefully. PR-J
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