Open face vs. closed face pin blocks

Phillip L Ford fordpiano@lycos.com
Tue, 21 Aug 2001 22:11:11 0000


On Sun, 19 Aug 2001 17:13:37  
 Delwin D Fandrich wrote:
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Phillip L Ford" <fordpiano@lycos.com>
>To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
>Sent: August 16, 2001 10:05 PM
>Subject: Re: Open face vs. closed face pin blocks
>
>
>> I checked my notes.  This is not from a handout but from a note that
>> I wrote down myself.  Gray iron 35 ksi.  I could have made a mistake.
>>
>> I checked a couple of engineering references.  Representative numbers
>> are:
>>
>> ASTM A 48  Class 20 to Class 60 with tensile strengths of
>> 20000 to 60000 psi.
>>
>> So, 35000 psi is certainly well within this range.  It would depend on the
>> specific 'recipe' that Kelly is using.  Also, I don't know if they use the
>> same recipe for everyone's plates.
>
>At the time Kelly was using the same mix for everybody. I don't know if that
>has changed since the early 1990s. I wanted to move up to something in the
>35,000 psi range for our plates and was told it couldn't be done.
>
>
>
>> The different classes have different
>> microstructure with some changes in various properties that certain
>> manufacturers may want.  For instance, I believe damping capacity and
>> machinability increase as you move down in class and strength, stiffness,
>> and wear resistance go up as you move up in class.
>
>This is essentially the case. The properties of gray iron castings depend
>only partially on the actual mix. They also depend on several
>characteristics of the casting process: how fast the iron is poured, how
>fast it is allowed to cool, its cross-sections, etc. If you break up a piano
>plate and test it for tensile strength you'll find that this varies
>considerably from one area to another.
>
>Del
>

---
True, which brings up the question:  What does Kelly mean by 25,000 PSI
strength for their plates?  Is that the minimum strength anywhere in the
casting, the average strength, the max strength?


Phil


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