Having been the host for several PTG chapter picnics where we had piano demolition derbies for piano shaped objects I can say that the plate very rarely breaks. The sound is about like what you would get if you turned a group of 6 year old kids with drum sticks loose on an upright with the action removed. Our demo derby was to get 2 uprights about 90 feet apart on a concrete floor and run them into each other as fast as we could push them. On one occasion I had a neighbor kid back into an upright piano shaped object at about 20 to 30 MPH with his demolition derby Cadillac. The plate didn't break. Just put a small scratch in the Caddy but totaled the piano. John Dewey -----Original Message----- From: Tvak@AOL.COM <Tvak@AOL.COM> To: pianotech@ptg.org <pianotech@ptg.org> Date: Tuesday, September 04, 2001 8:19 AM Subject: flying burning pianos (OT) >I was channel-surfing Sunday night and came across a show called SEEING IS >BELIEVING. One of the segments highlighted the activities of Hugh Wheeler >from Shropshire, England. A rich, retired gentleman with time on his hands, >Hugh decided to build a Trebuchet, which is a medieval weapon, sort of like a >catapult. This trebuchet was about 3 stories tall, and was able to hurl cars >in the air. Hugh loaded a vertical piano onto the thing, strapped a >container of gasoline to the piano, doused it and set it on fire, and >launched it a distance of about 2 or 3 city blocks. The sight of the burning >piano flying through the air was priceless, as was the explosion when it hit >the ground. Unfortunately the sound of the explosion masked the sound of the >harp breaking apart, the strings snapping, etc., all of which I would like to >have heard. > >Who among us couldn't comprise a list of pianos that we've serviced in the >past which would benefit from such treatment? (See thread entitled "Re:Betsy >Ross".) > >Tom Sivak >
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