A "Fixture" for drilling P.Block in Piano/Farrell

[Carl Meyer]

I'll quickly go thru this picture.

First, let me say that I follow the Murphys law on precision.  I  measure with a micrometer, mark with chalk and cut with an axe.

A terrycloth towel on the rim.

A 12 inch wide piece of particle board with white plastic on top long enough to span the piano with a bit to spare.  It's stiffened with a piece of 3/4 plywood about 5 inches wide at the rear and a 2 inch wide 1/8 inch thick aluminum at the front.

A similar piece of board that will slide left to right.  Right to left as well.  The main will slide fore and aft and the press will slide port and starboard. 

Mounted on the sliding member is the cheapest drill press I can find.  I've seen them for $39.95 at harbor freight.

Remove the base and table from the press.  Remove the hinge on the lid and cut a hole in it to clear the main pipe.  Add a pulley and use aircraft cable to gear up the lever so that about 1/3 stroke of the handle will give full 2 inches of stroke of the bit.  Now by adjusting the bit  and the press up and down on the post, I can get the proper stroke.  You need to use longer drills.  About 6 inches.

I've drilled thru the plate and the pin block to plug the block with 3/8 inch plugs.  Had to get metric drills to get the right size to fit the plugs.  You need a bit of clearance.  Can't put a 3/8 plug in a 3/8 hole.  Here's where a little precision helps.
Use the same drill to drill thru a chunk of pinblock and put a centering punch in a vise with the chunk over it and center punch the plugs with  a hammer before gluing in.  Now drill for the pin size.

For those who absitively and posolutely insist on drilling at an angle, just throw a dowel of suitable size under the back of the sliding part to tilt it forward.  It'll stay there okay. A little
talc or teflon and it move fairly easily.

I use air, not to levitate but to cool the bit.  A vortec tube will cool the bit so you can touch it at any time (turned off of course).

This is a one use tool.  It'll out last me at my present level of usage.

An order for two won't cut it Terry.  I'd have to have an order for at least ten to motivate me to make these and they are too hard to ship.  Everyone would want me to change it anyway and I'm too old to change.  

Carl Meyer  Assoc. PTG
Santa Clara, California
cmpiano@attbi.com 
 

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Farrell" <mfarrel2@tampabay.rr.com>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Tuesday, April 02, 2002 6:53 PM
Subject: Re: A "Fixture" for drilling P.Block in Piano/Farrell


> Thanks for the picture. It came through just fine. I see you have a plank that goes across the entire piano. What are its dimensions and what material is it (I see you also have a ?steel? reinforcement along the front edge)? Then the drill press is mounted on a separate board? What are its dimensions and construction? And that board just slides over the big board? Any kind of friction reduction apparatus between the two blocks (ball bearings, wheels, something to make it slide more easily)? Thanks.
> 
> Terry Farrell
>   
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Carl Meyer" <cmpiano@attbi.com>
> To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, April 02, 2002 6:49 PM
> Subject: Re: A "Fixture" for drilling P.Block in Piano/Farrell
> 
> 
> > Terry, I'm sending you an attachment photo of the monster.  Its almost a half meg jpg.   I'll follow up with a description if you get it okay.
> > 
> > If any others want a copy of the photo, send me an e-mail  privately so that I can just click reply and send you the attachment privately.  It wont go thru the list (its too big)
> > 
> > I gotta get more familiar with photo editing etc.  Took me ages.  
> > 
> > Carl Meyer  Assoc. PTG
> > Santa Clara, California
> > cmpiano@attbi.com 
> > 
> > 
> > ----- Original Message ----- 
> > From: "Farrell" <mfarrel2@tampabay.rr.com>
> > To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
> > Sent: Tuesday, April 02, 2002 2:17 PM
> > Subject: Re: A "Fixture" for drilling P.Block in Piano/Farrell
> > 
> > 
> > > Yes, yes, yes! I'll be-a-waitin'! If it's as good as your slick key-leveling device that you sell (and that has improved my key-leveling results ten-fold), I'll take two!
> > > 
> > > Terry Farrell
> > >   
> > > ----- Original Message ----- 
> > > From: "Carl Meyer" <cmpiano@attbi.com>
> > > To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
> > > Sent: Tuesday, April 02, 2002 4:45 PM
> > > Subject: Re: A "Fixture" for drilling P.Block in Piano/Farrell
> > > 
> > > 
> > > > 
> > > > Terry, I've put a lot of effort into building a better mouse trap.  Finally, I have a patent for a ball bearing mouse trap.  Can't seem to sell any,  most people have one already.  They call them "Tom cats".
> > > > 
> > > > I, too, have a pinblock drilling machine.  Not very sophisticated "Needlessly complicated"  and only about 60 lbs.
> > > > Give me a day or so to scan some pictures and I'll post them soon.
> > > > 
> > > > Carl Meyer  Assoc. PTG
> > > > Santa Clara, California
> > > > cmpiano@attbi.com 
> 
>