Don't know about the flanges, but sure hope old fatso brings me a camera like the one you used to take these pics. They make that phrase about a picture is worth a ......... ! Sometimes a description doesn't do it, but a picture sure does. Wish more guys were able to do it. Thanks. Carl / Winnipeg Alan wrote: > Sheesh. Ya try to write a rant with a little over-the-top-humor and end > up having to defend yourself .... well, okay, here's the story: > > Attached picture shows "good" flange and broken flange. > > My whining was really NOT aimed at anyone personally. But this > design—on casual inspection by ANYONE—would appear dopey, incredibly > weak. > > When I wrote it, I had just come from the home of a nice young couple > with limited income (she's in a wheelchair, he works as a prison guard) > who had bought a very nice used Baldwin for their three kids to learn > on. They bought it from a lady who never much played it, apparently, > because it is ten years old and there are almost NO grooves on the > hammers, just black marks from the strings (manufacturing oil, I > suppose). > > Anyway, It was about 120 cents flat. In starting to do the pitch > correction, I hit A0 and heard the most interesting rattle and > confusion of bass sounds. I looked at the dampers and found that eleven > (count that: 11) of the dampers weren't working--no springs! I removed > the action and found that those idiotic little flanges had itty-bitty > projections molded into them to hold the center coil of the spring. I > mean thin and tiny and barely long enough for the coil. > > Now they must pay to replace all the damper flange/spring assemblies > with good ol' Schaff 514W's in hard rock maple. > > I'm not opposed to plastic, per se, and, having been owner of several > businesses over the years, I can certainly appreciate the need to watch > costs, etc. But NOT when your reputation is at stake. Also, why screw > up a good thing? After all, we've all made a living tuning pianos with > flanges that have held up for 50 to a hundred years, or more. > > And, yes, I've made a lot of money on Baldwin pianos, too. Their basic > designs can't be unduly faulted. And these flanges must have been > a very short-run experiment because I've never seen them before ... and > frankly hope I never do, again. <G> > > Alan R. Barnard > Salem, MO > > P.S. For those who suggested using repair springs on the old flanges. > Nah. With so many broken (despite a distinct lack of hard use!)one can > only project more trouble down the line with expenses and "downtime" > every so often. > > Photo at: > > https://www.moypiano.com/ptg/files/attachments/a9/cb/93/9b/ > BaldwinsFolly.JPG > > Alternate URL: > > http://tinyurl.com/yqm4 > > -----Original Message----- > From: Clyde Hollinger [mailto:cedel@supernet.com] > Sent: Wednesday, December 10, 2003 5:07 AM > To: Pianotech > Subject: Re: Stupid Flange Tricks > > Alan, > > If you have no special reason for asking the question, then I conclude > the flanges have always worked just fine. If they work just fine, then > how are they poorly designed, and why the verbal lashing for their > designer? Somewhere the logic of this scenario fails me. > > I service a lot of Baldwin spinets and consoles, and I've never had a > reason to even check what the damper flanges were like. > > Clyde > > Alan wrote: > Who the %&#@* were the cost-cutting, short-sighted, pencil-pushing, > inconsiderate, spineless, dung-brained, pin-headed little > engineering/management weenies at Baldwin who put those stupid small, > thin, weak, poorly-designed brownish grey plastic flanges on their > console/spinet dampers in 1981??? No special reason for asking; just > curious ...Alan R. BarnardSalem, MO > > --- > Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. > Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). > Version: 6.0.525 / Virus Database: 322 - Release Date: 10/9/2003 > > _______________________________________________ > Files list info: http://ptg.org/mailman/listinfo/files > > _______________________________________________ > pianotech list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives
This PTG archive page provided courtesy of Moy Piano Service, LLC