Jim said: "Anybody out there got a 'good' technical reason for not turning pins? If there is a 'good' technical reason for not turning pins.....why aren't frontrail pins round rather than ovoid? I have one reason: It loosens the pin in the wood. The reason the pins are oval is to provide a wider/smoother surface for the bushing, which is traveling in an ARC! If the key was actually traveling straight up/down there would be no need for the oval. A previous poster said Erard expressed the turning of the pin as an option. Think about how the technology was just developing at that time. Yes, Erard was thinking ahead, but he didn't have all of the answers as to the ramifications therein, IMO. If the manufacturers would make the pin oval the FULL LENGTH and force fit the pins in a round hole, it would have been better, because then you couldn't turn the darn things!<G> Of course, that would mean they would have to have a surefire way of getting them straight, in the first place.<G>....NOT POSSIBLE!<G> Best Regards, Joe Garrett, RPT, (Oregon) Captain, Tool Police Squares Are I
This PTG archive page provided courtesy of Moy Piano Service, LLC