worn key sides

[Jon Page]

Dave,
Install an onlay. Route off the top 1/4' or so with a drill press and 
plunge router bit.

Old upright keys which haven't had the sides undermined make suitable 
onlays, cut the appropriate
amount off the keys. Two things to bear in mind, depth of front rail pin up 
into key and juxtaposition
of the tails.

If tail alignment is a problem, fabricate suitable onlays. For that matter, 
the tail doesn't have to be replaced,
just the head. Cut sufficiently into the key (1/4" is plenty) and add new 
stock cut to width.
No one will feel or notice if the area below the onlay isn't flush. Of 
course the fronts will need replacing.

If the sides hadn't been tapered, you could have built them up with veneer.

Regards,

Jon Page, piano technician
Harwich Port, Cape Cod, Mass.
mailto:jonpage@comcast.net
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