Action Friction problem, Methanol

[Israel Stein]

At 10:01 AM 2/18/2005, Doug Renz wrote:
>Some fellow technicians said that you can use Methanol to loosen up the
>action friction and this has worked well for them.  Do you know where
>you can purchase Methanol?
>
>Any ideas, suggestions would be appreciated!!!

If you find your action centers are sluggish and need easing, Methanol is 
much more effective and works much faster than denatured alcohol. It is 
recommended by the tech people at Steinway (who seem to have much need for 
it...) You can buy Methanol from scientific laboratory supply outlets. If 
there isn't one near you, most of them will ship via UPS or some such outfit.

Methanol comes in 2 grades, and the lower (cheaper) laboratory grade is 
good enough for our purposes. It is very volatile, so store it safely in a 
tightly stoppered bottle.

DO NOT use racing (or model airplane) fuel - which is also Methanol. It 
contains oils that will contaminate your bushings and stain your piano parts.

Israel Stein