snappy tuning pins

[pianolover 88]

Is it a new piano, or still under warranty? If so, that IS a warranty issue. 
If not under warranty, then you do what you have to to fix the problem and 
CHARGE for your time. "Snapping" pins are usually caused not from contact 
with the plate, but likely from the pinblock hole being over heated either 
during initial drilling, or, ir restrung, from the old pins being powered 
out TOO fast, again scortching the hole. Sometimes the problem can be 
alleviated or improved simply by turning the pin back and forth with your 
tuning hammer several times. You could remove the pin and clean out the hole 
with denatured alcohol after reaming it with a 3 ot gun barrel cleaner 
chucked into your reversible power drill. If this fails, then you may have 
to drill out the hole to remove the scortched material, and use larger 
pin(s).

Terry Peterson



----Original Message Follows----
From: Greg Graham <grahampianos@yahoo.com>
Reply-To: Pianotech <pianotech@ptg.org>
To: pianotech@ptg.org
Subject: snappy tuning pins
Date: Mon, 21 Feb 2005 21:44:00 -0800 (PST)

I have tuned a few pianos with a handfull of tuning
pins on each that snap: I pull, pull harder, pull
really hard, and BANG!  It sounds like the stri
broke, but, after my heart stops pounding, the string
is OK, and not significantly changed in pitch.  These
otherwise excellent pianos are all grands without
tuning pin bushings.  There must be a way to fix this.

My theory, which I am hoping you can confirm, is that
these few pins are rubbing and binding on the plate.
The pins seem off-center, and closer to the plate than
others, but it is hard to see down in the gap to know
for sure.

Is it possible to pull out the tuning pin, drill the
cast iron slightly larger with a hand drill (letting
the chips fall through the open hole in the pinblock),
and reinstall the pin?  Are there any pitfalls?  Is
this something anyone does?  If the holes don't go all
the way through the block, is there a cool way to keep
the chips out?  I don't recall seeing this in print.

I suppose the next question would be: How do you get
the owner to pay for it, since it won't have a
noticable impact on the touch, tone, etc, (though a
few notes may be in better tune).

Greg Graham
Graham Piano Service
Brodheadsville, PA



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