Great success with ozone-generator mouse-pee de-stinking! (Thumperizing.)

[gordon stelter]

Full strength, briefly. It will dissolve the wood if
left to soak. Blast with water stream to remove yuck &
felts. Looks like old motor oil coming off! Very
satisfying!!! Stinks! Avoid clogging bathtub drain
with bits of felt. Wear gas-mask, gloves, goggles and
rubber boots with jumpsuit. Seems to dissolve
corrosion in center felts, without removing them. Of
course, the glue is liquified, temporarily, but dries
in place again due to center-pin. Once re-lubed with
stuff of your choice, seems to leave centers "just
about right". But this stuff's a powerful soap, and
may leave them lubed enough, as is. See for yourself.
I have not detected corrosion after this treatment.
neither, though, have I repinned a  set afterwards to
check. But I have a  player that I did this to 10
years ago, and it's clean asa whistle. The soap might
be less verdigris-inducing than the felt's own
lanolin. I have never noticed any warpage after this
syatem, but sometimes action parts were milled out of
laid-up boards, so check for bits ( usually on flanges
) that have separated from their main part. 
Yes, I have used it on keys. But keys are also much
more likely to warp, and the buttons will come  loose,
so tack the buttons down first with stainless steel
brads ( don't stain wood ) before proceeding. Try not
to get the keys too wet, kiss the keytops goodbye and
be prepared fora  lot of straighteing, when dry.
    Still, if it's a matter of getting the stink out
of a set of upright keys, versus $3,000 replacements,
this may be a viable option. Then ozonate. Then paint,
as last resort. Or buy a $3,000 set of new ones. 
    Also works great on action frames/rails.
     Thump

--- Lhadeh at wmconnect.com wrote:

> "Thumperizing" the wippens is sloshing them in a
> bucket of SuperClean (TM), 
> then rinsing. It REALLYgets them clean, and gets all
> the old felt/glue off ina 
> jiffy, too! Lay on wire mesh to dry, turning a
> fewtimes.I wouldn't necessarily 
> recommend this for yourlocal symphony's Bosie, but
> it's GREAT for filthy,old, 
> non-available action parts, like player
> wippens.Makes them look, and smell, 
> "almost-new". Thump
> 
> P.S. I have also had it return gummed-up
> actioncenters to "just-right".
> 
> I have seen the idea of using Castrol SuperClean on
> whippens in this list 
> before, and have used it extensively in automotive
> applications, but not pianos 
> yet.  Before I give it a try I have some questions:
> 
> 1)  Do you dilute it, or use it full strength.
> 2)  When you say it gets all the old felt/glue off
> in a jiffy, does it also 
> loosen the felt in the action centers?
> 3)  Have you noticed any wood coming off with the
> felt?
> 4)  Have you noticed any long term affects, such as
> corrosion of action 
> center pins?
> 5)  Does the moisture cause any twisting or bending
> of wooden whippen 
> components?
> 6)  Have you tried this on keys to clean up the tops
> and remove the bushings 
> and the greasy/grime on the sides of keys?
> 7)  When you were considering doing this the first
> time, were you 
> apprehensive about how it might turn out?
> 8)  Since you wouldn't recommend for your local
> symphony's Bosie, would you 
> do this on a Bosie that you might have personally
> acquired for a grand?  How 
> about 5 grand?  Ten?  Twenty?  Fifty? 
> 9)  Do you have other arcane methods that you have
> successfully worked out 
> that are not necessarily accepted by the
> "party-line"?
> 
> I consider this kind of thing a breath of fresh air
> (pun intended).  It is 
> not that I don't respect the tried and true methods
> for most work, but I also 
> know that progress is seldom made unless some fences
> are tested.
> 
> Loren Hedahl
> 
> 
> 


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