CA glue a Baldwin

[daniel carlton]

i'm considering using CA glue on a small Baldwin (i haven't found a serial 
number yet and i didn't measure the piano) but i might guess that it would 
be at least 50+. it was rebuilt about 30 years ago. aparently someone used 
pin tite or garfields or whatever on it without telling the customer.
i looked at the piano for the first time last week and many of the notes 
were very sour. a couple of pins in the bass simply wouldn't stay put.
i explained the situation to the customer. i told them they could either 
replace the pinblock or do a temporary fix with CA. i told them it might or 
might not work. they wanted to try the CA to see if it could make the piano 
tunable until they could save enough money for a new PB.
so i was reading up on CA since this will be my first time to use it, and i 
ran across a message or two that advised against ever using CA on a good 
grand:

>"Piesik, John (JPIESIK)" wrote:
>
> > Dear List,
> >
> > Last month I requested info on CA glue for loose tuning pins. It's only 
>fair
> > that I report the results, especially to those who thoughtfully 
>responded.
> > And the results are: it worked, and it didn't work. It appears that, in 
>my
> > opinion, CA glue can pull you out of a "slippy" situation, sometimes. A
> > couple of the pins I tried it on were so loose that the CA glue was not
> > effective. Thus, I muted those strings that wouldn't tune, got my client
> > through her Christmas party, and recommended that the next step is a
> > replacement or rebuild.
> >
> > Now, following are some comments, my opinions, of course, regarding this
> > matter:
> >
> > When a piano is in need of CA glue on more than a few tuning pins, it's 
>in
> > need of a lot more than just CA glue. I would not recommed CA gluing or
> > doping an entire pinblock - I shudder at the thought - although, I know 
>some
> > folks do, and that's fine for them. I've learned that there are many 
>ways to
> > skin a cat in this business, but, to me, some cats are best left alone. 
>(In
> > order to buy a little more time in an emergency, on a few pins at best,
> > then, CA glue may be the ticket. And, there are other ways to solve a 
>loose
> > tuning pin problem, too!) But, let's face it, doping an entire pinblock 
>is a
> > bandaid fix.
> >
> > It's a funny thing that in the last month I've encountered two more 
>pianos
> > (grands) that are not holding tension due to loose pins. I admit I CA 
>glued
> > two pins on a Yamaha gray-market piano to "buy some more time", but the
> > other was just too far gone. In these cases, I recommended replacement 
>or
> > have them rebuilt (preferably with new PBs). It's apparent that I'm 
>running
> > into increasingly more pianos with "loose pin" troubles (are you?). I 
>don't
> > think that this is some kind of coincidence, either, and here's why. 
>Many
> > pianos were sold to/for boomers during the 50s, 60s and 70s. The 
>condition
> > of these pianos, coming from the historical height of US piano sales, 
>due to
> > the pianos ages, is now starting to deteriorate (the pianos are now over 
>30
> > years old). I am not a rebuilder, but, I would bet dollars to donuts 
>that
> > the piano rebuilding business is going to see a flurry of new work in 
>the
> > very near future - if it hasn't already begun. And piano sales will 
>continue
> > to increase with even more vigor. (I would someday like to have a shop 
>and
> > become a rebuilder; it's very rewarding work. And, there are not enough 
>good
> > rebuilders - there seems to be plenty of room for more. The Aerospace
> > industry has a similar problem with more talent leaving or retiring and 
>not
> > enough good talent coming in - but that's a whole other story.)
> >
> > Bandaids only hold for so long, then they fall off. Doping pinblocks is 
>a
> > bandaid. Our clients, and thus the piano industry as a whole, in my 
>opinion,
> > would benefit from either recommending a new piano or a rebuilt piano
> > instead of applying a bandaid to a piano beginning its dying cough. It's 
>up
> > to us to gently guide our clients to the right decision. The fact is, 
>all of
> > us are going to be encountering more and more of these untunable pianos. 
>Do
> > we squirt CA glue into them and cross our fingers, or do we recommend a 
>new
> > purchase or a rebuild? The bandaid approach, I think, hurts everyone. 
>The
> > later recommendation has obvious benefits for our industry, at least in 
>my
> > mind.
> >
> > What do you think?
> >
> > Warmest Regards,
> >
> > John Piesik, RPT
> > Piesik's Piano Service
> > Oceanside, CA
> > (760) 726-4665

my thought is this: i've explained the sitch to the owners, told them the 
good and the bad, and that CA is only a temporary fix. they decided to 
simply give it a try.

if anyone thinks CA might not be a good idea on this particular occasion, 
let me know.

AND another question...

if i do go ahead with the job, what kind of time am i looking at/what should 
i charge?

many thanks

daniel carlton

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