[pianotech] Yamaha U1

[Floyd Gadd]

I routinely use lubricants at the pin/bushing cloth interface when I'm
reconditioning a keyboard.  I use powdered teflon on the bushings and
ProLube on the pins.  I precede the application with a thorough polishing of
the pins, and either steaming/ironing or rebushing the mortises.  I seem to
recall reading on this list the suggestion that failing to lubricate this
interface promotes accelerated bushing wear.

It my assumption that the teflon is essentially inert, and that the prolube
is harmless to the bushings, especially after the carrier has evaporated.  I
can certainly understand the concern with introducing silicon into the mix.

Floyd Gadd
Mantioba Chapter

David Lawson wrote:
I am a little concerned at the prospect of adding lubricants to bushing
cloth. Some years ago, and maybe even now, some manufacturers added silicone
to their bushing cloth, thinking that it would improve the smoothness of the
touch etc. However, this method only seemed to exacerbate the problem of
squeaky bushings in keys. Some Korean pianos had this problem here, and
re-bushing was the only guaranteed way of fixing it. This, of course, was
replacing the cloth with top quality material without additives.
There is nothing like good felt to last, and give good service. Let's face
it, some of the 100 year old pianos still have the original bushing felt in
them, and still work fine, without squeaks.