But, the more parts to the gadget the more fun it is! When I saw the pictures I wondered what door bell needed a transformer that size. A tube filament heater transformer makes sense. It is still an applictaion of heat. On Mon, Mar 30, 2009 at 7:45 PM, Delwin D Fandrich <del at fandrichpiano.com> wrote: > Before this thing becomes so technologically advanced it can't be put > together without a built-in microcomputer chip let me remind folks that > these things are supposed to be simple. > > Mine was built using a 6.3 vac filament transformer. Back in the day they > were readily available just about anywhere really cheap. Now that vacuum > tubes are no longer in common use it might be necessary to ask somebody at > Radio Shack. Personally, I'd not go any higher than this in voltage. > Remember these things are a short-circuit sort of device and using a lower > voltage tends to hold the current down some. I put a simple push switch in > so I could better time the application of current. An argument could be made > that this is not strictly necessary but it also keeps the thing from > shorting out when you lay the probe across the end of your screwdriver. The > probe is made from an old set of tweezers broken apart and separated by a > wood block of some sort. It ain't fancy. And it certainly ain't complicated! > > You don't really need any kind of indicator that current is flowing. You can > kind of feel and hear the thing in operation. > > They are not, nor were they ever intended to be, a cure-all device. Nor are > they the magical fix for the Dreaded Verdigris. They do one thing, and that > only: they heat the center pin and dry out flange felt. In the process they > tend to shrink and "iron" the felt some. Used correctly the effect is > frequently long term. > > Like most tools it takes some getting used to. Yes, it is possible to burn > the wood in the flange fork. But, using a 6.3 vas transformer, it does take > some doing. I do remember encountering a few actions in which using the > zapper did loosen the pin in the fork but these pins were already on the > loose side and--though this is a guess on my part--I suspected the wood was > a bit on the soft side. Not ever action builder used hard maple, you know. > > I stopped using it, not because it didn't work, but because I rarely, these > days, work on actions with original action centers. If I come across an > action with a bunch of sluggish action centers that needed a quick and cheap > fix I'll probably start hollering at Ryan to get the thing back. > > ddf > > Delwin D Fandrich > Piano Design & Manufacturing Consultant > 620 South Tower Avenue > Centralia, Washington 98531 USA > Phone 360.736.7563 > Cell 360.388.6525 > Fax 360.736.5239 > E-mail 1: del at fandrichpiano.com > E-mail 2: ddfandrich at gmail.com > > -- Regards, Jeff Deutschle Please address replies to the List. Do not E-mail me privately. Thank You.
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