[pianotech] Oversize tuning pins AFTER CA glue??

[Paul Milesi]

Hi Joe,

Thanks very much for the suggestion to screw new pins in as opposed to
driving.  I¹m curious: Are you recommending that because CA glue was used,
or is this a technique you use for all tuning pin replacement (except, I
suppose, for brand new blocks, which you drive)?

I¹m not sure I have a ³good² answer for not liking CA glue treatment, but
here goes:

Every piano that I¹ve tuned that¹s had CA glue treatment (by somebody else)
has what to me is a bad ³feel² when tuning, somehow unnatural.  Very
subjective, I know.  It always seems tricky to get the pin to stay put, not
quite right.  Lot¹s of times the pins are jerky, or overly tight, and they
never seem to loosen up to the point of ³feeling right.²  Yes, it¹s true
that the pins don¹t just run wild with the coil unwinding, but still, I just
don¹t like to tune pianos treated with the stuff.

I acknowledge that I¹ve never used CA glue in a block myself (I¹ve been a
tech for ~5 years), and was trained not to except in extreme emergency cases
by a highly respected technician.  Perhaps, if I learned to apply it myself,
rather than dealing with someone else¹s job, the result would be more to my
liking?  CA just seems like a permanent, irreversible adulteration of an
otherwise ³natural² fitting of metal tuning pin to wood, each of which were
theoretically designed for ³the perfect fit² to achieve the desired goal.

Also, there always seems to be a telltale mess in different areas of the
piano from the use of this product, whether it¹s where the bottle was set
down on the plate or keybed, or where somebody left the action in and the
glue dripped out the bottom of the block onto the action, including knuckles
(ruining them), or sloppy application at the pin.  I¹ve even seen entire
tuning coils coated with the stuff!  That just seems unacceptable to me, to
treat a piano like that.

OK, Joe, let me have.  As is said in church, ³TEACH!²  ;)

Paul
-- 
Paul Milesi
Registered Piano Technician (RPT)
Piano Technicians Guild
(202) 667-3136
(202) 246-3136 Cell
E-mail:  paul at pmpiano.com
Website:  http://www.pmpiano.com

Address:
3000 7th Street NE, Apt. 204
Washington, DC 20017-1402



From: Joseph Garrett <joegarrett at earthlink.net>
Reply-To: <joegarrett at earthlink.net>, <pianotech at ptg.org>
Date: Tue, 22 Sep 2009 13:07:18 -0700
To: pianotech <pianotech at ptg.org>
Subject: Re: [pianotech] Oversize tuning pins AFTER CA glue??

I would appreciate any advice anyone might be able to offer me regarding
replacing the tuning pins in a 1961 Baldwin L with, I believe, a replacement
pinblock that was subsequently treated with CA glue. Will the old CA glue
cause any problems when pounding in new pins. I think one size larger would
yield adequate torque.
 
First of all, don't pound them in...screw them in using a "T" hammer. Why is
it that you are not a fan of CA Glue treatment? I can understand the
Pin-tight" reluctance, but CA is a whole different critter, IMHO.
Joe
 
 
Joe Garrett, R.P.T. (Oregon)
Captain, Tool Police
Squares R I
 
 


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