[pianotech] Plate Location

[reggaepass at aol.com]

Hi Ed,

   Also, once again following "Guru"  Chris Robinson's example, I now use 1/0 pins for all new blocks.  They leave room in the plate, they allow for a move to 2/0 at a later date, and they tune very nicely. 
Interesting.  Considered doing this to a Stwy not too long ago but was advised against it by someone (more knowledgeable than I) who had tried it and advised against using such a small diameter tuning pin UNLESS it there was no plate webbing over the tuning pin field (e. g., older Bosendorfers), allowing the coil to be much closer to the block itself and making it less prone to flagpoling under the tension of the string.  But hey, if you and Chris Robinson have done this successfully, that is good information!


Alan Eder





-----Original Message-----
From: Ed Foote <a440a at aol.com>
To: pianotech at ptg.org
Sent: Sun, Jul 11, 2010 7:15 am
Subject: Re: [pianotech] Plate Location


Phil writes:
 


I'm working on an old Baldwin where the tuning pinsbarely fit in the plate holes (no bushings). I don't want to make a mistakedrilling this one!

    I  use a drill bit that will have no slack in the holes to make a dimple in the block for each pin. It may be selected to very slightly enlarge the hole, if desired.   This dimple will center the drilling bit quite well.  Caveat:  make sure that the dimples are made with the drill bit exactly vertical to the plate or you will put the center of the dimple off center from the hole. It is not uncommon for the plate holes to vary in size.
   Also, once again following "Guru"  Chris Robinson's example, I now use 1/0 pins for all new blocks.  They leave room in the plate, they allow for a move to 2/0 at a later date, and they tune very nicely. 
   I don't like to enlarge the holes for plate bushings, as it often leaves a very thin webbing in the low tenor section, as well as introducing three more steps in the process,(drilling, installing bushings, and then dressing the bushings to length after installing).  However, there are times they are valuable, ie, yesterday got a panicked call from a customer that had had a wax candle(  a particularly greasy, heavily scented foppish sort of candle), spill a large amount of wax on the tuning pins.  They were bushed and the wax caused no damage, other than to his wallet. 
    I haven't  had the experience of bushings changing the ease of tuning to any practical degree.  The grain orientation is such that compression from the pin quickly destroys any torque available, and my own tuning technique uses a slight bit of flex in the pin for final setting. ( We could probably discuss our various pin setting techniques in a separate thread). 
Regards, 

 

Ed Foote RPT
http://www.uk-piano.org/edfoote/index.html
 
 
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