On May 13, 2010, at 6:44 AM, Ed Sutton wrote: > Paul- > > You can do a very effective stage repair of the side of the case, > using auto body filler from the auto supply store. > Don't skimp. Go through the grades of filler putty. Use all the > grades of abrasive with support pads to blend it in absolutely flat. > Find black primer. Try different kinds of spray black until you find > the best match. Mask off at the edges so the tone change occurs > unseen on the corners of the rim, and fade and blend around the > tail. Practice until you find the right touch for satinizing the > finish. > > Consider sending the fall board to a professional refinisher. This > is what the performer sees, and with some clever touch up around the > front of the case, the performer will see "new piano." > > This could be a real winner in faculty relations, as people who know > nothing about pianos will respond in amazement if you make the old > clunker look new on stage. > > have fun! > > Ed Sutton Ed gives some excellent suggestions. I think you could do somewhat the same with the fallboard gouges as he suggests for the gouge on the side. I touch up our instruments fairly regularly in a very low tech manner. I simply use an artist brush and some black automotive lacquer, and apply it carefully to every place on the piano that is "white wood." I won't call this a truly professional look, but it is quite passable from the audience. Sometimes a second application is needed where the white wood is really white. And, in fact, you could simply do this to the gouges and make an enormous difference at a very small expense of time and materials. And this would not preclude filling the gouges later, as body putty should stick just fine to the lacquer. Regards, Fred Sturm fssturm at unm.edu “Art is not a mirror held up to reality, but a hammer with which to shape it.” Brecht
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