<html> <body> Happy Easter Don :-D                                        Quick eye's there my friend. Extra glue was  put on so it would show up in the photo.  I have been doing this for a number of years for the odd pulley key with no problems encountered. I wipe balance rail pins with a very thin smear of protec grease I had tried steaming the holes, with cauls to protect the bushings, it sized the bushing cloth just right but the BR holes were  still loose. I always try steam first, In the field a wet cloth over the hole then apply the tip of the iron.    Trust me this  was way too bad for that. Sizing holes, We just use the same size BR pin in a battery operated drill.  Two or three revolutions, buzzzzzzzzz buzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Whole set sized to perfection in 5 mins.  Heck we get lots of practice selling Yamaha.    I know Kawai is perfect from the factory. ;-) This is the first time I have ever sized all 88 keys this way.   First time I encountered all 88 needing to be sized because of pulley problems. Regards Roger   At 10:22 AM 3/25/2005, you wrote: <blockquote type=cite class=cite cite=""> Roger,   Well, for once I'm going to have to disagree with one of your excellent posts.  I think the amount of glue shown looks like too much, and will lead to 'ticking' of the keys over the next year or two.  I am not referring to a noisy key from the hardness of the glue, I am speaking of a sticking at the start of key movement from the somewhat rubbery / plasticky nature of the glue.   This is very much like the Chinese key syndrome, where the piano company has coated the keys to help stabilize the holes.  They make a loud 'click' the first time you play them, then they are quiet until you stop playing them for a while and come back.   Were these keys so loose that simple steaming would not do the job?  I have taken a similar approach to yours by steaming the key holes, then either inserting the pins as you have done (which works), or allowed the wood to dry and eased them normally. I find the easing the over tight hole to be preferable to (albeit slower than) using a sizing pin, because the contact area with the key pin after fitting is smaller.  The key is snug at the very bottom of the key hole, giving a nicer key movement.   Keep an ear out on these keys for a while - prove me wrong.  Maybe some Teflon on the pins will prevent any noise (although this doesn't work well on the Chinese keys).    :-)   Don Mannino <dl> <dd>-----Original Message----- <dd>From: caut-bounces@ptg.org [<a href="mailto:caut-bounces@ptg.org" eudora="autourl"> mailto:caut-bounces@ptg.org</a>] On Behalf Of Roger Jolly <dd>Sent: Thursday, March 24, 2005 6:36 PM <dd>To: College and University Technicians <dd>Subject: [CAUT] Pulley keys. <dd>Greetings all. <dd>                        I solution for pulley keys. <dd>Use a set of balance rail pins,  Mix 50% PVC-E glue with 50% water. Swab hole, insert pin from the top of the key, swab around bottom of key to form a meniscus around pin.  Allow 24 hrs to dry.  Pin will be frozen in position.  Rotate pin one turn, and it will slide out. <dd>Hole will be sized tp perfection. <dd>This piano was a 70's Steinway L with the felt knuckles.  All 88 had been over sized to try and solve friction problems.  What a mess. <dd>Roger </dl></blockquote></body> </html>