Damp Action Drying

[Susan Kline]

Dear Jim,

>This is a test to see if you were paying attention... :-) Where do you think
>this green stuff is coming from, what is it , and why does it show up on his
>customers pianos to a much greater extent than on others of similar make age
>and condition?

Ahem, well, I know this is cheating:

"ver´di·gris, _n._, [O.F. _vert de Grice, vert de Greece,_ lit., green of
Greece.] 1. a. A green or greenish-blue poisonous pigment and drug, obtained
by the action of acetic acid on copper, consisting of one or more basic
copper acetates. b. Normal copper acetate, Cu(C2H202)2H20. [sorry, can't do
subscripts] 2. A green or bluish deposit, esp. of copper carbonate, formed
on copper, brass, or bronze surfaces.

So, the poisonous green crud (don't lick your fingers when you work with
verdigris) comes from the copper in the brass center pin, worked on, it
seems, by acid. 

Now, will some informed mind tell us how the oily products make this problem
worse? Are they contaminated with acid? Are they the vehicle whereby the
acid already in the cloth and wood reaches the brass pin? Do they just gunk
up the area, preventing the copper acetate from flaking off, and trapping it
in a waxy residue?

Regards,

Susan


----------------------------------------------------------------------
At 07:03 PM 9/21/97 -0400, Jim Bryant wrote:
>Susan, Warren, et al;
>  S&S did indeed dip  "some" of their flanges in a hot parrafin/tallow after
>they were  bushed, I would assume from my examining many verdegris bushings.
> However they were not the only makers to do so in an attempt to solve the
>problem of moisture related sluggishness/sticking.  Most often the flanges to
>be treated such were the hammer flange and the rep lever flange.  Quite often
>you will find an instrument with almost solidly stuck up flanges in one place
>but absolutely free flanges in another.  
>  Any organic/petroleum based product will cause verdegris to form including
>parrafin, tallow, mineral spirits, gasoline, mineral oil etc., etc..  In my
>opinion it is not a question of 'if' it will form but rather 'when' it will
>form.
> There used to be a very excellent technician in town who swore by mineral
>spirits as being "the thing" to use on pianos for lubrication.  This tech
>would "lubricate thoroughly" any action that made it to his shop.  Well he
>has been dead about 15 years now and we are seeing more and more of his
>lubricated actions showing up with little green waxy growths coming out from
>the centerpins in most of the flanges on the action...............
>This is a test to see if you were paying attention... :-) Where do you think
>this green stuff is coming from, what is it , and why does it show up on his
>customers pianos to a much greater extent than on others of similar make age
>and condition?
>  Circumstantial??, perhaps so but it also is not coincidence Huh?
>Jim Bryant (FL)
>
>

Susan Kline
P.O. Box 1651
Philomath, OR 97370
skline@proaxis.com


"As long as you have your feet on the ground, your head is perfectly safe in
the clouds."
				-- Ashleigh Brilliant