List, Richard, Avery, Jim -- Everyone seems so sure that tight flange bushings are the problem, yet I've never known a Samick to seize up from anything except failure of the center pin plating. The ones I've seen don't exhibit normal symptoms of pianos from damp places (most notes sluggish, some worse than others.) Instead, I see all-or-none failure, with the ones which have failed so tight you can hardly turn them even by hand, and the rest not sluggish at all. When I inspect the pins on the bad ones I see the brass showing in the area which contacted the cloth, with score marks from where the fragments of nickel plating scraped. Has anyone else noticed these things? At one point I even put some of these scored pins in a baggie and sent them to Samick, hoping that someone up the line would look at them, and stop the problem at the source. I think that Samick's awareness that their center pins sometimes fail may account for their willingness to replace pianos. It costs them a lot to have whole actions repinned as they gradually fail over the years. Apparently some batches of plated pins are fine, and others are bad, so replacement would usually work out okay. Expensive solution, though. A little easing with broaches and repinning with non-plated pins solves the problem. At least, I've never had to repin any twice. The trouble is that if hammers go, wippens and jacks and rep levers and underlevers will gradually follow suit, since they were all pinned from the same batch. The hammer centers just go first because of the heavy use they get. Susan --------------------------------------------------------------------------- At 12:27 AM 8/19/98 -0500, you wrote: >I concur with Jim. > Once upon a time there was a Samick Studio upright in a resturant in San >Francisco. The action was "sluggish" so the seller who lived in San >Rafael (30 mi n.) had me look at it, with instructions to east the key >bushings. I eased two but the action was still sluggish, because the >hammer flange and whippen flange centers were tight. I recommended >"watering" the term we used for alcohol and water. The seller was adimant >about the key bushings, did call Samick for quidlines. Samick replaced >the piano. Poor Samick. > By that I mean that I am sure the alcohol water treatement would have >worked. We could have saved them a lot of fuss. To this day Samick is >known to replace pianos for the "slightest" reason. At least accordng to >the dealer from Minnesota who is a client now. > The water alcohol had "never" failed. (I have never been called back) >But I also use a wetting agent, and the un-patanted Moody Dripolator which >gets the solution to the exact spot with out having to remove action >parts. The secret to success with this treatment is to supply flowing heat >to the whole action to dry up as fast as possible. That I theorize >prevents the birdseyes from also shrinking and letting the c pins walk >out. > Plans for the Moody Dripolator are free for the asking. >The Dripolator itself is the same price as Jon Page's TLRG, + $1.00 SH. >A video demonstratring its use (showing preparation of formula, >application, and subsequent drying out) will be available for $15.00 >including S&H. > >Richard Moody > >ps Protek might also cause a shrinking of the wool in the felt bushing, >that would be nice, but it would have to be proven. Even so, the Moody >Bushing Shrinking Sol. is 10x cheaper. rm > >---------- >> From: JIMRPT@aol.com >> To: owner-pianotech@ptg.org; pianotech@ptg.org >> Subject: Re: Re: Samick (again) >> Date: Tuesday, August 18, 1998 5:02 PM >> >> >> In a message dated 8/18/98 4:22:33 PM, A440A@aol.com wrote: >> >> <<"Short of doing a complete repinning job, would the alcohol/water >> shrinking solution or Protek be a viable alternative?">> >> >> Avery; >> In my opinion either would be "a viable alternative" >but...........while >> Protek may make the pinning work it will not address the problem, just >the >> symptom. Applying Protek will not make the pinning less tight but it >will make >> the tight pins more slippery and probably allow them to function. >Treating >> the action will address the problem rather than the symptom and in my >opinion >> would be the way to go. Proteking after treating would be optional but >> probably would help retard future moisture absorbtion. >> my view. >> Jim Bryant (FL) > >
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