upright pinblock replacement.

[Andy&Chris Taylor]

Hi.
several people have asked me how I replaced the pinblock in that player.
This might have not have been the best way, And I hope the piano don't "pop"
when pulled to pitch so here goes.

I will have to give Foster & Co a big fat "F" for the pinblock in that unit.
It consisted of nothing but 6" wood scraps glued together 18 pieces in all I
think.

I got out the saw, chisel and jigsaw and  cut the thing out of there. there
wasn't much written instructions that I could find, so I was on my own,
integrating grand pinblock replacement instructions when possible. Also
Craig Bougher was very helpful with lots of solid advice.

The first thing I did using shims, bolts and 2X12's I bolted these to the
back, and put the piano down on a concrete floor. I thought once the block
was out, the back might become "wobbly", so I wanted the back to remain
square.

The plate did have a flange, but the pinblock didn't contact it. instead,
the pinblock stuck out above the soundboard  then a small maple strip was
tacked to the top of the soundboard, to meet the flange.(the earmark of a
cheap piano) I made a new strip, and mated the plate flange with  the strip.
then mated the top of the strip where it contacted the pinblock.

The old block was 2X1/2" x 9" the old block was three ply. the thickest
replacement I could find was 1X1/2", so I glued a 3/4" piece of rock maple
behind that and glued it to the back of the replacement block.

The top of the soundboard was notched, sort of like tongue and groove
flooring. I had to rout a matching surface in the bottom of the replacement
pinblock. that was the most difficult part, next time I am faced with a job
like that, I think I will cut the old block 1" above that area, leaving it
intact, and mate the replacement block ABOVE the cut!

I fitted the block in the old back, trimming, & praying and cursing the
whole while, wondering if perhaps I shouldn't be doing this type of job at
all.( I really felt out of my league) Finally I got the thing to fit.

Next, I put the plate back in  to see if there was room enough to locate
four lag bolts in the block, and through the back beams so that the bolts
would not be in the way of tuning pins or plate screws. there was.

Next, I epoxied the pinblock in the piano, using "c" clamps and pipe clamps
to hold it firmly toward the top of the soundboard. I didn't drill the
places for the lags yet, feeling that they might pull the block sightly away
from the notches at the top of the soundboard. if that happened, the block
would rock during tuning, and the piano would be unusable!

I am sure that epoxy filled some 'sins" in that area. God help the fellow
that ever has to remove it! Frankly I didn't trust my judgement so I used
the epoxy for some insurance.

To make sure that the block didn't pull forward years after I am gone, I
then countersunk some  lag bolts in the block right into each back beam,
after the epoxy had set. They were also countersunk in the back beams, so I
made some wooden plugs to glue into the back beams to hide them.(I hate a
repair that looks "repaired")

Next I put the plate in and drilled the holes for the screws. I then covered
the whole area above the flange with chalk and put the plate back in and
turned the screws down tight, removed it once again, and sanded the high
spots down on the face of the block so the plate could make good contact
with the face of the block.

Now comes the drilling of the tuning pins. I constructed a "shelf" above the
top of the piano, and give it a 7 Degree angle. there is enough room for the
base of the drill press to rest below the top. Now I drilled the pins,
taking it very slowly because if the bit ever became hot, There would be a
loose tuning pin after all that work!

Did it work? well I am not sure yet. I still have to shim and refinish the
soundboard. Once that is done, On the final installation of the plate, I
intend to put a small amount of epoxy on the flange to make sure I will get
firm contact. the piano should be better than new, because there is almost
double the pinblock area that originally.

Not something I want to do everyday!

Best Regards
Andy & Chris Taylor
"The Lone Arranger"
Tempola Music Rolls
"Taylor Made" Just For You
http://home.swbell.net/tempola/index.htm