Greg Newell wrote: > . . . . > I began today to regulate the action of an S&S "B". I began > as we all do with an inspection/evaluation of all parts and found, > much to my dismay that key leads had been removed in over half the > keys. In all cases the lead removed was the one closest to the > balance rail. This is not all that uncommon. It is a particular problem with actions that are "individually weighed-off" at the factory. It is very common with these actions for them to be weighed off with more leads than are necessary -- or desirable -- to compensate for excessive action center friction. As the action wends its way through the production process most, or at least some, of this friction is reduced leaving the action feeling excessively light. So, leads are removed. > When these leads were removed the holes were not > plugged but rather left open. >From a structural point of view, they don't need to be. They are located fairly close to the neutral axis of a center-supported, end-loaded beam. They are pretty ugly, of course. > My feeling is that I must , at the > very least, plug the holes with suitable wood. I am however unsure > now as to what else I may run in to with this action. What I thought > was going to be a simple regulation now may turn out to be much more. If you want it to be. I'd go ahead and regulate the action completely and then check key weight. You might find it to be still a bit light. It might be too heavy. It might be just right. You won't really know until the regulation is complete. Once you know what you're up against, then it is time to tackle the key leading question. > If you were to run in to this kind of situation, and I'm sure that > someone has, what else would you look for and how would YOU proceed? > Thsis job has already been quoted , etc., etc., and I feel that I > could go ahead and charge extra within the proposal for plugging but > reweighing, (something I've not done before), couldn't be worked in > to a nominal increase over the original estimate. It's not likely that you'll have to do a complete re-weighing of the entire action. Time for a certain amount of this should have been included in your estimate anyway. If the empty holes bother you, contact the customer and explain the problem. It's not a difficult task to plug these holes. You will need some sugar pine or spruce -- the precise species is not critical, just don't use something like maple -- and a plug cutter of the proper diameter. (Use plugs, not dowels.) Cut your plugs and glue them in, paying attention to the grain orientation of the plug, of course. You can use most any glue. Hot animal hide glue is quick and easy if you have a glue-pot handy. Garrett-Wade's gap filling glue is better at filling the inevitable gaps, but, again, this is not a structural repair. Epoxy is acceptable and will certainly work, but it is excessively messy and probably overkill for this job. > Have you any idea > why someone would elect to remove leads and not plug the holes? See the above. > Can > I assume that these leads were removed for a legitamate reason or > should I take the position now of not trusting anything and proceed > from a point of "all bets are off" and strike a new deal with the > group paying for this work? Am I being too paranoid? > perplexed in Ohio > Greg Newell Probably. But there are those who are out to get even the paranoid folks, sometimes. In any case, wait until you have the rest of the work done and then decide. Del
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