instability

[Roger Jolly]

Hi Ed,
          Paul has probably hit the nail on the head, pin block/back
support seperation. Tear back the felt and check. I have repaired several
in the following manner.
1. Lower tension.
2. Take 2 or 3 sturdy large C clamps and ensure you can close the gap dry.
3. Install some longer lag screws. The srews that are used for packing
Baldwin grands are perfect I think they are 5". Measure the depth of the
pin block and put some masking tape on a clearance drill to make sure  the
lag bolt has clearance through the block.
4. After you are satisfied with all the dry fitting, use 24hr epoxy, heat
with a hair drier, it will run like water. Be generous with the amount of
epoxy.
5. Draw the split together with the clamps, and then install the lag bolts.
6. Leave for 24hrs to cure.

I have had no recalls on any that I have repaired some going back 10 years.
One other thing to check since you mentioned the register. is the securety
of the glue joint around the sound board and liner, 
Regards Roger






At 02:41 PM 20/02/99 -0800, you wrote:
>Weird piano today.  It is a Baldwin Spinet, not too old, maybe 7-10 years.
>I tuned it in August, owner wants it done every six months.  
>  It was sitting against the wall, and there was a heater duct behind the
>piano, blowing hot air against the bottom of the piano.  Maybe that is the
>source of the problem.  Maybe not.
>  We moved the piano (on my advice), and I proceeded to check it.  A4 was
>37 cents flat on my SAT!  I did a pitch raise, and then did it a second
>time.  Then did some regulation things.  Then proceded to try to tune.
>lower section was flat again, OK, bring it up.  center section (C#3 to F#5)
>mostly flat in lower half of section, not too bad upper part.  Treble
>section flat.  OK, tune it up.  Go back and check.  C#3 about 8 cent sharp,
>next several notes equally sharp.  OK, bring back down. Get up to 4th
>octave, check octaves, C#3 (D, D# etc, up for half the octave is now 8cents
>flat.  OK, bring up, get to 4th octave, it is now 8 cents sharp.  The thing
>see sawed back and forth several more times.  I finally got it so the
>octaves didn't actually scream, and quit.  I will go back next week and try
>again.  Maybe it will have settled down by then.
>  I thought that maybe I had a broken frame.  I've never had a piano go up
>and down like that while I was tuning.  This was more than a little drift
>as you work on adjacent notes.  This was entire groups of notes going
berzerk.
>  What say you, oh might gurus.  Any thoughts one what ails this thing or
>is it just haunted?
>
>
>Ed Carwithen
>John Day, Oregon
> 
Roger Jolly
Baldwin Yamaha Piano Centre
Saskatoon and Regina
Saskatchewan, Canada.
306-665-0213
Fax 652-0505