Chickering by Baldwin

[btrout@desupernet.net]

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Hi Sy,

Sometimes I wonder why Baldwin bothered to make that piano at all.  Not
one of the 'upper end' instruments.

I've seen some of the Chickerings that the tuning pins are tight against
the lockrail down in that narrow spot in the pinblock.  It messes up the
trim piece that covers the front edge of the plate if you're not
careful, and sometimes even if you are.

Have you had the privilege of fixing the 'clicking sustain pedal' on the
Chickering grands yet?  It's a fun one.

Just in case you've not had the lovely time of digging into this one...

The Chickering (grand) uses the middle pedal to lift the bass dampers
via a short rod up through the keybed in similar fashion to the sustain
pedal.  When you step on the sustain pedal, sometimes there will be an
irritating little 'click' emanating from what sounds like either under
or inside the piano.  Evidently baldwin didn't think it necessary to
worry about what happens to that little rod used to raise the bass
dampers when the sustain (right) pedal is depressed. (When the right
pedal is depressed, this other rod is just left there flappin' in the
breeze!  It's just a good thing the pin is long enough it doesn't fall
out!) It sometimes will click in the hole that it normally rests in.
(I've dealt with several of these now.)  I don't know what you would do,
but I'll let you in on what has worked for me.  Fortunately, the damper
tray comes out very easily, four screws into the belly rail I think.  If
you take out the damper tray, which is in two pieces, (bass and treble)
and bush the holes with bushing cloth (in a similar way to damper guide
rail bushings, only bigger), it shuts up that irritating click pretty
nicely.  Baldwin didn't put anything there at all, on either lift rod.
It's a wooden rod with a metal pin stuck in the end, matched to a large
unbushed hole in a wooden damper tray.

Once you've done one or two, it only takes a few minutes, but I have to
wonder why Baldwin can't find the time in the manufacturing process to
insert two little pieces of bushing cloth.????? or another reasonable
solution???

All in a week's work!  What's a tech to do??

Take care,

Brian T.
Quarryville, Pa.

Sy Zabrocki wrote:

>  List: from Sy Zabrocki TOPIC: Tuning pins too close to plate.This
> week I tuned a new Chickering grand by Baldwin. Somewhere about octave
> five there is a section plate break. The first three tuning pins in
> the third section are so close to the plate the tuning hammer tip
> cannot be inserted over the pin. Fortunately I had a slim wall hammer
> tip extension and was able to tune these three pins. It is obvious the
> tuning pin holes were drilled off to the side instead in the center of
> the plate hole. (No plate bushings). The piano owner is a wealthy
> retired fellow. He states to me he was proud to purchase a Chickering
> because it is American made. (He doesn't know the keys and action were
> probably made in Mexico). So I pointed out the flaw in his piano and
> told him had it not been for my slim wall tip I could not have tuned
> these strings. He could see the problem. My thoughts about the
> Chickering were negative although it was only a 4'10".  I believe he
> would have been better off with almost any Asian piano. You would not
> see such a flaw in any Japanese or Korean piano. Some tuner at Baldwin
> must have noticed this problem and did nothing about it. You can't
> easily move pins away from the plate. I thought of just just bending
> the pins . . . and then wait for them to break. Oh well, all in a
> week's work. Sy Zabrocki--RPT



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