Hi, I never had consistent results with heated screw shank extraction, nor much with the old Hale jig or the shank vise/extraction tool combination, and so build jigs for the job. Basically these hold butts and have a drilling guide, where I saw a piece of Delignit scrap to have three edges square - top, side and bottom, slot the side and shim it so that a butt fits square and vertically in the slot and flush to the top of the block, with a little friction to keep it in place: so there would be shims above and below the spring bearing bump, and one at the base of the butt, maybe a couple for the thinned upper portion, all inside the slot and not sticking out top or bottom. Pull a single shank using an ordinary technique for set up, saw and trim (with a sharp chisel) the rest flush. Using the sample, find the appropriate drill bit, and drill through a thickish sheet of hard plastic (a more permanent guide would have a threaded brass bushing instead of the bare plastic hole), then use the bit to center the guide over the sample butt installed in the holder base, trim the sheet and drill for a couple screws. With no risk of contamination, these work fast, and I've shimmed them with masking tape for slightly undersize sets. Clark
This PTG archive page provided courtesy of Moy Piano Service, LLC