sluggish aeolian spinet action

[thepianoarts]

on 11/27/00 9:15 PM, Eliot Lee at elee@amug.org wrote:

> Hi LIst,
> 
> I have to work on a Hallet & Davis Aeolian spinet.  The action is very
> sluggish

Hey Elliot,

    Do your detective work first. If you haven't figured out why its
sluggish, you might miss the cure. The usual suspects, like excessive
friction at the hammer butt flange, might not be the problem.
     For example, some inexpensive pianos don't have enough up-weight, to
overcome a modest flange friction increase. Can you figure out what to do if
that is the case? 

    Then there is the rare and elusive 'corroded damper spoons', which drag
on the damper lever felt. The extra friction is noticable on both down and
up srokes, but goes away when the damper pedal takes them (the corroded
spoon faces) out of the mix. All of the snake-oil, heat and lead you throw
at it won't fix this sluggish problem.

Dan Reed
Dallas