Regulation bench bedding

[Keith Roberts]

Terry,
What I meant is you can't set dip out of the piano unless you set up your
bench properly. On actions that we have refelted the beds and some of the
old punchings are still there, I have wasted more time because I tried to
get the dip too close, only to put it in the piano and have to make another
pass. I like your method of using the key height to shim the frame. I
usually get to start with setting the key height and leveling the keys. The
frame is bedded and I don't mess with the adjustment after this point. Then
I set it on the bench, bolt the stack on and proceed to set a rough blow
distance, refine travel and burn, ( these have all new hammers, shanks and
whips.) and put it back in the piano and do the hammer/string alignment. I
would like to be able to do a quick dip setting at this time, that is even
across the keys and deep enough to make the action travel through it's cycle
as the felts pack and blow distance sags. Yet it needs to be close enough so
the back checks can be working properly enough, to set the rep spring
pressure close enough, so the first pass through the rep lever height and
the jack position is meaningful.
And I don't want to have to deal with dip again until I'm adjusting
aftertouch.
Keep in mind we don't always know what the optimum dip and blow distance is
going to be yet. Replacement parts are not always exactly the same as
originals.
This is a little different scenario in that the piano and the bench are in
the same room. Next week I get to bring one home and try out some of these
methods on my own bench.
Keith R
----- Original Message -----
From: "Farrell" <mfarrel2@tampabay.rr.com>
To: "Pianotech" <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Friday, January 10, 2003 10:11 PM
Subject: Re: Regulation bench bedding


> "I know you can't set dip out of the piano..."
>
> Why not? Yes, a fine regulation should always be done in the piano. But
when the regulation is way out and you have an action in your shop for
repairs, I find it much easier to do the regulation on the bench. With old
actions that are never going to be finely regulated, the bench regulation
will suffice 95% of the time. For instruments that warrant a fine
regulation, the bench regulation can get you 90+% of the way there, and it
will just be touch-up in the piano.
>
> First of all, you need a stable VERY FLAT bench. In a case like yours
where you will be taking the action apart, measure string height at the ends
and middle of each section. You can reproduce those on your bench exactly.
Another thing good to do is to make sure the keyframe is bedded, and measure
the key height of a number of notes, such as all Cs. Bed frame to bench and
see if all Cs are the same height they were in piano - you can temp. shim
key frame to reproduce key heights. Another thing you can do if you will not
be disturbing the action rails, is to adjust letoff on one or two notes at
the end of each section so that the hammer just touches the string at
letoff. When you get the action on your bench, this will allow a double
check of your string height measurement - after setting your letoff bar from
your string height measurements, see if your section-end letoffs just touch
the letoff bar.
>
> I like working on my bench so much more than in someone's home, that I do
the bench regulation whenever possible. I'm sure it is not always the most
efficient way to go. If the keybed is not drastically warped, and you have a
flat bench, you should always be able to regulate an action to within a 16th
of an inch of letoff. That's been my experience anyway.
>
> Terry Farrell
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Keith Roberts" <kpiano@goldrush.com>
> To: "Pianotech" <pianotech@ptg.org>
> Sent: Friday, January 10, 2003 11:15 PM
> Subject: Regulation bench bedding
>
>
> I just replaced the brackets on a Y&C. I brought it home so I could do it
on a bench that was the right height. I set my boards to string height and
roughed in blow distance and jack position( 1/4" out). Started through
letoff and the sharp dip was about right but the whites, the dip was so
shallow the hammer rise was shy of letoff by 1/2". I know you can't set dip
out of the piano and realized I should have measured the dip because now I'm
wondering if the tech that wound all the adjustments out, messed with the
dip so as not to break the jack off against the stop. In this case, the drop
screws came up 3 turns and the let off buttons 5 turns. So now I'm thinking
I should have shimmed the balance rail up to get enough dip so I could set
let off. My aching back tells me I'm doing way too much work in the piano.
It would be so nice to duplicate the bedding, so the amount of refinement in
the piano was minimized. Dale Erwin said I could take sample dip reading of
every C and sh!
> im the rails to duplicate the dip.
> Does anybody have any other methods? Would it be better to take the sample
dip readings at the notes next to the bedding bolts.
> Your thoughts please.
> Keith R
>
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