Fw: Leveling Coils & Pinching Becket

Gordon Holley gholley@hi-techhousing.com
Wed, 5 Nov 2003 08:23:39 -0500


Hello Michael.  I do appreciate your input from across the big pond.  
I visited England, London and surrounding points of interest, in 
1989, with a group of our builders.  We were there for 4 days and 
stayed at the London Bridge Hotel.  Could look out the window and see 
it up close.  Very much enjoyed the trips out from London we took 
each day on a large bus, particularly Stone Henge.  Man, that is 
earie (spooky).  
Thanks again, Gordon Holley, Goshen, Indiana

On 5 Nov 2003 at 0:08, Michael Gamble wrote:

> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: Farrell 
> To: Pianotech 
> Sent: Tuesday, November 04, 2003 5:21 PM
> Subject: Re: Leveling Coils & Pinching Becket
> 
> 
> Hello Gordon. Just a couple weeks ago I leveled coils on a piano the was likely restrung a good 50 years ago - an 1880s Knabe square grand. First of all, the Mother of All Coil Lifter from Joe Goss - picture below. I guess I should have put something next to it for scale, but it is twice the 
size of the junkers from Schaff and it has a hardened tip. No coil will be unlevel as long as I have this tool!
> 
> 
> 
> Please tell me how this tool works? You cinch the coils up from underneath, so I can't guess at the action required.
> 
> Below is a picture of the horrible coils I was facing. I was afraid to even try and tune it because so many of the strings were already getting mashed down into the plate. The root of the problem on this piano was that the holes for the tuning pins were drill about 20 degrees off of vertical - 
the coils will naturally go down unless someone is determined to force them up - at least temporarily.
> 
> 
> 
> How many of you noticed that the coils are the wrong way round? I once came across a piano where a cowboy had replaced a couple of strings this way. I didn't notice it until the pitch went down instead of up...! Then I had to re string the affected parts.
> 
> Actually, I did not use Joe's tool on this piano - I use his too for perfecting the coils. On this horror project I used the little pry-bar type coil lifter available from the supply houses. I just let tension down on the strings enough so that the coil would lift via the pry tool.
> 
> Can't get this "prytool" in UK
> 
> Regarding the becket - just take a pair of pliers when you let the tension down and squeeze them puppies. 
> 
> I use a pair of long duck-billed - it "gets in there!" 
> 
> Terry Farrell
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Gordon Holley" <gholley@hi-techhousing.com>
> To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, November 04, 2003 11:05 AM
> Subject: Leveling Coils & Pinching Becket
> 
> Regards
> Michael G (UK)



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