softening crusty dampers

piannaman at aol.com piannaman at aol.com
Wed Sep 20 07:24:05 MDT 2006


 Hi folks,
 
A couple of days ago, I worked on a piano that has spent a good portions of it's life down by the old seashore.  There's rust in various places, but nothing is disintegrating yet.  It's a '70s aeolian console (aaargh!).
 
The most annoying problem, at least to the customer, is the buzzing sound created when the dampers seat on the strings.  The crust that has accumulated over time by the salt sea air has hardened the dampers considerably.
 
I've been wondering if anyone on this list has tried the various solutions and/or voicing techniques that are commonly used on hammers to deal with this.  
 
My thoughts:  squeeze, needle, file.  
 
Other possibilites:  alcohol-water, fabric softener, steam
 
It isn't worth doing a damper replacement, IMHO.  That would probably cost her more than she paid for the pso.
 
Any comments or ideas?
 
Thanks,
 
Dave Stahl




Dave Stahl Piano Service
650-224-3560
dstahlpiano at sbcglobal.net
http://dstahlpiano.net/
________________________________________________________________________
Check out the new AOL.  Most comprehensive set of free safety and security tools, free access to millions of high-quality videos from across the web, free AOL Mail and more.
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: https://www.moypiano.com/ptg/pianotech.php/attachments/20060920/a0d33a0e/attachment.html 


More information about the Pianotech mailing list

This PTG archive page provided courtesy of Moy Piano Service, LLC