Hi Joe, My procedure doesn't differ all that much from yours, but here goes: 1. Pull old pins and record size - discard into recycle bucket. 2. Resurface bridge, either using a handplane, or sandpaper, depending upon the amount of material to be removed, whether or not the bridge cap has any steps in it, and my mood. I don't specifically remove the old DAG first on an old bridge - it'll just get DAG again in my shop so....... 3. Sand the sides of the bridge. 4. Vacuum up the mess, then blow the old bridge pin holes with compressed air. 5. Apply DAG - judiciously. I try not to slop over the edges, into the notches and such, but I'm not obsessive. 6. Re-Notch bridge to the pin hole centerline or just behind it (into the bridge, that is) - Makes the bridge pin the termination point for the speaking length again, and cleans up the notches. 7. Epoxy in new bridge pins with West System, then, while still wet, use panty hose (I prefer knee-highs [?]) in a shoe shine method to remove excess epoxy and seal the notches, and the bridge root. I've tried two different ways to apply the West System: the first method is to mix it up, put it in a hypo-oiler and (using a spring clamp to speed up the flow) fill the old bridge pin holes with the stuff. I find I need to mix in two batches this way, sometimes three. The other method is to mix a small pot of West System, and dip the pin prior to driving it. I think I prefer the latter method. It's a bit quicker, and I only have to mix one batch, but the first method will do a better job of filling any voids or cracks in the bridge root. 8. Level Bridge pins with a belt sander and high-quality belts - it makes a huge difference. I used to use coarse grit belt, followed by a quick filing to clean up, but now I level them with the coarse and clean them up with a p220 belt. Coarse grit does a good job of not heating the pins up, so long as you don't sit in one spot from start to finish. 9. With the board taped off, shoot the whole mess with lacquer. Unless you use a coatings epoxy, it is not UV resistant, so lacquer on top. Of course, as with any of my "systems," I'm not married to the procedure and there is room for exceptions/changes, depending upon the condition of the bridge cap, depth of grooves, downbearing/crown measurements, etc. William R. Monroe On Tue, Jan 19, 2010 at 11:04 PM, Joe DeFazio <defaziomusic at verizon.net>wrote: > Hi all, > > I would like to get some feedback from the rebuilders on the list about the > procedures that you follow in reusing a bridge without recapping. I am > always tinkering with my methods (in an attempt to improve them, > hopefully!). > > SNIP -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://ptg.org/pipermail/pianotech.php/attachments/20100120/5b47f549/attachment.htm> -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: image/gif Size: 96 bytes Desc: not available URL: <http://ptg.org/pipermail/pianotech.php/attachments/20100120/5b47f549/attachment.gif>
This PTG archive page provided courtesy of Moy Piano Service, LLC