[pianotech] CA Glue and Tuning Pins

[Dean May]

Here's my updated protocol for using CA glue on tuning pins. I've had lots
of good feedback from other techs who have adopted it.

 

Use thin CA glue. Don't use accelerator. You want the glue to soak into the
wood with deep penetration. The accelerator would cause it to set
prematurely. When you give the pin its initial turn after treatment, you
will find there is not much glue left in the joint to bond the pin to the
wood. It snaps loose pretty easily. It is increased pressure from the pin
block that tightens the pin and this is exactly what we want.


	
		 


Fill a hypo oiler with the glue which should be about 2 oz. You can also use
bulb syringes available at your hobby store (see picture). Lay the piano on
its back. Apply glue to base of pin very much like you would apply the old
pin tightener. I squeeze the bottle for 1/2 to 3/4 of second at each pin. Go
through all pins twice. You should end up with about 1/4 of the bottle left.

Don't use more than 2 oz. That would be overkill. It just doesn't take as
much glue as you think it should. This glue has tremendous capillary action.
Put a couple of drops on the end of a small dowel rod and watch it wick up
the grain.

 

The glue has such positive capillary action that you really don't even need
to lay the piano down. (It is more convenient and a little safer to lay it

down.) To apply vertically, just put the tip of the hypo oiler at the top of
the pin at the base and squeeze out a little glue. The trick is to stop
squeezing before the glue starts running down the plate. Have some Q-tips
handy to mop up any excess that does run down the plate, or it will go on
down the strings onto the damper felt. Ask me how I know. I have had near
100% success in the last two years just applying the glue with the piano
vertical. Lay it down if it makes you feel better. 

 

If you are doing a grand be sure to put newspaper between the pin block and
the action, though I've never had any glue make it to the newspaper like I
have with regular Pin-Tite. You could also remove the action, flip the piano
upside down and apply the glue to the bottom of the hole. But that really
isn't necessary.

 

Let it sit for about 20 minutes. When you use that much glue without
accelerator it takes awhile to cure. 20 minutes usually gives enough time
for the pins to be tight enough to hold, but you really don't need to wait.
If you have laid down the piano, lightly mist accelerator over the tuning
pin field before setting back upright to make sure all puddles are set up or
else they will run and glue will go places you don't want it to. 

 

If a pin isn't tight enough to hold, just go on and tune the others. It will
be tight enough when you are done with the rest of the piano. I have found
them to be even tighter after several days. I have had one or two problem
pins that didn't tighten enough. I removed them, squirted glue directly into
the hole and immediately re-inserted the pin. Worked beautifully.

 

I charge the equivalent of about 3 tunings for this 30 minute procedure and
give it an 8 year warranty. The 8 year warranty is a value added service
that justifies the expense and really sells it for the customer. Every
customer who has purchased this work has been very happy about the price. I
just did one yesterday for a church. They are thrilled. They still know that
the piano needs rebuilt or replaced. They just don't have the money to do
that, but they do have $200-300 to pay for a guarantee that they can make it
8 more years with the piano they have. Remember they aren't paying for the
30 minute service; they are paying for the value added guarantee. And you
are saving them thousands of dollars to get them through 8 more years.

 

I have been treating pins with CA for many years now.  Worst case scenario
is that you might have a piano with 3-4 very problem child pins after a few
years. If that happens, pull out last resort tricks: pull pin and squirt
glue in hole, use oversize pins, use fiberglass resin, or very last resort,
drill it out and plug it. Very worst case scenario I could refund their
money. But generally I could nurse any piano along for a few more years even
before I had the CA glue trick.

Now I am even more confident that I can get them through another 8 years
with the CA glue.

 

If you don't have a good hobby store nearby that sells good CA, you can get
it from Kwick Kleen (www.kwickkleen.com). Kwick Kleen is always fresh. You
can call to order with a credit card at (888) 222-9767. I'd recommend a half
dozen bottles of thin, one bottle of medium and an 8 oz bottle of
accelerator for a start up order. And be sure to get a dozen hypo oilers
from Schaff. Some guys like to use medical syringes. I prefer hypo oilers to
those syringes, but I like the bulb syringes in the picture above the best.
Whatever you use, the tips will plug eventually, so get plenty of them. I
peel the label off an empty glue bottle and put it on the hypo oiler so I
know what is in there (doesn't everyone have a dozen hypos on their bench
with various unknown fluids in them?). When the tip plugs I just change tips
and throw the new hypo bottle away. Wish I could buy just the tips
somewhere.

 

Updated protocol for really tight bushings: If the glue does not seem to be
penetrating well, drill a small hole through the bushing at an angle towards
the pin, to allow the glue to bypass the bushing and travel down to the
pinblock.

 

 

Dean

Dean W May                        (812) 235-5272 voice and text

PianoRebuilders.com           (888) DEAN-MAY         

Terre Haute IN 47802           Give us a LIKE on Facebook! Go to
PianoRebuilders.com

  _____  

From: pianotech-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf
Of lee innocent
Sent: Tuesday, July 05, 2011 3:18 PM
To: pianotech
Subject: [pianotech] CA Glue and Tuning Pins

 

Hello All,

 

I am considering CAing an upright piano, I have never tried this method
before, always repinned.  

What I would like to know is:

1.  Is this a permanent fix for loose pins

2.  What is the best method for a thorough job

3.  How much time should I allocate

 

Thanks in advance 

Lee

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