[pianotech] Round bottom Steinways and other

[Douglas Gregg]

Thanks everyone who put in their advice, sympathy, and commiseration
on the issue of the "round bottom" pianos. It boils down to doing what
I have been doing by putting a block under front of the bottom board.
My "Steinway Stick" is a 60 inch long 1 x 6  yellow pine decking board
that slips under the piano front edge and is long enough to also fit
under both leg supports too.  I think I will improve this and use a
1x3 oak board 60 inches long with a 45 degree ripped bevel edge to
match the bottom board bevel.  That will fit inside my all terrain
home made dolly with 10 inch pneumatic tires. This dolly is about as
wide as a regular one and the piano fits inside the wheels rather than
on top as  the 6 wheel all terrain commercial dolly does.I think that
one is very high and tippy.

I suspect that the old timers tipped these pianos on their side, took
off the wheels and used the bottom board as a skid. It is still too
narrow to be very stable but it might work OK.  I was hoping there was
a secret that I missed on this one.

As luck would have it, I just got a call to do another Victorian
Heintzman upright that is similar to the Steinways, I think. . There
are also a bunch of steps to go up. Those are regular steps spaced at
4 foot intervals. Uggh!  Too long to easily ramp and too short to stop
and move one ramp.

I do almost all solo moves ( since the gorillas sometimes don't show
up). I have my piano moving very mechanized as I weigh only 150 lbs. I
have a two story shop with about 15 pianos on the second floor. I get
them there solo with a winch with no sweat.  For remote locations with
steps I use a ramp and a  12 Volt ATV winch with a wireless remote and
a car battery for power.  I have two big U bolts on the back of the
winch. I rig it off a door frame or a window frame spanned with a pipe
or a stout rectangular square bar.  I have on occasion even rigged the
winch off a tree trunk on the opposite side of the house with a
minimal stretch climbing rope going through a window and through  the
house, and winch the piano up a ramp on the other side.   Whenever
possible, I  let my finger do the work. I rarely directly lift any
piano. When all else fails, I have hired a crane.

FWIW, I  also made  a grand tipper similar to the "horse" but I
consider an improved model I made with plywood  sides and 2x6 width.
It is lighter, less likely to scratch, easier to position and has no
long adjusting screw. Also it does not screw into the keybed like the
new one advertised. Best of all it cost about $20 to build if you
don't find the materialsfor free.  I was considering doing an article
for the PTGJ on "solo moving without sweat" if there is an interest.
Let me know.

Doug Gregg
Classic Piano Doc