[pianotech] Round bottom Steinways and other

[Greg Newell]

Doug,
	I'd love to see both the article and a picture of your tilter.

Best,
Greg

-----Original Message-----
From: pianotech-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf
Of Douglas Gregg
Sent: Monday, January 16, 2012 4:47 PM
To: pianotech at ptg.org
Subject: [pianotech] Round bottom Steinways and other

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