[pianotech] Wood? (Straightening of.)

[Euphonious Thumpe]

     I have a pair of REALLY heavy steel plates (1" thick, x10" by  20" ) perfectly flat, I put things between and leave in a hot place. ((Like sun.) But never tried just "balancing" the finish. (And maybe adding some stiffness via the shellac???)) But thanks for the tip, Joe, and thanks for the extremely convenient segue into.......

     This 1920 Chickering 5'8" Ampico I just started on has ( as I noticed as it was on its side) a slightly twisted "arm" on the treble side which seems to be the result of decades of high humidity (I guess it's damper in Georgia than in Boston) swelling the keybed laterally.  So that the bottom of the the "arm" (where connects to keybed) was pushed out, and the top  (in front of pinblock end) twisted inward just a little a bit. (Like maybe 1/16", max., but still enouigh to "bug" me!) I noticed the same problem on a Mathushek here.
     Luckily for me, I saw a bunch of big scews in the kebed bottom and took them out, and the not-glued-on keybed came right off! (Yippeee!) I could thereby also easily see that the end of the belly rail had come unglued from this arm (no dowels!) making a space wide enough to slide a machinist's rule into (with glue on it) on one end of the wedge-shaped gap. (Also caused by keybed lateral swelling, apparently --- or the rest of the piano shrinking???)
     My plan is to pull it all together with long pipe clamps (glue suggestions, anyone?) and while clamped run some dowels or sheetrock screws into the case sides, staggered, from both the front and back of the belly rail. ((Now easily accesible, thanks to the keybed being out. The belly rail is about 3" tall, so I have room for maybe 5 such screws or 3, 3/8" (oak?) dowels.) 

So, please:
     Glue, screw and doweling suggestions requested. (And if anyone would like to make an offer on this  piano, which is otherwise in very good condition and has 500 Ampico rolls, 400 of them recuts, please let me know.)

Thanks!
Thumpe
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