<html> At 03:27 AM 9/5/2002 -0400, you wrote:<br> <blockquote type=cite cite><font size=2>In a message dated 9/4/02 11:27:23 PM Central Daylight Time, jurjens@tpg.com.au writes:<br> <br> <br> <blockquote type=cite cite>Do i try to clamp this up to reglue? Has the soundboard warped this<br> much? Am i wasting my time? </blockquote><br> <br> I've done many a job on "cheap" pianos like this with complete success in a very short period of time.<br> <br> I'll tell what I do for what it's worth.<br> <br> I'll just assume that all the ribs are completely detached from the soundboard for a worse case scenario.<br> <br> I would use about 100 to 125 dry wall screws (these work the best for me) that are just long enough to go through the rib and into the soundboard, but not all the way through. Use a soundboard steel to stop the drill bit from penetrating the board by sliding it under the rib beneath the point where you are drilling through the rib for the screw. The diameter of the bit should be ideally the same diameter as the screw. You will be drawing the board into the ribs. Do not drill into the board at all - Dry wall screws are small enough in diameter to bite firmly into soft spruce or mahogany without splitting the wood, stripping in the wood or fatiguing the metal of the screw. <br> <br> You can drill about 100 holes one right after the other in a very short period of time in factory style - maybe 10 minutes or so from start to finish. Then use the soundboard steel to smear glue between the ribs and board - you might blow all the bits of wood and debris away from piano before doing this. Then insert all the screws by hand through the ribs to the board. Then use a power drill with a Phillips attachment to screw them all in one by one - you have to have a feel for how much pressure to apply to the screw and know when to stop screwing (usually the screw will penetrate the rib a little before it will strip in the board or break in two). This can be done in another 10 minutes or so. </blockquote><br> I wouldn't trust an electric drill for this job, it's too easy to overturn.<br> <br> Square drive, self-drilling dry wall screws work best, available from Mcfeelys.com<br> <br> If you can screw from the front, do so. It will make a better fastener and it's an upright, whose going to see then.<br> That way, there'll be fewer screws visible from the rear. Drill the pilot hole for the shank, the threads will cut themselves.</font><br> <div>Regards,</div> <br> <div>Jon Page,   piano technician</div> <div>Harwich Port, Cape Cod, Mass.</div> <div><a href="mailto:jonpage@attbi.com" EUDORA=AUTOURL>mailto:jonpage@attbi.com</a></div> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ </html>