I prefer a basswood shoe and button. Maple is as you say too hard and can become noisy. The balance hole fit is to finicky. The keybutton has zero forgiveness. I know Rick at Roseland likes maple but I will always request bass wood. Poplar would be fine a good chocie too. <div>Just my 2 cents</div> <div style="color: navy; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; ">Dale <div style="clear:both">Dale Erwin R.P.T. Erwin's Piano Restoration Inc. Mason & Hamlin/Steinway/U.S. pianos www.Erwinspiano.com Phone: 209-577-8397 <tt><tt>     </tt></tt> </div> <div style="font-family:arial,helvetica;font-size:10pt;color:black">-----Original Message----- From: David Love <davidlovepianos@comcast.net> To: pianotech <pianotech@ptg.org> Sent: Thu, Sep 27, 2012 7:46 pm Subject: Re: [pianotech] buttons and shoes - was pulley key... <div id="AOLMsgPart_0_efea2695-05e7-4c01-b199-fe42c76bda28" style="margin: 0px;font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, Sans-Serif;font-size: 12px;color: #000;background-color: #fff;"> <pre style="font-size: 9pt;"><tt>I've had keysets made for me and the shoes were made of maple (as were the buttons). I felt they were both too hard but just wondered what others thought and what their experience was. Mine was as Del and Ron suggest, the maple shoe is too hard and gets noisy if the fit isn't perfect. On the positive side I suppose the fit is less like to change but... Even the buttons made of maple I found to be too hard but there, as long as one is careful with the bushing cloth size, there is at least not a problem with noise. David Love <a href="http://www.davidlovepianos.com" target="_blank">www.davidlovepianos.com</a> -----Original Message----- From: <a href="mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org">pianotech-bounces@ptg.org</a> [<a href="mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org?">mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org</a>] On Behalf Of Mike Sent: Thursday, September 27, 2012 10:07 AM To: <a href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">pianotech@ptg.org</a> Subject: Re: [pianotech] buttons and shoes - was pulley key... I think poplar is best for balance hole replacement and very good for buttons. Poplar is harder than the original keystick materials but softer than maple. Poplar is also very dimensionally stable for a harder wood when compared to maple or beech. There is however a lot of manufacturers using beech & maple for buttons and shoes, are they on to something or is it just the local substitute as has been suggested? Mike Blackstone Valley Piano -----Original Message----- From: <a href="mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org">pianotech-bounces@ptg.org</a> [<a href="mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org?">mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org</a>] On Behalf Of Delwin D Fandrich Sent: Thursday, September 27, 2012 10:18 AM To: <a href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">pianotech@ptg.org</a> Subject: Re: [pianotech] buttons and shoes - was pulley key... I pretty much concur with Ron. Maple--or birch or beech or whatever the local substitute is--for the buttons. Poplar--or, again, whatever the local substitute is--for the shoe. It's on the top of the lever where tensile strength is important. For the same reason I don't like using thinned hide glue to size the balance pin hole--it makes the thing too hard and if there is any gap they click. Maple is too hard for the shoe. If ever there is a slight gap they click. The shoe material doesn't really have to be all that hard to hold up well; remember there are millions of spruce, pine, bass or whatever keys out there that have worked pretty well for a really long time. And, of course, a few that didn't. ddf Delwin D Fandrich Piano Design & Fabrication 6939 Foothill Court SW, Olympia, Washington 98512 USA Phone  360.515.0119 — Cell 360.388.6525 <a href="mailto:del@fandrichpiano.com">del@fandrichpiano.com</a> — <a href="mailto:ddfandrich@gmail.com">ddfandrich@gmail.com</a> -----Original Message----- From: <a href="mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org">pianotech-bounces@ptg.org</a> [<a href="mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org?">mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org</a>] On Behalf Of David Love Sent: Thursday, September 27, 2012 6:53 AM To: <a href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">pianotech@ptg.org</a> Subject: Re: [pianotech] buttons and shoes - was pulley key... Thanks for changing the subject line. And what's your reasoning for not wanting maple on the shoe? David Love <a href="http://www.davidlovepianos.com" target="_blank">www.davidlovepianos.com</a> -----Original Message----- From: Ron Nossaman [<a href="mailto:rnossaman@cox.net?">mailto:rnossaman@cox.net</a>] Sent: Thursday, September 27, 2012 5:23 AM To: <a href="mailto:davidlovepianos@comcast.net">davidlovepianos@comcast.net</a>; <a href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">pianotech@ptg.org</a> Subject: Re: [pianotech] buttons and shoes - was pulley key... On 9/26/2012 11:49 PM, David Love wrote: > On a related matter, what's your opinion about the type of wood that > should be used for key shoes and buttons. How hard is too hard, how > soft is too soft? Del's may differ, but my preference is maple or poplar for buttons, and poplar for shoes. Ron N </tt></pre> </div>  </div> </div>