<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=US-ASCII"> <META content="MSHTML 6.00.2800.1106" name=GENERATOR></HEAD> <BODY id=role_body style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: = Verdana" bottomMargin=7 leftMargin=7 topMargin=7 rightMargin=7><FONT id=rol= e_document face=Verdana color=#000000 size=3> <DIV>Actually, the real puzzler here is why anyone would conceive and build these pianos in the first place.  A Nordheimer, made in the USSR before= the wall came down in '89.   Calling this a PSO is being too kind.</DI= V> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>What surprised me in the end was that the problem was really not relate= d to the quality--or lack thereof--of the questionable piano in question.  I= t really could have happened on any piano, though this was my first sighting o= f this particular problem.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Symptoms:  Key plays fine, then suddenly not.  Examination reveals excess lost motion--not between the jack and hammer butt, rather bet= ween the capstan and the wippen heel.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>What it wasn't:  </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>tight center</DIV> <DIV>action parts rubbing together (my first suspect, and what I focused on = for the first 20 minutes of my trip)</DIV> <DIV>Glue dropped on action  parts</DIV> <DIV>anything to do with the key itself</DIV> <DIV>sharp edges on the jack</DIV> <DIV>rough material on the butt</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>As I said, it was a new one on me.  A simple, but unexpected problem.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I'll post the answer tomorrow if there are no correct guesses.  </= DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Dave Stahl</DIV></FONT></BODY></HTML>