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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Hello List</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Heat in all its forms has many effects =
in the piano
world - both pro- and con- . Obvious that too much heat in a room with a =
piano
in it will have devastating results. Take Old Folks Homes for example. =
etc. But
controlled heat whether it be by gas torch (I have a nice mini one in my =
Harpsichord kit) or soldering iron can be a wonderful boon. All those
jack-button screws which always break off when regulating old pianos - =
and
likewise those dolly-tops for adjusting the touch in the old upright are =
prone
to seizure frome rust. Take your soldering iron and apply it to the =
screw or
wire and after a few moments.... magic takes over. Then there's the =
other issue
of centre pins being loose in the action part which is supposed to be =
gripping
the pin. NOT the flange bushings!!! If you remove the pin, and with a =
very thin
piece of wire, having first dipped it into a bowl of water, run it =
through
the over-size hole making it moist within. Next take your soldering =
iron, to
which you have attached a piece of this piano string, and run the hole =
through!
Sizzzzle! it goes - and the looseness goes with it. You can even then =
use the
same size centre-pin as came out - always supposing the bushings are not =
too
tight! Screws in general respond to the heat treatment. There's few =
things worse
than breaking off half a head from a slotted screw head deep down in the =
action.
Another old "Organ Builder's Tip" - Before trying to remove an old =
screw, apply
a TIGHTENING force to it. He maintained that the fibres of the wood =
remember the
direction the screw was last turning in. He may have something
there!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>TTFN</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Regards from darkest =
Sussex-on-Sea</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Michael G =
(UK)</FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>