Various Repairs
Here are some sliding galleries, and videos of various repair projects I have
completed, which includes some of the more interesting repairs I have
undertaken whilst on the road.
Easing Set Off Rail Buttons
Some pictures and a video showing the easing and replacement of set off buttons. On older pianos a common problem is the set off
buttons can get corroded where the steel eyes/spades go into the wooden set off rails.
Photos show;
The application of a piano lubricant via a syringe and allowed to run through overnight.
Easing back and forth by hand using the special set off eye tool. Sometimes if this coupled with the piano lubricant doesn’t work then
heat is required.
The removal and replacement of 4 snapped set off eyes. These didn’t snap flush both sides so there was enough of the old eye to try to
remove first with pliers, this was no success, so the video shows the removal via the chuck of a drill. If this doesn’t work / the remaining
part of the eye also snaps flush to the wooden rail then these need drilling out.
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Hammer Refacing
Some pictures showing hammers with grooves, and with the grooves removed (hammer refacing / filing).
This occurs on pianos of any age, and this is purely down to wear and tear - the more use, the deeper the grooves.
Refacing is an option where there is enough felt left for the top hammers. If there isn’t enough felt left on the top hammers
(hammers have been previously refaced) then either a new set need to be fitted, or they can be sent for recovering.
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New Hammer Notch Leathers & Underfelts
Some pictures showing the removal and replacement of hammer notch leathers and their underfelts. This action suffered from moth
damage to notch underfelts and worn and grooved leathers, further compounded by the fact the cushion felts had been eaten away entirely
by moths.
Photos show;
The state of the original leather and felt.
The removal of the old leather and felt and the cleaning of the slots.
The cutting and test fitting of the new leather and felts.
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New Balance Head Leathers
Some pictures and a video showing the removal and replacement of hammer balance head leathers.
Being used in a higher friction situation (up against the backchecks all the time) than the notch leathers, this is another fairly common
job for older pianos - they just rub up against the backchecks over the years to a point where there is nothing left.
Photos show;
Cutting the new leather and other parts
Gluing on the new leather
New parts fitted
The video shows; one method of efficient removal for these. This method is ok for the balance leathers as there are no moving parts
nearby and the steam rises upwards well away from anything, but can’t be used for the notch leathers due to the proximity to the flange
and centre pins.
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New Damper Felts and Reconditioning of Upright Damper System
Some pictures showing the reconditioning and replacement of damper felt on an upright piano.
Pictures show;
The damaged original felts before removal
The removal process of the old felts
Cutting the new felts to sizes and types
Polishing the corroded simultaneous lift rod and the spoons
Gluing on the new bottom run of felts
Applying teflon powder lubricant to damper spring notches
Reinstalling the dampers back to action
Aligning the bottom run of felt to the strings and preparing to glue the top run of dampers
Regulating the dampers to the pedal
Regulating the dampers to key lift (spoon regulation)
Removing the pedal, adding new felt stoppers and lubricating all moving parts
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New Damper Springs
Some pictures showing old and new damper springs, dampers removed from the action and refitted with new springs.
Over the years, and with repeated use the tension in the damper springs is reduced so that they no longer stop the sound bleeding through
when they are at rest on the strings (damping). Damper springs are one of the most resilient springs on the upright piano action so only
normally need to be replaced on older pianos that have had a lot of use.
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New Hammer Butt Springs
Some pictures and a video showing the removal and replacement of the spring cord style fitting hammer butt springs.
On older pianos the butt springs loose tension, and the thin wire they are made of disintegrates and they fall off and break. For older piano
actions butt springs are the most common spring to be replaced.
Photos show;
The state of the original springs.
The removal of the old springs.
The first video shows the fitting of the new springs of the spring cord style fitting.
The second video shows the fitting of the other style of fitting where the spring gets fed through two
holes in the butt and the bend back on itself caused by feeding through the two holes, holds the spring in place.
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New Graphite
Some pictures showing old and new graphite (black lead).
Graphite is a lubricant that is painted on and is designed to last a very long time.
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New Tapes
Some pictures showing old and new tapes, and tapes being cut.
The tapes on older pianos very commonly needing changing.
The leather ends get brittle over the years to a point where they snap.
They are not a difficult fix on the road (unless you have a mini drop action piano), but are a time consuming fix.
For this reason a clip on tape was designed - see photo.
Unless it is evident that the tapes have been recently changed, when other action work is undertaken on a piano it is usually a matter of
course to change the tapes as part of the overhaul, as if they don’t break when the hammers are unscrewed from the action, there is a
good chance they will break when hammers are being reinstalled to the action - just when you don’t want them too!
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New Cushion Felts
This piano had 38 notes that clicked upon release of the key, which was caused by moth damage to the cushion felts which were either very
badly damaged, or just nothing there, causing the jack to fall back onto wood which causes the click.
The photos show the action before and after, and all the various stages along the way.
They also show a couple of hammer butt springs that were replaced, and some hammer flange re-centering and the fitting of new tapes.
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New Centre Pins
Some pictures showing the removal and replacement of centre pins.
The changing of centre pins is another one of those wear and tear situations - the more use, the more likely they are to need changing
(too loose), although they are also affected if the piano is in a very humid location as they can corrode and stick (too tight).
Photos show;
The removal and replacement of some hammer centre pins, also a flange on the hammer rest rail had a loose pin so that was changed also.
The video shows the before effect of a sluggish pin and then the effect of a brand new pin.
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Flange Repair
Some pictures showing the repair of a split whippen flange.
One of the flanges on this action had excessive movement and further investigation revealed a split whippen flange.
This was removed and glued, and a pin was put in for further reinforcement.
It is generally accepted that flanges and the parts they partner should be ‘married for life’. But if a split on a flange such as this occurs in the
middle of the piano (higher usage), then it can be switched with the flange of the very top note to reduce the possibility of the repair breaking
open again.
This wasn’t the case with this example as it was a note in the top treble anyway.
Another alternative is to fit a brand new flange / make a flange up from scratch, which then has to be shaped and sized and is often a lot more
work than repairing what is left.
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Whippen and Jack Repair, Including Flange Rebushing
Some pictures showing the multiple stage repair of a split whippen and snapped off jack toe.
This piano had a note that didn't work, and on further investigation it revealed a badly damaged whippen, fortunately all the
broken parts were still present so it could all be reassembled.
The various stages of this repair included;
Removing all the parts from the action and locating all broken pieces
Dry fitting to check if all parts were present
Gluing parts back together and then clamping overnight
Cleaning off any excess glue once dried
Rebushing the hole of the whippen with new cloth and trimming to size once glued
Installing a new centre pin to connect the jack back to the whippen
Refitting back to the action, and then returning action to the piano.
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'On The Road Repair' - repairing an unglued jack
Some pictures showing the repair of a unglued jack from it’s whippen.
On being asked to fix a sticky note while at a tuning visit, it was discovered that the cause of the sticky note was a jack that had come
unglued from it’s whippen. Not one of those everyday causes of sticky notes, but one of many a long list of potential causes!
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'On The Road Repair' - fitting an White authentic style keytop
Some pictures showing the fitting of a White authentic style keytop.
While at a tuning visit, i was asked to fit an White authentic style keytop to a Broadwood Upright Piano.
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‘On The Road Repair’ - fitting a new set of castor wheels to a Grand Piano
Some pictures showing the damaged wheels, and the fitting process for new rubber castor wheels.
One of the pictures shows one wheel so badly damaged, that when i raise the piano (using the grand piano raiser) it completely falls apart.
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Key Buffing
Some pictures and a video showing the use of buffing soap and a buffing wheel to clean keys.
This piano had slightly yellowed and a few chipped authentic style (Ivory) keytops for the natural (white) keys, and Ebony for the sharp
(black) keys.
The video showcases the cleaning with both soaps of one white key. For the rest of the keys, it is more efficient to do all the natural keys
with brown soap then cream, then move onto the sharp keys following the same procedure.
The photos show;
The action before and after being removed from the piano.
The ‘cradle’ (hammer and whippens) being removed from the keyframe.
Before and after shots of the bass keys.
Before and after shots of the chipped keys.
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‘On The Road Repair’ - repair of plastic key coverings
Some pictures showing the repair of plastic key coverings that had become unglued from a Fuchs and Mohr upright piano.
While at a tuning visit, i was asked to repair loose key coverings to a Fuchs and Mohr upright piano.
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New flange butt loop
Some pictures showing the replacement of a broken flange butt loop.
This is mostly an issue on older pianos, but there are a few modern piano models where this is more prevalent.
Photos show;
The broken loop alongside a non broken one for comparison
The removal of the debris of the old loop
Measuring for the new loop
Fitting the new loop
The job completed
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'On The Road Repair' - sorting damping issues on a grand piano
Some pictures showing the process behind removing, and then subsequent filing of a blown lead on a damper lifting body.
Whilst at a routine tuning visit, I was asked to sort an issue with ringing dampers for two notes.
After trying the obvious first course of action in this situation (applying a special piano lubricant to the damper guide rail bushing), this didn’t remedy the problem, and there was some contact with the neighbouring damper, which caused it to completely stick up and not damp the string.
On further investigation it was discovered the cause of the problem was a blown lead on one of the damper lifting bodies, which after filing this down flush, the problem vanished.
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'On The Road Repair' - installing safety castors to an upright piano
Some pictures showing;
The old fittings
During the installation stage
The new safety castors installed
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Installing new white plastic key coverings
Some pictures showing the removal process and subsequent fitting and shaping of a replacement plastic key covering.
This process is the same for either replacing the complete set of 52 white notes, which is usually the case, or as shown in the pictures, on one note.
It can be a more cost effective option just to do one or a very small number of notes, if it isn’t many notes in the piano that are damaged*.
*However if the later option of just changing the damaged notes is chosen, it must be noted that although a ‘best match’ will be fitted,
there will almost certainly be slight discrepancies in the colour/ and or/ size of the original key coverings.
Pictures show;
A before shot showing the chipped key against an undamaged one
The process of applying gentle heat to soften the old glue
Removing the old key covering with a sharp blade
The old key covering removed and preparing to glue the replacement new one
Filing the excess material from the edges of the finished key
An after shot of the finished key
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'On The Road Repair' - Fitting a new hammer shank to a grand piano.
Some pictures showing the removal process and subsequent fitting of a replacement new hammer shank.
This hammer had broken where it went into the butt necessitating the fitting of a replacement new shank - there are other ‘on the road’
repairs that can be utilised when the break is in the middle of the shank, however these are never as good as actually fitting a new shank,
which is the preferred repair.
Pictures show;
A before shot showing where the break is - this is circled for clarity
The parts removed from the action
Heating up the old glue on both the head, and the butt and removing the old shank and stub
Sizing the new hammer shank using the hammer shank reducing tool
The replacement shank glued into the butt
Dry fitting the hammer, and finally all finished
