I'm reworking a Monarch upright player as a base for a nickelodeon builtup. I previously replaced the pins, and epoxied a few small cracks, but this time, I'd like to have the bridge duplicated. How do I get the bridge out without destroying the sounding board? Is there a trick to it? The sounding b...

Mr. A. B. Bonds asks how to remove watermarks. Very simple. If they will come out at all, do this:Dampen a rag with shellac thinner (alcohol). Without touching the finish, get the rag within a 1/16" of the finish (or closer) and slowly move it in a circular pattern, "painting" the watermark with the...

Hi again, I couldn't resist adding my approach to the discussion. (with appreciation to Arthur). Removing screws - especially from wood. (Works great on wheel lugs too) Usually it is rust that makes the screw tight. Rust is also a poor conductor of heat. So- - - clean the head so a little metal show...

The process I use to remove old pneumatic fabric I share with caution. I've been doing this for some 30 years and it works for me, but it can be dangerous, not only for the bellows being worked on, but also on self and home. It involves heat, lots of it, but with a measure of discretion and precisio...

Jon, I decided to forego the epoxy route since this bridge was just too far gone and, as you said, it would be hard to tell where the pins were really supposed to end up. I finally was able to get the bridge off the soundboard by persevering with hot water and vinegar (as suggested by Bill Maxim, I ...

Work is proceeding on my Gulbransen Player Piano which, incidentally, turns out to have been manufactured in 1922. (Thanks to Durrell Armstrong at Player Piano Supply Co. for that information.) I have completed rebuilding the wind motor and am awaiting availability of the table saw at the theatre wh...

> By warming the epoxy, you are going to soften it some. > Once you have chemically softened it, it should be able > to be removed easily. Maybe some of our chemical engineers > on this page will be able to tell us which solvents should > work best with epoxy, and where to get them. To the best of m...

Greetings all, With all the combined knowledge out there, has anyone a good suggestion on how to remove cellophane tape (what we used to call Scotch tape before the invisible variety came on the market) from a music roll? The _entire_ right edge of this Ampico roll was "repaired", without even strai...

Dean Randall asks about removing cellophane tape from piano rolls. I use white spirit, Dean. At least that's what it's called in Australia. It's used for various jobs like cleaning up oil and grease marks in the home; it's quite colorless (hence "white"), is non-staining and evaporates fairly slowly...

In the 970224 MMDigest, John Phillips wrote: > Dean Randall asks about removing cellophane tape from piano rolls. > I use white spirit, Dean. At least that's what it's called in > Australia. It's used for various jobs like cleaning up oil and > grease marks in the home; it's quite colorless (hence "...

Almost any pressure sensitive tape can be removed with the gentle application of heat. This softens the adhesive and allows for removal without destroying the paper. Unfortunately this is a very slow process. The heat must be applied very slowly and to a small area at a time to avoid warping or weak...

Ref: Note from John Phillips. As a one time chemist, I am always curious about the identification of materials of all kinds. My cross-reference chemical list does not have an entry for "white spirit". Can you enlighten me more, John? Based on your comments I would guess that it is a hydrocarbon base...

I've come upon an efficient way of removing all those pesky tacks in Ampico bellows. Piano technicians use a tool called "flush cutters" to nip flange pins flush to the side. They are diagonal cutters that have been ground down so that the cutting edge is flat to the side of the tool. Instead of hav...

Marc Finlen asked about removing ivory key tops. Here's how I do it: * Place a hot iron on the keytop with a piece of thin cloth between the key and the iron (this is just to prevent the keys from yellowing, if you want to use them for replacements in other pianos). If it's a steam iron, make sure t...

I hope nobody is removing a good set of ivory keytops. I just wanted everyone to know that ivory is bleached, and buffed to make it whiter than ever in restoration jobs, so don't remove that ivory unless you're like me and have about 25 bare keys, then go with plastic, like I did. :-) Damon Atchison...

•It's wonderful having an MMD group such as this to bounce issues around. I am in the midst of re-tubing a Pratt-Read player. The lead tubing was serviceable, but it contained a fair amount of chalky lead dust, so I decided to 'get the lead out'. Rather than drill the lead tubing out, I tried the fo...

•This may seem like a bunch of mad ravings but WHY WOULD ANYONE REMOVE THE PLAYER ACTION FROM RESTORABLE INSTRUMENTS ????? These piano stores/tuners who do this should be taken out to the wood shed!!!! [ ... and spanked.] I know there people have to make a living but aren't there enough straight pia...

•...or why I loath the DiskClavier and R.A.M. Co. In MMD970506, Andy T.Wrote: > This may seem like a bunch of mad ravings but WHY WOULD ANYONE REMOVE THE > PLAYER ACTION FROM RESTORABLE INSTRUMENTS ????? I almost weep when I think that in the past 2 years I've had 4 instances where local piano techs...

•I read Andy T's article on tuners removing player actions. "Remove that player action and throw it in the trash" This was a familiar phrase used by music store dealers and a lot of tuners. Especially tuners and music store dealers who catered to the pseudo-elite. (We will get to that later) Andy, I...

•Why would any store gut a player? I question the intelligence of such people too. However, I do not have the money or the space to rescue each and every one I hear about. I usually pick up the player system however. I have a local dealer who has gutted one Knabe Amp "A" grand and has another he is ...