Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Tuner-Technicians Forum Question about improving responsiveness in my action...

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone can tell me a few things on imoproving the responsivness in my action? My tech showed me how to adjust the capstan screw, and that helped a great deal, but I think it can use a little more tweaking. I don't have the money to have him come out right now, so I was wondering if there was something else fairly easy I can do to improve the action? The keys don't feel like they are returning very fast. I don't seem to "feel" them under my fingers like I should

Hope that makes sense and someone can help.

Thanks

Mike

I'm sorry I forgot to mention I have a Kimball upright.

Get some protek center pin lube and dose the moving part. Protek isn't cheap but someone will sell you some I'm sure/ If you are not really good at fixing things, it's best to have the tech show you where to squirt it.

With all respect, Keith, what kind of advice is that to give to a layperson? What is "the moving part" you are referring to??? What is the "dose" you suggest? Do you mean "douse"? I have heard of people who douse wet wood with gasoline in order to get a fire started, but never heard of dousing "the moving part" in a piano.

The piano could very well have a "sluggish" action meaning, that the wood has swollen up enough for it to lag either by going forward and /or possibly upon returning. Or, the jack springs could be breaking which sometimes, is typical on certain Kimball models. Or, they could be weak... Or, it needs a good regulation job. Or,, get what I'm saying? :-) Could be a lot of things.

I wouldn't suggest doing anything yourself. Save your money, have him look at it or, since he was there before, maybe he noted what was wrong and already knows and can give you a verbal estimate over the phone. It's worth a try.. Better than screwing something up and making it worse.

Any piano that has not been regulated for a while can be improved by regulation, especially uprights. There is also a trade-off for improved responsiveness. Regulation can be preformed beyond the manufactures specs for greater responsiveness. The trade-off is after a year or two the piano may be difficult to play if the regulation isn't frequently "tweaked", again especially on an upright.

Your comment: "The keys don't feel like they are returning very fast. I don't seem to "feel" them under my fingers like I should" makes me think of very many different problems, or no problems at all. Your action may be exactly what is expected from an upright regulated to factory specs.

If I was looking at your piano for improvement, I would start with any key friction then action friction. After that would be setting the blow distance for the desired aftertouch. Then the rest of the regulation.

No, I don't think there is "something else fairly easy I (you) can do to improve the action".

Guy Nichols. He was from the desert back roads of New Mexico, not a CITY tuner. He said you need to add about $5 to the charge for the extra protek but when you have a neglected piano (like a Kimball upright)that the lady saves all year to have you do a 5 hour miracle reg, you don't charge or spend a half an hour carefully dripping the stuff on. At the convention class he held the squeeze bottle 6 inches away and did all the center pins, jack hammer flanges wippens in about one minute. I would call that dosing.

So, Jurgen,
Do you think it hurt anything on the piano????? It stated on the specs that protek will not harm wood, plastic, felt, finishes, etc. Is that not true???

It sopunds like maybe front and center key pins are tight in the bushigs, with the action out of the piano, put your hand on the back of several keys. When you release the keys they shuld fall smoothly and quickly. If they bind or are slow, the keys sill need to be eased.

Greg

Ah, Guy was one of a kind, and left us way too soon. I was looking forward to getting to know him better when we moved back to NM last year.

I can't wait to try this technique!

--Cy--

P.S. Certain lubricants can greatly damage a piano, especially WD-40. Protek is made for pianos.

One of the best classes I have ever took was his class, More Bang for the Buck. On actions that are NEGLECTED not worn he did a five hour job that was amazing. Some great tips on speed regulation. His door threshold (I almost won that in his class by volunteering but someone from the previous class knew the trick) works wonders as a straight edge, voicing block. hammer flipper. teflon work space and others. Make yourself a capstan crank. It's like the old hand drills or car crank except that the end hooks on the capstan and you can spin a set of capstans up a turn so quick. Take a piece of chalk and quick put a mark across all the let off buttons and you do a turn or a half and never miss a beat. Now you see it, now you don't (the mark).

As a newbie I had never seen the complete regulation job like that.