Hi All,  It sure was refreshing to hear some sound reasoning from Art
Reblitz, Craig Brougher and others concerning the use of hot hide glue
for player piano work.  Since that's basically all I do, I could care
less what a cabinet maker thinks!  I'm not building cabinets, or reed
pipes, or new stacks.  I'm rebuilding circa 1920's player pianos, and
I want the next guy who tackles the work to respect me.

On a slightly different note, I found it a bit surprising that one
rebuilder finds it easier to cut all new wooden pieces instead of
working with eighty-year old 'seasoned' wood.  It will be interesting
to see how that 'new' wood ages.  And if the parts are assembled with
anything but hot hide glue, I pray I'm not the next rebuilder who gets
the job.  Think of all the sander belts I'll get to ruin.

Speaking of ruined sander belts, I have a stock of maybe six
extra-coarse (50 grit) belts that I save for removing white glue.
I start at one edge of the belt and 'fill it up' with that gummy
garbage, then I move across the face of the belt until it's completely
worthless.  Then I remove it from the belt sander and let it rest
<yawn> and install a new belt, and continue working.

Then, when I've got nothing better to do (like maybe on a Saturday
afternoon after I've finished writing to the MMD), I take a wire brush,
like those used to remove old house paint, and brush off the globs of
hardened glue.  What I end up with is an 80 grit belt that I can 'fill
up' again.  And so it goes...

I do agree with the gentleman who suggested using very sharp tools to
cut through the bulk of the glue.  That works, but darn, I sure hate
to use really sharp tools if I don't have to.  It just increases the
chances of me damaging myself or the wood (in that order ;-).  And you
can't convince me that cutting hundreds of new pneumatic boards is
safer than removing some old bellows cloth that should basically peal
off, like it would if hot hide glue was used to apply the cloth to the
wood in the first place.  Sheesh!

My opinion,

John A. Tuttle
www.player-care.com
(Gotta love Saturdays)