In 050119 MMDigest, Pat DeWitt writes:


>> Help!  I am having my 1928 Mason and Hamlin 5'8" (RA) Ampico A grand
>> piano restored and have come to the point of having the action
>> completely rebuilt, including new hammers.  I need some advice.


I asked exactly these same questions on this forum when I had my
Duo-Art Weber, 5'8", late 1920s, rebuilt about 5 years ago.  With luck,
the many useful replies I received are still in the Archives.


>> First of all, what brand of hammers?  Some say Abel, some say Renner.
>> I want the piano to be somewhat on the bright side with a full tone,
>> but want to keep it soft enough so that I can get the rebuilt Ampico A
>> to play softly as it should.


I also wanted the tone bright but full, yet not tinny honky-tonk.  And
the decision was between Abel and Renner Blue hammers.  I hate to admit
that I can't remember now which I went with, but I was very satisfied
with the results.

If you pay for the Renner Blues, make sure you do indeed get the Blue
felt hammers.


>> Next, should I keep the old hammer shanks and replace the knuckles or
>> get new shanks (with new knuckles)?  The hammer shank pivot pins are
>> reasonably tight and the holes could be eased and the next larger size
>> pin put in to be sure there was no looseness, if necessary.  Is there
>> value in keeping the old shanks because they are the original ones with
>> all the dimensions from knuckle to hammer, etc., just the way they were
>> originally?


Again, I forget which way I went on this, but the shanks in my piano
look new.  A good piano technician will be able to preserve the
dimensions with new shanks.


>> What should I expect to pay in the Midwest to have the action
>> completely rebuilt:  Re-bushing the keys, new backchecks, hammers,
>> knuckles, refurbish the whippens, and do necessary hammer voicing.
>> I will do the key leveling, with new balance rail and front rail felt
>> washers, do the tracking of the hammers to the strings, and do the
>> regulation.


I had the piano tech do everything, all those adjustments (having done
them once before, and willing to let someone else do it this time!).
My tech quoted me very little savings by doing all those tweaks myself.
I think the total charge was around $2500, but this may have included
$300 or so for recovering the keyboard.  This was in Maine; near a big
city like Chicago the price may be higher.


>> What is the correct key dip for my piano?


Again, your tech should know.  Enough to lift the hammer from just
above the rail, and a little extra at the end after the escapement lets
off.  The geometry of your action pretty much determines it.  Hope this
helps.

Mike Knudsen