Pianotech

I have a customer with a four year old Knabe baby grand. She has arthritis in her feet and is complaining that the sustain pedal is too hard for her to press down. I'm reasonably sure that this is the pedal return spring that is just too stiff, but I can't think of a way to make it less so. I hope someone here can share a possible solution. 

Thanks --

I have a customer with a four year old Knabe baby grand. She has arthritis in her feet and is complaining that the sustain pedal is too hard for her to press down. I'm reasonably sure that this is the pedal return spring that is just too stiff, but I can't think of a way to make it less so. I hope someone here can share a possible solution. 

Thanks --

I have a customer with a four year old Knabe baby grand. She has arthritis in her feet and is complaining that the sustain pedal is too hard for her to press down. I'm reasonably sure that this is the pedal return spring that is just too stiff, but I can't think of a way to make it less so. I hope someone here can share a possible solution. 

Thanks --

For the coil spring, I have used a hacksaw and cut off  one of the coils. If you're in your shop you can also use an angle grinder. I have done this a few times and it has worked great.

Regards,

Jack

For the coil spring, I have used a hacksaw and cut off  one of the coils. If you're in your shop you can also use an angle grinder. I have done this a few times and it has worked great.

Regards,

Jack

For the coil spring, I have used a hacksaw and cut off  one of the coils. If you're in your shop you can also use an angle grinder. I have done this a few times and it has worked great.

Regards,

Jack

I have a customer with a four year old Knabe baby grand. She has arthritis in her feet and is complaining that the sustain pedal is too hard for her to press down. I'm reasonably sure that this is the pedal return spring that is just too stiff, but I can't think of a way to make it less so. I hope someone here can share a possible solution. 

Thanks --

I have a customer with a four year old Knabe baby grand. She has arthritis in her feet and is complaining that the sustain pedal is too hard for her to press down. I'm reasonably sure that this is the pedal return spring that is just too stiff, but I can't think of a way to make it less so. I hope someone here can share a possible solution. 

Thanks --

I have a customer with a four year old Knabe baby grand. She has arthritis in her feet and is complaining that the sustain pedal is too hard for her to press down. I'm reasonably sure that this is the pedal return spring that is just too stiff, but I can't think of a way to make it less so. I hope someone here can share a possible solution. 

Thanks --

Thanks to all for the wonderful ideas. 

Being a relatively new Knabe, (Samick), I'm pretty sure it's a coil spring. But I have not actually seen the piano yet so I could be wrong. 

I had this idea about compressing the spring. The idea was to take two washers with a larger diameter than the spring and hook them together with a screw and nut inside the spring. Put them between one or two winding's of the spring and then tighten the screw until acceptable resistance is achieved. Has anyone ever tried this?

I have a customer with a four year old Knabe baby grand. She has arthritis in her feet and is complaining that the sustain pedal is too hard for her to press down. I'm reasonably sure that this is the pedal return spring that is just too stiff, but I can't think of a way to make it less so. I hope someone here can share a possible solution. 

Thanks --

Geoff -

I'm sure there's a reason why that wouldn't work, but I can't think of it.  Two things:

- you would get more control if you increased the number of coils between washers

- you could drill a hole through the lever in the center of the coil diameter and use a hex cap screw and fender washer combination, with the nut expoxied to the upper washer, so that you could use the appropriate ball driver to adjust the spring compression from underneath, without having to dismantle the assembly.

It'll never work.

Thanks to all for the wonderful ideas. 

Being a relatively new Knabe, (Samick), I'm pretty sure it's a coil spring. But I have not actually seen the piano yet so I could be wrong. 

I had this idea about compressing the spring. The idea was to take two washers with a larger diameter than the spring and hook them together with a screw and nut inside the spring. Put them between one or two winding's of the spring and then tighten the screw until acceptable resistance is achieved. Has anyone ever tried this?

I have a customer with a four year old Knabe baby grand. She has arthritis in her feet and is complaining that the sustain pedal is too hard for her to press down. I'm reasonably sure that this is the pedal return spring that is just too stiff, but I can't think of a way to make it less so. I hope someone here can share a possible solution. 

Thanks --

David --

> - you could drill a hole through the lever in the center of the coil diameter and use a hex cap screw and fender washer combination, with the nut expoxied to the upper washer, so that you could use the appropriate ball driver to adjust the spring compression from underneath, without having to dismantle the assembly.

Ahh, much better approach. I'm not convinced it would work either. I'm just thinkin'. Lot's of good ideas here from everyone. Thanks.

I have a customer with a four year old Knabe baby grand. She has arthritis in her feet and is complaining that the sustain pedal is too hard for her to press down. I'm reasonably sure that this is the pedal return spring that is just too stiff, but I can't think of a way to make it less so. I hope someone here can share a possible solution. 

Thanks --

A measuring device for pedal measurement may be constructed as follows:

Parts: fishing scale rated 50lbs or more, a wooden platform size of average pedal box bottom (luan subflooring) a block of wood to  hold an eye bolt(to change the direction of force to make scale work) wedges to hold the board down 

Assembly: glue small bloc for eye screw . Insert screw with thin CA for holding power,

Hope this helps,

Dale