Hi Kevin,
The main thing I was looking for in coming up with a moving setup for uprights, was not primarily for the ability to move upright pianos by myself, which I have actually ended up doing a lot, but, to get away from the “dead lift” “brute force” of lifting of an upright piano from the floor to get it onto a piano dolly. It’s not an advantageous situation leverage wise and fraught with injury peril. I’m a fairly strong guy with a strong back but 1.) why push our luck straining to dead lift this kind of weight—uprights are heavy and hard to lift with a lot of strain on lower back; and 2.) age has a way of catching up with us. “Years AND mileage”. I’m not quite as strong as I used to be, and body components like back vertebrae and disc cartilages do wear out and cause problems with use and abuse!!
That was my main objective in coming up with this arrangement to lift a piano up onto a dolly. But the thought that I might work this out to move a piano by myself was frosting on the cake.
Notes on moving gear
The Johnson bar is also known as a “pry bar” or “lift lever”. I bought my “5 foot lift lever with rubber wheels” from New Haven Moving Equipment and found that the 5 foot length gave plenty of leverage to lift an upright piano with minimal force without being so cumbersome to use as a 6’ length would be. Plus there are length considerations trying to move a piano out of a small office or practice room, getting enough clearance to use the lever on both sides of the piano in a small space. I sometimes have to push a piano around a bit and align it an open doorway etc to get this to work.
The force applied to lift an upright with the lever is about 20 pounds (!) I then use a canvas “saddle sandbag” of double attached sand bags rated at 25 pounds, to hold the lever down. I found one like the one I use at a website called “Georgia Expo Manufacturing Corporation” for $13.99. The “saddle” configuration is useful because you can straddle the two bags (which are attached to each other) onto the lift lever, one bag sitting on each side of the lever. This is a very satisfactory and stable arrangement for holding the lever down without having the counterweight slip off the lever somehow.
At first I used a typical iron 25 pound disc style or small single “mini barbell” workout weight, sort of propped on top of the end of the lever, to weigh the lever down for me; and it always made me feel a bit anxious that I might accidentally dislodge the weight or it might slide too easily off at an ill timed moment. The saddle style sandbag works quite well and lowers anxiety level.
And I do use a typical good quality flat dolly with turning wheels all around most of the time, indoors. But once headed outdoors for any reason, the fixed wheel dolly is the tool for me for all the slight “sideways” slopes and slight drainage angles of sidewalks, walkways, etc. encountered, which can make things more uneasy and unwieldy, especially with fewer people to help stabilize the moving load. The four fixed wheels keep a load going straight regardless of sideways “lean” and slope encountered along the way, and makes things far less unwieldy that way. It is amazing when moving heavy things around how much of a “mind of their own” they have inertia wise; and how slight angles and minor bumps, sidewalk cracks and expansion joints, become more formidable obstacles to deal with.
Also, the “taller configuration” of 4” or larger casters can be helpful to be able maneuver over taller thresholds and even “walk up” a stair or step, by tilting the piano back on the dolly’s two back wheels, “popping a wheely” so to speak, getting the front wheels on the stair or step, then lifting the piano load onto the stair or step. With the weight of the load always contacting, not having to deadweight lift all the weight at once, such obstacles are way less daunting. It is always important having the dolly placed under a grand skid or upright piano in a “sweet spot” place where it is “balanced” and allows you to more easily “tip the piano” when needed.
Probably way more info than you are looking for...but...thanks for letting me share!
I have been surprised and fascinated at all the things physics and leverage can do when applied properly!
Sean McLaughlin
Lead Piano Technician
UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music
Los Angeles, California
310-825-7058
Original Message------
Thanks so much Sean. Great info. First, I completely agree about the 2 fixed casters on the moving dolly. My mentor, Jim Geiger uses his special dolly (which he makes & sells from time to time.) His use 4 ginormous fixed casters also. So I'm very familiar with that. My personal dolly has 2 fixed, which is great for what little Moving I am required to do at the school, which is vertical pianos only. We have a piano horse for EMERGENCY grand moved but thankfully haven't had to move one in like 7 years (YAAAY!) I do as little moving as possible-but I am interested in this Johnson Bar because it is getting harder & harder to secure a good helper to insert & remove the dolly for me.
So there is certainly no rush but I look forward further pics & info in the future.
Best to you Sean!!
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[Kevin] [Fortenberry] [RPT]
[Staff Techician]
[Texas Tech Univ]
[Lubbock] [TX]
[8067783962]
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