I think that other thread was for a different tool in which the needle is CA glued in. You might try a magnet or compressed air in the set screw hole, glad I haven't run into that, yet. (I think cooling rather than heating it will make the hole bigger, confusing.) Vibrating it with something like an electric toothbrush? I dunno.
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Steven Rosenthal RPT
Honolulu HI
(808) 521-7129
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Original Message:
Sent: 03-27-2026 01:19
From: Paul McCloud
Subject: Broken Needle Removal on Hart Voicing Tool
I believe this very topic was very recently discussed. You might try the archives to find it. I don't have experience with the problem myself. I would try heating up the brass rod and tapping the end on a hard surface to maybe dislodge the needle. Or file away enough brass at the base of the needle to be able to grab on to it. Plenty of corrosion solvent (PB Blaster, Liquid Wrench) to break any bond. If you know how to use a lathe, you could carve away the brass a little bit, as above, or simply try chucking the rod in a drill and use a file to do the same thing. Good luck.
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Paul McCloud, RPT
Accutone Piano Service
www.AccutonePianoService.com
pavadasa@gmail.com
Original Message:
Sent: 03-27-2026 01:06
From: Elisha Katamura
Subject: Broken Needle Removal on Hart Voicing Tool
Hi all,
I've been putting this off for far too long. I've broken needles in my Hart Voicing Tool a few times, and since I had multiple tools (thanks to retired techs…), I kept switching to another instead of fixing the problem. Today I finally broke the last usable one, so it's time to address it properly.
I've loosened the set screw, but the broken needle is still stuck inside, and I'm not sure how to extract it. If anyone has successfully dealt with this and has a method that works, I'd really appreciate you sharing your experience.
Here is the tool photo from Schaff.
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Elisha Katamura RPT
Katamura Piano Service
Fresno, CA
(559)765-7373
https://www.katamurapianoservice.com/
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