CAUT

  • 1.  D hammer removal

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 12-07-2022 09:04
    Replacing hammers on a D, and needs to happen quickly.  What's the best way to remove D hammers, keeping the flange & shank.
    What kind of the glue does the factory use?  Will using a heat gun help?
    I've always used the typical plyer hammer extractors, but those can be forceful sometimes.  And doing a whole set can be harmful.  



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    Dave Foster, RPT
    Michigan State University
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  • 2.  RE: D hammer removal

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 12-07-2022 09:56

    Dave, SOME hear will definitely help. Use a heat gun focussing on the hammer of course, not the shank. They should pop off pretty easily with the extracting tool. You may only be able to warm up and remove 3 or 4 at a time, but you will get the feel for that. It's most likely Hyde glue but even if it's not-this should still work just fine. 

    You mentioned "the fastest way"… the fastest way is probably using diagonal side cutters making a split at the tail of each hammer. I used to do this a lot back when I was replacing more hammers. Sometimes it takes a couple of cuts/splits depending on how the wood splits. They usually pop off super fast this way but you still need a little heat. YMMV. 
    I'm sure others will chime in. 



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    Kevin Fortenberry
    Registered Piano Technician
    Longview, TX 75602
    806-778-3962
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  • 3.  RE: D hammer removal

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 12-07-2022 10:29
    Dave

    There is no easy or fast way to remove hammers from shanks. Not only do I remove one hammer at a time with the pliers you use, I take off all the shanks and flanges from the rail. It is my opinion that removing the hammers from the shanks with the flanges still attached to the rail puts too much side pressure on the centers. 

    Wim





  • 4.  RE: D hammer removal

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 12-07-2022 22:10
    It is easy if you happen to have the right tool, a pliers design Jurgen used to sell from pianoforte supply. but that is no longer available anywhere. Also not so hard if you have the more archaic Hale tool, plier/gear design, made to remove both grand and upright hammers. If you know someone you can borrow such tools from, do so (If you were around Albuquerque, I'd be happy to lend you mine). 

    The screw type and the currently available pliers type are slow and somewhat problematic, but can be made to work. Heat helps. 

    Lacking that, Kevin's method of splitting the tail with diagonal side cutters works well (also works for upright hammers). make the cut in the center of the tail, and see where that takes you. With luck, they will just pop off. More often, you may need to finagle one side or the other, or make additional cuts. There is a danger of the split in the tail being conveyed to the shank, splitting it as well, if the glue joint is very strong, so work conservatively.

    I agree with Wim that this should be done with the shank removed from the rail to avoid damage to the centers.
    Regards,
    Fred Sturm
    http://fredsturm.net
    www.artoftuning.com
    "I am only interested in music that is better than it can be played." Schnabel






  • 5.  RE: D hammer removal

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 12-08-2022 21:31

    Hi Dave, 

    I second Kevin's suggestion -- using a heat gun on 1-4 hammers at a time, then plucking them off with an hammer extractor plier. At least on the Hamburg grands, that method works well and it is very fast. I haven't timed myself, but 10-15 minutes? In that ballpark. 

    I used to share Wims concerns, but when I started using the heat gun I found that the whole procedure can be done without stressing the centers. With the right amount of heat applied, the hammer heads come off very easily; so easily, in fact, that you can stabilize the center with one hand and use the hammer extractor plier with the other, if you prefer.



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    Patrick Wingren, RPTRPT
    Jakobstad, Finland
    0035844-5288048
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  • 6.  RE: D hammer removal

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 12-08-2022 21:42
    A heat gun is efficient and fast. Heat the joint from the top and bottom.  Keep the heat gun moving. Don't burn the shanks. A regular pair of extractor pliers is all you need. You can often do one full section at a time, certainly half, it doesn't matter what kind of glue. After the hammers are off heat the glue residue until it's  crispy (don't burn the shank) and clean off the shank end with a poorly named "shank reducer" (don't reduce the shank).

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    David Love RPT
    www.davidlovepianos.com
    davidlovepianos@comcast.net
    415 407 8320
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  • 7.  RE: D hammer removal

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 12-08-2022 21:59
    Yes I completely agree with the heating of the heads exactly as David Love has perfectly described-using this method I have never had a shank split, although I agree with Fred that it's always a very slight risk if using the cutters. But again once the glue joint is warm/hot..the hammers just come right off without any real stress to the center pin at all. Best wishes!

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    Kevin Fortenberry
    Registered Piano Technician
    Longview, TX 75602
    806-778-3962
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  • 8.  RE: D hammer removal

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 12-09-2022 00:54
    I typically split the hammers off with diagonal cutting pliars, but I have extracted hammers that I needed to save using a punch.
    I made an anvil out of a wood block in a vise with a hammer shank sized hole (oversized) and used a punch made from an appropriately large nail filed flat.  This worked well to remove the hammers, but in that case I broke off the shanks.
    The same technique could be done with a slotted or notched anvil without harming the shanks.  In the case of hammers with an angle you could make the anvil out of a hardwood with an appropriate bevel.

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    Blaine Hebert RPT
    Duarte CA
    (626) 795-5170
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  • 9.  RE: D hammer removal

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 12-09-2022 11:58
    I've removed sets of hammers to save and reglue several times, using the hefty pliers Jurgen used to sell (and they are no longer being made). With their compound leverage, they make the job easy and quick, and they come quite close to being a right angle action. 

    True right angle (force of the pin in line with the shank) is achieved also with the Bolduc side voicing tool (it has an extra plunger for the purpose) and the Hale tool that works for both uprights and grands (but disappeared entirely about ten years ago). The Bolduc tool doesn't have as much leverage, but works pretty well otherwise.

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