CAUT

  • 1.  Hydraulic table for moving grands

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 14 days ago

    I have a concert hall with a 28 year old grand piano transporter with broken parts.  A rubber "donut" on one jack has disintegrated and the other is about done.  The transporter is no longer made and there are no parts available.  

    I read a post by David Skolnik from 2018 or so mentioning using a modified hydraulic table.  Does anyone else have information.  David mentioned Steinway and Julliard are using the hydraulic tables. 

    The pianos are stored in a special climate controlled room below the stage and the transporter was perfect for the situation.  Installed large casters could be a hazard as there are some thresholds to go over that are kind of rocky.  The back leg broke 28 years ago from a threshold which led to the transporter.

    Thank you!



    ------------------------------
    Tim Coates RPT
    Sioux Falls SD
    ------------------------------


  • 2.  RE: Hydraulic table for moving grands

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 13 days ago
    Hi Tim! Hope to see you in DesMoines! If it is just the donuts that need replacement, I would think they could be 3D printed. Another option would be to see if anyone else has one that is otherwise broken but has the donuts. Also, the ones on some upright piano dollies look pretty similar- you might check with Schaff about that. I think you'll be able to find something that works.
    David Graham
    Graham Piano Service, Inc.
    512 S. Main St.
    Sycamore IL 60178
    815-353-5450







  • 3.  RE: Hydraulic table for moving grands

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 13 days ago
    I just replaced one of the jacks on our transporter.  Came with the donut.  My son bought it from somewhere.  I'll check with him to see the source.
    Gary Bruce, RPT, CAGA
    Registered Piano Technician
    Certified Appraiser
    (405) 413-TUNE (8863)





  • 4.  RE: Hydraulic table for moving grands

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 13 days ago

    We have two hydraulic piano lifts that we can sell. The only question is how they would be transported. They are very heavy. Please email me directly if interested. migrec@juilliard.edu



    ------------------------------
    Mario Igrec, RPT, MM
    Chief Piano Technician, The Juilliard School
    http://www.pianosinsideout.com
    ------------------------------



  • 5.  RE: Hydraulic table for moving grands

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 10 days ago

    Thank you to all who have responded.  Along with the posts here, I received private emails from tech friends across the country that were very helpful (particularly the Hawkeye state).  I am still in process with this as we are waiting on some inquiries about certain parts. Schaff and Jansen don't  have parts and have exhausted their  scalping options. 

    The issues we have with the hydraulic lift are parts and longevity.  So, management doesn't want to go there. But thank you Mario.

    We have work arounds for now, but not a permanent solution.



    ------------------------------
    Tim Coates RPT
    Sioux Falls SD
    ------------------------------