Pianotech

Has anyone ever encountered the expanding action bracket issue in Pramberger Signature Series pianos built by Young Chang ? The piano is a PG 150  Serial Y G0128847 according to the Pierce Atlas it would have been built in Inchon, South Korea in 1999. The piano is equipped with a Kurzweil player system which is a company that YC purchased in 1990.  The majority of pianos with the bracket issue where built in 1990 thru 1994 but I think there are other outside of this time range that have had expanding brackets.

The red flag to me is the presence of silver brackets. there is no sign of cracks, paint blisters, pieces of brackets. The keys are stiff/hard to play. Damper lift from the key is way too earlier and there is no letoff, no after touch and very weak rep springs, shanks are also resting on the rebound felt. Obviously it is way out of regulation but maybe brackets are a factor or not. I encountered a Piano Disc grand built by YC that had no visible bracket issues but the piano would not regulate. I could not get the action stack out of the keyframe and also noted bubbles in the finish. Perhaps the safe thing here is to get new brackets from YC so there are no surprises.

To get the action out several things need to be done to the Kurzweil sensor wires and a mechanical bar that blocks the hammers so keys can play like a keyboard. The piano tuned up okay but it need help. Easing the balance pin holes and adjusting the damper/key lift , cleaning , polishing, lubricating key pins certainly will help

While I am at it does anyone know much about the Kurzweil player system ? It looks to be in great shape with well built components, speakers, power supply, 3 1/2 inch diskettes and CD player as well as a record strip. It looks a lot like Piano Disc equipment which I am certified in

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James Kelly
Owner- Fur Elise Piano Service
Pawleys Island SC
(843) 325-4357
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Original Message:
Sent: 11/8/2022 2:41:00 PM
From: James Kelly
Subject: Pramberger Signature Series and Action Brackets

Has anyone ever encountered the expanding action bracket issue in Pramberger Signature Series pianos built by Young Chang ? The piano is a PG 150  Serial Y G0128847 according to the Pierce Atlas it would have been built in Inchon, South Korea in 1999. The piano is equipped with a Kurzweil player system which is a company that YC purchased in 1990.  The majority of pianos with the bracket issue where built in 1990 thru 1994 but I think there are other outside of this time range that have had expanding brackets.

The red flag to me is the presence of silver brackets. there is no sign of cracks, paint blisters, pieces of brackets. The keys are stiff/hard to play. Damper lift from the key is way too earlier and there is no letoff, no after touch and very weak rep springs, shanks are also resting on the rebound felt. Obviously it is way out of regulation but maybe brackets are a factor or not. I encountered a Piano Disc grand built by YC that had no visible bracket issues but the piano would not regulate. I could not get the action stack out of the keyframe and also noted bubbles in the finish. Perhaps the safe thing here is to get new brackets from YC so there are no surprises.

To get the action out several things need to be done to the Kurzweil sensor wires and a mechanical bar that blocks the hammers so keys can play like a keyboard. The piano tuned up okay but it need help. Easing the balance pin holes and adjusting the damper/key lift , cleaning , polishing, lubricating key pins certainly will help

While I am at it does anyone know much about the Kurzweil player system ? It looks to be in great shape with well built components, speakers, power supply, 3 1/2 inch diskettes and CD player as well as a record strip. It looks a lot like Piano Disc equipment which I am certified in

------------------------------
James Kelly
Owner- Fur Elise Piano Service
Pawleys Island SC
(843) 325-4357
------------------------------

Gentlemen .... Thank you both for responding. I think the best approach is to replace the brackets . It makes no sense to try regulating the piano if there is even a hint of bracket defects. Who knows how many brackets made their way into the pipeline or trickled into it after the major warranty drive. I have dealt with bad brackets on different makes all made by YC. The brackets ranged from crumbling , major cracks, swollen all out of proportion, swollen only at the feet into the frame and just showing small paint blisters. I would be doing an action regulation regardless as part of a bracket replacement so may as well put new brackets in to have a good foundation. Resetting the spread could have instant dividends. I prepped the customer already that this could be a needed step so it is not a surprise....

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James Kelly
Owner- Fur Elise Piano Service
Pawleys Island SC
(843) 325-4357
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 11-08-2022 15:25
From: Wim Blees
Subject: Pramberger Signature Series and Action Brackets

James

Young Chang expanding action brackets were made as late as 1999. This would have been one of the last ones they made. Especially considering that they are silver, I would suspect they need to be replaced. 

Wim

Original Message:
Sent: 11/8/2022 2:41:00 PM
From: James Kelly
Subject: Pramberger Signature Series and Action Brackets

Has anyone ever encountered the expanding action bracket issue in Pramberger Signature Series pianos built by Young Chang ? The piano is a PG 150  Serial Y G0128847 according to the Pierce Atlas it would have been built in Inchon, South Korea in 1999. The piano is equipped with a Kurzweil player system which is a company that YC purchased in 1990.  The majority of pianos with the bracket issue where built in 1990 thru 1994 but I think there are other outside of this time range that have had expanding brackets.

The red flag to me is the presence of silver brackets. there is no sign of cracks, paint blisters, pieces of brackets. The keys are stiff/hard to play. Damper lift from the key is way too earlier and there is no letoff, no after touch and very weak rep springs, shanks are also resting on the rebound felt. Obviously it is way out of regulation but maybe brackets are a factor or not. I encountered a Piano Disc grand built by YC that had no visible bracket issues but the piano would not regulate. I could not get the action stack out of the keyframe and also noted bubbles in the finish. Perhaps the safe thing here is to get new brackets from YC so there are no surprises.

To get the action out several things need to be done to the Kurzweil sensor wires and a mechanical bar that blocks the hammers so keys can play like a keyboard. The piano tuned up okay but it need help. Easing the balance pin holes and adjusting the damper/key lift , cleaning , polishing, lubricating key pins certainly will help

While I am at it does anyone know much about the Kurzweil player system ? It looks to be in great shape with well built components, speakers, power supply, 3 1/2 inch diskettes and CD player as well as a record strip. It looks a lot like Piano Disc equipment which I am certified in

------------------------------
James Kelly
Owner- Fur Elise Piano Service
Pawleys Island SC
(843) 325-4357
------------------------------

James,
I had to replace the action brackets on a 1995 year YC early this year and I noticed that the rep springs are very weak in the bass.  The rest of the piano is fine.  I wish I had told the customer to consign the piano to the dump.  It seems like there is something going wrong with it every 3 or 4 months!

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Patrick Greene
OWNER
Knoxville TN
(865) 384-6582
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 11-08-2022 14:40
From: James Kelly
Subject: Pramberger Signature Series and Action Brackets

Has anyone ever encountered the expanding action bracket issue in Pramberger Signature Series pianos built by Young Chang ? The piano is a PG 150  Serial Y G0128847 according to the Pierce Atlas it would have been built in Inchon, South Korea in 1999. The piano is equipped with a Kurzweil player system which is a company that YC purchased in 1990.  The majority of pianos with the bracket issue where built in 1990 thru 1994 but I think there are other outside of this time range that have had expanding brackets.

The red flag to me is the presence of silver brackets. there is no sign of cracks, paint blisters, pieces of brackets. The keys are stiff/hard to play. Damper lift from the key is way too earlier and there is no letoff, no after touch and very weak rep springs, shanks are also resting on the rebound felt. Obviously it is way out of regulation but maybe brackets are a factor or not. I encountered a Piano Disc grand built by YC that had no visible bracket issues but the piano would not regulate. I could not get the action stack out of the keyframe and also noted bubbles in the finish. Perhaps the safe thing here is to get new brackets from YC so there are no surprises.

To get the action out several things need to be done to the Kurzweil sensor wires and a mechanical bar that blocks the hammers so keys can play like a keyboard. The piano tuned up okay but it need help. Easing the balance pin holes and adjusting the damper/key lift , cleaning , polishing, lubricating key pins certainly will help

While I am at it does anyone know much about the Kurzweil player system ? It looks to be in great shape with well built components, speakers, power supply, 3 1/2 inch diskettes and CD player as well as a record strip. It looks a lot like Piano Disc equipment which I am certified in

------------------------------
James Kelly
Owner- Fur Elise Piano Service
Pawleys Island SC
(843) 325-4357
------------------------------