Pianotech

Hello all, 

Is there a way to keep a small grand (5'8") from rocking while playing and pedaling?  Does caster wheel orientation make a difference?  It is sitting in 5" caster cups on carpet.  

Thanks!

Hello all, 

Is there a way to keep a small grand (5'8") from rocking while playing and pedaling?  Does caster wheel orientation make a difference?  It is sitting in 5" caster cups on carpet.  

Thanks!

Hello all, 

Is there a way to keep a small grand (5'8") from rocking while playing and pedaling?  Does caster wheel orientation make a difference?  It is sitting in 5" caster cups on carpet.  

Thanks!

I once had a piano like this.  A very small grand.  It turned out that there was a gap between the leg and the leg-plate.  The only cure, which I did not attempt, was to disassemble the leg and reglue it.  Other than that, there was not much else to do except to replace it, and all three legs were the same.  As far as I know, it's still rockin'..

Hello all, 

Is there a way to keep a small grand (5'8") from rocking while playing and pedaling?  Does caster wheel orientation make a difference?  It is sitting in 5" caster cups on carpet.  

Thanks!

Hello all, 

Is there a way to keep a small grand (5'8") from rocking while playing and pedaling?  Does caster wheel orientation make a difference?  It is sitting in 5" caster cups on carpet.  

Thanks!

In my experience, small grands do have a tendency to rock on caster cups. Wim's suggestion about wheel orientation may help in reducing excess movement.

Hello all, 

Is there a way to keep a small grand (5'8") from rocking while playing and pedaling?  Does caster wheel orientation make a difference?  It is sitting in 5" caster cups on carpet.  

Thanks!

Hello all, 

Is there a way to keep a small grand (5'8") from rocking while playing and pedaling?  Does caster wheel orientation make a difference?  It is sitting in 5" caster cups on carpet.  

Thanks!

I once got a call from a dealer who sold grands over the internet from half-way across the country. The buyer complained that the music desk wobbled back and forth as she pressed the pedal. Dealer wanted me to fix whatever, and give it a tune. 

I have seen a flurry of caster cups from China via Amazon where the center is flat, rather than concave. This allows the casters to move around a bit, instead of being held in place. There are newer versions that are correct. 

Hello all, 

Is there a way to keep a small grand (5'8") from rocking while playing and pedaling?  Does caster wheel orientation make a difference?  It is sitting in 5" caster cups on carpet.  

Thanks!

Just wanted to follow up and thank everyone for their ideas.  This is a 1953 Baldwin R that I actually just obtained as my personal piano, so I was involved with the set up.  All the legs and interlocking plates are sound, and I think David hit the nail on the head about the flat caster cups.  Today I took my jack in the box and checked all the legs (one was not locked in tightly!), then I put some dense foam pads (taken from those furniture slider cups you get for moving furniture) and put them in the caster cups, turned the wheels sideways, and Voila!  It is much steadier now!  Not rock solid, but way less wobble than before.  You have to pound out some Rachmaninov to get movement now. (: 

On a side note, I live in a double wide mobile home, has anyone had any experience that pianos might wobble more in that situation?

Thanks to all who responded!

I once got a call from a dealer who sold grands over the internet from half-way across the country. The buyer complained that the music desk wobbled back and forth as she pressed the pedal. Dealer wanted me to fix whatever, and give it a tune. 

I have seen a flurry of caster cups from China via Amazon where the center is flat, rather than concave. This allows the casters to move around a bit, instead of being held in place. There are newer versions that are correct. 

Hello all, 

Is there a way to keep a small grand (5'8") from rocking while playing and pedaling?  Does caster wheel orientation make a difference?  It is sitting in 5" caster cups on carpet.  

Thanks!

Hi Laura,

I've worked on quite a few grands in mobile homes before. Most don't have issues as long as there's some kind of support directly underneath the floor where the piano is. Thankfully that's fairly cheap and easy to do in a mobile home. A few cylinder blocks and some 2"x4"s seem to work wonderfully in my experience. 

Just wanted to follow up and thank everyone for their ideas.  This is a 1953 Baldwin R that I actually just obtained as my personal piano, so I was involved with the set up.  All the legs and interlocking plates are sound, and I think David hit the nail on the head about the flat caster cups.  Today I took my jack in the box and checked all the legs (one was not locked in tightly!), then I put some dense foam pads (taken from those furniture slider cups you get for moving furniture) and put them in the caster cups, turned the wheels sideways, and Voila!  It is much steadier now!  Not rock solid, but way less wobble than before.  You have to pound out some Rachmaninov to get movement now. (: 

On a side note, I live in a double wide mobile home, has anyone had any experience that pianos might wobble more in that situation?

Thanks to all who responded!

I once got a call from a dealer who sold grands over the internet from half-way across the country. The buyer complained that the music desk wobbled back and forth as she pressed the pedal. Dealer wanted me to fix whatever, and give it a tune. 

I have seen a flurry of caster cups from China via Amazon where the center is flat, rather than concave. This allows the casters to move around a bit, instead of being held in place. There are newer versions that are correct. 

Hello all, 

Is there a way to keep a small grand (5'8") from rocking while playing and pedaling?  Does caster wheel orientation make a difference?  It is sitting in 5" caster cups on carpet.  

Thanks!