Tuning won’t hold?? Never fail loose pin treatment…

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[@jeffterrell3325]

Thank you. I'd heard about CA glue fixing loose pins but I didn't know to lay the piano on its back. Makes sense now.

[@DavidBoycePiano]

If the piano is an older one with an open-face pinblock, and if you proceed very carefully, it's possible to carry out the CA treatment without putting the piano on its back.

[@Zal1810]

I've done this treatment for years, and It makes the difference between a piano and a piece of garbage. Most pianos here in argentina are in really poor condition, cheap and old, this method has saved unusable instruments, specially those that have a severely cracked pinblocks. I use a very thin ca glue such as loctite 420 first, which penetrates even the smallest crack, and then If it's needed, I add an extra dose of a thicker one to fill the rest of the gaps. After this treatment I feel comfortable doing anything else, like installing oversized tuning pins, knowing that the pinblock is already sealed and working on it won't open the cracks any further.

[@saveriosalerno9232]

Thanks Brigham!

[@artmusicliterature9859]

My local technician said that the glue rots the wood from the inside. Is this merely cosmetic damage? I appreciate you showing us the inside scoop! Thank you

[@JK23111]

I haven't ever heard anything like that about CA glue. He may have been talking about pinblock restorer, which is very very alcoholic and causes the wood to swell around the pin holding it tighter. I've heard that that can cause the pinblock to rot out over time.

[@DavidBoycePiano]

CA glue does not rot wood. In fact, you can find plenty of KZbin c=videos showing the use of CA as a surface finish of wooden items. As Mr Larson says, probably your technician was thinking of older 'doping' solutions, none of which worked very well or permanently. Technicians have been using the CA treatment for over thirty years now and it's really a very effective method that has rescued many an older piano that would otherwise have been scrapped. The cyanoacrylate (CA) reacts with the cellulose in wood (most wood is over 50% cellulose) to form a compound (I think Cellulose cyanoacrylate) that strengthens the wood.

[@robertlawson682]

Can I do this with zithers/dulcimers when I drill a hole slightly too big?

[@larseriksson1184]

I had a beat up piano at home that i tinkered with for fun. I made a really thin shaving with a plane and wrapped it round the pin. It worked. 😂

[@DavidBoycePiano]

Yes, that would work. You can also use a sliver of veneer or cardboard as a shim. The beauty of the CA treatment is that it's minimally invasive and doesn't involve taking the tuning pin out.

[@delfordchaffin5617]

Is it necessary for the piano to be on its back to do this? I have a spinet. Thanks!

[@Grumpijs]

Do you loosen pins a bit before applying glue?

[@DavidBoycePiano]

Pins are not loosened before applying CA glue.

[@longhuang9143]

How to remove ca glue residue from the frame and on strings?

[@barkopediusmaximus5552]

Can this prolong a pin block with hair-thin cracks spanning between pins?

[@DavidBoycePiano]

It might, but there are no guarantees. It is worth trying, if the piano does not justify the cost of a new pinblock. Cracks visible between pins might only be on the surface.