Recent Posts

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Gigs, Events, Music Releases and off topic stuff etc. / Re: Instrument Insurance

« Last post by The Real MC on Yesterday at 05:18:19 PM »

Specialized music equipment - especially those no longer in production - are not usually covered in homeowners insurance as they are not considered typical household fixtures like home piano, furniture, TV, stereo, refrigerator, etc.  You can easily replace typical household fixtures but not vintage gear.

You should look into a personal artifacts rider specifically designed to cover non-typical household fixtures.  They have these for unusual personal collections such as stamps, sports memorabilia, artwork, etc.

Also check your policy very carefully for terms IE most policies will not cover loss if it leaves the dwelling IE gigging with vintage gear.

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Gigs, Events, Music Releases and off topic stuff etc. / Re: Instrument Insurance

« Last post by Alan Lenhoff on Yesterday at 08:03:19 AM »

My insurer told me that to add a rider to cover my vintage instruments, I would need an appraisal. I said I literally wrote the book on these instruments, and am as qualified as anyone to determine their value. But they want a "certified appraiser."  So, I would need to hire someone who is eminently qualified to appraise a 100-year-old Steinway concert grand, but would likely have no idea what a like-new Wurli 140B or Clavinet D6 is worth.  Maybe some day, I'll sort my way through this.

(And just to add to the fun, since my instruments are in a basement room, I told the insurer I was primarily concerned with flood damage.  Flood damage would not be covered unless I bought a special policy at great expense, and even then it would not cover a sewer backup. Oh...)

Alan

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Gigs, Events, Music Releases and off topic stuff etc. / Re: Instrument Insurance

« Last post by pianotuner steveo on Yesterday at 06:28:35 AM »

Take pictures of everything and keep them in the cloud. I also wrote down every instrument, when
I bought it, and approximate value today. I have both a hard copy and digital copy. I wouldn't spend money on an appraiser since their opinion is subjective too. How many appraisers out there would be experts on the kind of gear we have? Probably not many...

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The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Question about Vintage Vibe restorations vs well maintained original

« Last post by conke on March 25, 2020, 01:16:36 AM »

Wow cool! Congrats on your new Rhodes

For the sticking keys, try lifting the harp up and testing the key.

If it sticks with the harp up, try easing the key bushings and inspecting key pins.

If it only sticks with the harp down, try raising the escapement of that one note a bit and checking the harp's alignment.

(If the hammer tip is very grooved and getting stuck around the tine, replace the hammer tip.)

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The Wurlitzer Electric Piano / Re: Wurlitzer 200A - 3D model

« Last post by Tim Hodges on March 24, 2020, 05:06:43 AM »

Alex, have you tried Marcel at EP-Service.nl

He may be able to source you a few parts, he has done that for me a few times.

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The Wurlitzer Electric Piano / Re: Wurlitzer 200A - 3D model

« Last post by cinnanon on March 23, 2020, 06:17:25 PM »

Oh sorry I’ll look for the message.

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The Wurlitzer Electric Piano / Re: Wurlitzer 200A - 3D model

« Last post by Alex Billbao on March 23, 2020, 02:35:06 AM »

Hello, i'm Alex, 33yo french musicien. I bought an incomplete 200. Several parts are missing (more than 1300€ if i buy and import from US all that is missing). I try to rebuild what i can, especially parts that can't be bought.

I try hard to find a complete 200 or relative to mesure, but up to this day, those who have one did not allowed me to open and do surgery for anatomic measurement ! And nos i'm un confinement (Coronavirus!).

So i call for help here. I saw the great Cinnamon's 3D work, and Tehu's DIY humshield rebuild done.

I need dimensions of:
. Hum shield
. Reed bar Shields
. external Squares witch holds the dampers axis (not sold on the web)
. All harps's screws  (a friend gave me 4 Airbus screws that fits for external fixation, that's a start !)
. little metal parts joining the 2 harps, and its RCA wiring
. 3 keybed's wood block (1 close to Output plugs, 2 on the back)
. 2 knobs
. 1 speaker
. pedal, legs, bench and musical rack are also missing.

PICTURES OF MY RESTORATION PROJECT:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/nm2mfqE7Crhpoqh4A

@Cinnamon, i wrote to you a private message 1 week ago. If you or anyone can share with me some measurement or 3D parts models, it would be great.

Friends of mine have 3Dprinter and metal turning/cutting machines, all i need is .. Measurement of original parts !

Alex

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The Wurlitzer Electric Piano / Re: Wurlitzer 200A Serie Hum Shield dimensions

« Last post by Alex Billbao on March 23, 2020, 02:11:28 AM »

Hello, i'm Alex, 33yo french musicien. I bought an incomplete 200. Several parts are missing. I try to rebuild what i can, especially parts that can't be bought / are not that complicated to rebuild DIY.

As i dont have a complete 200 or relative to measure, i call for help here, as as i saw the great Cinnamon's 3D work and Tehu's DIY humshield rebuild done.

If @Cinnamon, @Tehu or anyone van share with me some measurement suites, i would be great, to begin with the HUMSHIELD dimensions (this topic purpose!)..

Alex

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The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Im lost restoring mark II 73

« Last post by sean on March 22, 2020, 02:37:44 PM »

Hey David,

Your piano seems to have a white spacer UNDER your wooden strip on the harp support.  I haven't noticed that before.
Maybe your wooden strip will come off easily.

Sean

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The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Im lost restoring mark II 73

« Last post by sean on March 22, 2020, 02:27:00 PM »

David,

You can remove the wood strip on the bass side and leave it on the treble side if that would fix your escapement problem. 

Try to measure what the exact escapement is on the bass keys.  That means you have to measure from the top of the hammer tip to the bootom of the tine surface when the key is depressed.  This is a really difficult thing to measure, because every part of the piano is in the way.  I use the tail end of my dial calipers to measure from the tip of the hammer to the top of the tine, and then subtract the thickness of the tine.  But it is a fiddly inexact-but-close-enough method:  it is hard to keep from pressing the tine down with the calipers, and hard to know when you are barely touching the hammer tip.  But three-digit accuracy is not required.

Another method is to cut an index card to create a feeler gauge; but instead of using the thickness of the card, use the width of the strip to measure.  Cut a half-inch wide strip of paper, and then either fold it or use a piece of tape as a handle.  Put the half-inch wide strip to extend below the tine, and push down the key.  If the hammer touches the paper, then you can cut the paper thinner and thinner until the hammer barely doesn't touch anymore.  Then measure the width of the paper, and that is your escapment measurement.

Both methods are fine when the tonebar is twisted, but the flat tonebars are inconveniently in the way.  So just measure the escapement at the bass end of the piano, and try to eyeball a guess at the treble end.

If the escapement at the bass end is close to 3/4", then you would almost certainly want to remove that wooden spacer from the top of the harp support.  It will be glued to the aluminum, so sometimes they are a bear to remove.  Some folks have said that it came off easily.  I don't know if anyone has tried using a clothes iron to heat the strip and soften the glue. 

If the escapement is less than 1/2" of an inch, you might remove the wooden strip, and then add cardboard (poster board, or a cut-up file folder) spacers on top of the aluminum harp support to get the escapement into your preferred range, and then fine tune with the screws at the end of the tonebars.

On the treble end, the escapement is remarkably close to zero by eye.  You have said that the treble notes are playable, so you may be able to leave the wood strip alone, or you could remove it, and build that side up with layers of paper as well.

Sean