"Servicing" my MK1 - have a bunch of questions.

[kevinplaystheblues]

I've decided to open up my 'good' condition Mark 1 and give it a bit of a service - something that is new to me, but I am familiar with electrical and being 'handy', and I've been doing lots of reading in recent days.

I've broken my piano's current state and questions into sections - this probably means that I am sort of asking some questions in multiple spots.....sorry, my brain is weird and I struggle to remain succinct - appreciate you making the effort to read and advice:

Pickups

• I am pretty sure I have 'picked up' (get it?) that the pickups should be adjusted after the tines and tonebars have been placed, by moving the pickups forward and back. Is that correct?
• Should the pickups first be 'squared' to the frame? A few of my pickups are at slightly odd angles, with a few really obviously skewed out - I assume these should all be more or less straight and more or less evenly spaced up the piano?
• Is there a standard spacing between pickups? I likely have some spacers or feelers if I know the right measure.

Tines and tonebars

I think I'm across vertical alignments, and I know we want to have the tine horizontally centred on the pickup, but:
   

• How important is the centring of the tone bar itself? I've more or less been  trying this but the dog leg in the bass tines is giving me a bit of confusion and obviously the treble tines are so wide...so it shouldn't matter for them?
• A few of my tines gave quite sharp angled ends - but they are in tune. Not sure if this is just sloppy trimming from the previous owner, or maybe they broke. Does it matter, as long as its in tune and sounds consistent with the rest of the piano?
• One of my tonebars was installed upside down (number facing down). Does that make any difference or is there any reason it might have been that way?
• The letters 'ST' are written on pickup 9's bracket and 'NP' are written pickup 71's bracket. Any idea what this means?

Grounding

• I've heard tonebar grounding can help with EMF. Very few of my tonebars return to ground, even though my tape aluminium looks intact. (I *think* - see pic)
• From what I can tell, the only way the tonebar and tine can get to ground is via the spring where it is in contact with the tape, and the other end where it is in contact with the tonebar - doesn't seem like a very resilient connection to me?
• Would the inconsistent grounding likely be corrosion on the springs? Or the corrosion on the tonebar itself stopping my meter getting a read? Both?
• Should I be able to detect ground on any pickups lower than the highest pickups, which are directly series wired to ground? I can't.

   
Corrosion

• I have
  
  • Very minor white corrosion on the tonebars.
  • Moderate white corrosion on the tine blocks
  • Moderate green corrosion on some tuning springs
  • Moderate white corrosion and early rust on the harp frame and RCA angle bracket.
• I've gathered this is mostly a cosmetic issue. The lid is going back on, so I don't want to spend time scrubbing or spend money replating unless there's a real benefit.
• Is there anything else I should consider either in terms of resonance or conductivity?

   
Potential replacement parts

• I live in Australia so Vintage Vibe costs and shipping aren't great, but I'd probably consider redoing the springs, screws and grommets. Maybe the tonebar clips.
• A few of my bass tines move around 'in circles' when hit - I couldn't quite tell if this is the 'figure eight' issue I've read about.
• A few of my adjustment screws introduce significant left and right movement - but they look straight to me.
• A few of my bass tonebars have two springs on them - I guess this was a previous owner trying to deal with short/weak springs.
• I only have one tonebar clip and its placed really high - I can't quite tell if its making that much of a difference at C#8 or whatever the note is. Do people really rate these?

Based on the above, or anything else what should I be looking/listening for to see if new parts are worthwhile?

[spave]

The first question is, how do you feel about the sound of your Rhodes right now? If your Rhodes sounds good to you, then there's no point in replacing anything. I made the mistake before of "fixing" a Rhodes that sounded great but looked horrible and I was never able to get it to sound good again even after spending $$$ at a reputable shop.

Regarding a few of your other questions:

- The pickups should be centered to the tines not the frame. Usually that's one and the same but if your tines were angled slightly then the previous owner likely moved the pickups so that they would have the proper volume. Also, there's no "standard" spacing. Your goal should be to make sure all the tines have the right volume and tone which is determined in part by where they sit in relation to the pickup.

-Same as above for the tonebars. If the note sounds good and doesn't "choke" then the visuals shouldn't matter. Unless your upside-down tonebar is a bass one then it shouldn't matter either.

- The tines shouldn't have pointed ends but if they sound fine then its probably not worth the hassle of squaring them off.

-There is no musical benefit to cleaning the corrosion on the tines, tonebars, springs, or harp frame.

The double springs in the bass were sometimes done at the factory to reduce the figure 8 tendency of certain bass tines. VV offers single thicker bass springs that have the same effect.

-The fact that some of the screws make the tine go left and right means that they are bent. This will make trying to adjust the volume/tone of each tine significantly harder. If you end up replacing your grommets then these will need to be replaced at the same time.

-You didn't mention the condition of your grommets but they are likely in need of replacing if they are the originals. They should have some "squish" when you squeeze them if they are still good. Old ones will be as hard as a rock and will have a negative effect on the sustain and tone of your piano. However, I'll repeat that if you like the sound of your Rhodes currently then don't mess with them unless you are willing to see the process all the way through. Sometimes it can be difficult (if not impossible) to replicate the sound you had before if you start replacing parts.

Hope this helps!

[kevinplaystheblues]

Thanks mate, that's helpful.

I wouldn't say I am familiar with the sound of my rhodes enough to be attached to it - I am very out of practice and haven't really touched any of my gear for many years - getting the band back together, as it were, at the moment.

I've never really found myself getting any of the signature sounds that clearly - be it the bell like tinkle or the mushier, spine tingling sustain of a flatter sounding piano, or the bark  - I've recently found myself more likely to go to a Rhodes VST or Kontakt sampled version when noodling about, which is never a good sign. Probably OK to reseat everything


As for the grommets, I don't think they are original - they are very pliant and bouncy....but I can see some that are sitting unevenly - a bit like a squashed pillow. Trying to find a pic, it seems like they have relieved themselves somewhat now that they are no longer under pressure, but you can see in this one, the grommet has started to 'hug' the tonebar a bit.

[kevinplaystheblues]

...but if your tines were angled slightly then the previous owner likely moved the pickups so that they would have the proper volume...

Why wouldn't they straighten the tines on the tonebar? I was planning on doing that in a few cases.

[spave]

...but if your tines were angled slightly then the previous owner likely moved the pickups so that they would have the proper volume...

Why wouldn't they straighten the tines on the tonebar? I was planning on doing that in a few cases.

The tine and tonebar should ideally be parallel with each other. However even if they are, the bent screws can still lead to individual tonebars being at a slight angle compared to others.

You probably should straighten the ones on the tine that you were mentioning. Just remember that unless you replace the screws too, some of them will likely still be at an angle.


Also, based on your grommet picture they likely do need to be replaced sooner rather than later. If you've already gone this far its probably better to do them and the screws now.

[kevinplaystheblues]

Also, based on your grommet picture they likely do need to be replaced sooner rather than later. If you've already gone this far its probably better to do them and the screws now.

I thought you might say that, and I think I will.

Any thoughts on the aluminium tape, the tonebar springs themselves?

What is your opinion on the tonebar clips?

[spave]

I don't see anything wrong visually with the tape so probably not. If there is a lot of noise in the signal then you should start with cleaning/possibly replacing your RCA jack and go from there. Also I don't think you mentioned if you have active or passive electronics but both can add noise as well.

Your tonebar springs look fine. You might need to replace a few if any are rusty but they generally don't go bad otherwise. You could also buy some of the thicker bass ones from VV if some of your bass notes make a figure 8 on hard hits. https://www.vintagevibe.com/products/fender-rhodes-custom-tine-stabilizers

The tonebar clips are the treble note equivalent of the thicker VV bass springs. They are only used to help add sustain to certain tines that lack it. If you have notes that "die" quickly then you can buy a few or you could just replace those specific tines with new ones. Overall I wouldn't worry about them until the very end of this project as things like the grommets and hammer tips can lessen the need for them.