Bridle straps on EARLY sparkletop

[eighty8]

Hello, all! I've recently embarked on a restoration project of a very early sparkletop. The serial number plate is missing, so I'm not sure exactly how early, but I've been told that is either 1965 or 1966. Several of the bridle straps need replacement, but the dampers are much different than they are on later models, and I'm having trouble finding resources to tell me how to actually remove the bridle straps. Pictures are below; the damper posts (perhaps not the correct term) pass through them, and they are glued to the posts themselves. It doesn't appear to be possible to remove them without taking off the entire damper rail (all one piece here), cutting off the glue, and removing the dampers themselves from their posts. Does anyone have any experience with this? Please feel free to direct me to a similar thread if it exists, but I couldn't find one.

[pianotuner steveo]

I have plenty of experience with upright piano bridle straps (same part) but zero experience with Rhodes this old. It looks like the end you are showing is the end with the hole in it? With the "leather" tab? There has to be a way. Of course cutting the old ones out would be the easiest method, but I'm not sure about reinstalling. Just for general info, new bridle straps are not green anymore, they are off white and have red tabs. I haven't seen new straps in green in years, so I don't think it will be possible to get exact color replacements. And also, there are different ends- plain,cork tip, and metal clip, so be sure you order the correct type once you see what the whole strap looks like.

[David Aubke]

Just for general info, new bridle straps are not green anymore, they are off white and have red tabs. I haven't seen new straps in green in years, so I don't think it will be possible to get exact color replacements.

Rit's Apple Green dye will make those straps look original.


I'm sure you could get even closer if you did more experimenting with ratios.

[eighty8]

It looks like the end you are showing is the end with the hole in it? With the "leather" tab?

Yes, that's correct. The other end is glued to the bottom of the hammer mechanism - I haven't disassembled to that level yet, but I'm assuming it's attached in a similar manner to later models. At any rate, the prospect of replacing all of the straps is daunting, and I'd rather get by with replacing or repairing the few that have the slack (between dropping beer, lit cigarettes, and guitar picks on the keys, somebody use to wail on the top end of this thing, it seems). The only thing I can think of to avoid a full replacement is to cut a small slit in the tab below the damper and use that to pull the slack out of the strap, and then glue it back in place. It's not ideal, to be sure, but it seems like a reasonable temporary fix.

[eighty8]

Thanks for the tip on the dye! It's such a delightfully horrible green, I'd hate to lose that character.

[David Aubke]

Thanks for the tip on the dye! It's such a delightfully horrible green, I'd hate to lose that character.

You're welcome.

Also, that glue is 3M Scotch-Weld 847 Nitrile High Performance Rubber and Gasket Adhesive.

Surely there's someone around here familiar with that old action that could fill you in on how the bridle straps work. I'd give it a day or so for folks to respond before jury-rigging anything.

[Ben Bove]

It's been a long time since I've actually needed to change bridle straps on a 60s piano, so I'm trying to think back - but you're on the right track.  It's a little more intensive than a standard Rhodes.

Each damper felt is mounted on a flat base, and these units pull off of the damper arms. 
You can peel off the brown glue on the damper arms, in front of the bridle straps.
Unscrew the hammer, and slide the hammer and bridle strap off together, leaving the damper arm in place.

Are the bridle straps themselves actually broken, or just loose?  There is an adjustment - if you notice the springs behind the bridle straps (which look like tine tuning springs), these slide forward and hold the bridle strap farther up the shaft, pulling up some of that slack.

[eighty8]

There is an adjustment - if you notice the springs behind the bridle straps (which look like tine tuning springs), these slide forward and hold the bridle strap farther up the shaft, pulling up some of that slack.

They are just loose; that makes some sense, thanks so much. So, I would just remove the glue, slide the spring forward to the appropriate tension, and reglue the strap?

[Fred]

Is your sus pedal adjusted just to the point of eliminating lost motion ( slack between the pedal and actuation of the damper bar)? I ask this because in your picture there are almost a dozen bridle straps pictured and they all have excessive slack, which could be a symptom of the pedal adjustment (top rear of the speaker cab) unscrewed counter-clockwise too far ...

[eighty8]

Unfortunately, this came as is with no speaker cab or sustain pedal, so all I've got is the suitcase itself. I ended up resetting the position of the whole damper rail, and that seems to have at least made the problem passably better. I'm guessing that the treble side screws had been knocked loose and the rail was sagging.

[Fred]

That would have been my next suggestion.
As Ben mentioned, you can also adjust the spring further away from the damper arm flange. Not only will this take out slack, but it will also increase the travel of the free end of the damper arm. Too much of this however will result in an unpleasant feel, as resistance will progressively increase with depression of the key.

[Student Rhodes]

Did someone put neoprene tips on your old hammers, or am I seeing things?

[The Real MC]

Did someone put neoprene tips on your old hammers, or am I seeing things?

The felt hammer set was interchangeable with the plastic/wood hammer set.  I found my sparkletop like that.  Actually a great sound.

[eighty8]

Did someone put neoprene tips on your old hammers, or am I seeing things?

THAT I could have understood. What someone did was tack on rubber (not sure of the variety) strips right over the felt. Some of them are tacked in what looks to be a professional manner, some of them are held on with thumbtacks. And then, it appears that something was glued on the treble but was all ripped off leaving a nice little dab of old, dried glue on the apex. Lots of stuff going on here about which I'm confused.... :-)

[eighty8]

Here's a better pic of the hammers.

[PaulHelmuth]

...Rit's Apple Green dye will make those straps look original.

I'm sure you could get even closer if you did more experimenting with ratios.

David - Great idea!. I think your color is very close to what it should have been new. Regardless, looks perfect in a complete set by themselves.

-Paul

[David Aubke]

I think your color is very close to what it should have been new. Regardless, looks perfect in a complete set by themselves.

When I dyed the batch in the photo, I was replacing an entire set of straps so I was fine with the color I got. But if you're trying to match precisely, a stronger dye-to-water ratio or a longer soak time might get you there.

It took me long enough to get as close as I did - each test required an overnight soak before I could see the result.