The following is a typical overhaul (extreme course) process.
*The work may vary depending on the condition of the piano.
A piano is composed of numerous parts. To make it easier to work on each of them, they are disassembled into pieces.
Piano frames that have been used for many years have become dingy with scratches, chips, dust, dirt, and rust.
After appropriate surface preparation, gold dust coating is applied again to restore the new-like condition.
Some soundboard paints can crack, turn brown, or become stained and sticky from taking in dust and other debris due to changes in temperature, humidity, and environment over long periods of time.
The paint on the soundboard thus deteriorated is stripped, and after appropriate restoration work is performed as necessary, the soundboard is carefully repainted in several coats of soundboard paint.
*When the frame is removed, cracks in the pieces, cracks in the soundboard, and peeling of the sound bar may be found, and will be repaired for a fee.
Replace the pin bushings with new ones as the frame is painted.
Since tuning pins are somewhat looser than new due to the number of tuning cycles, etc., replace the pins with the appropriate size pins and adjust the pin firmness (torque).
Replacing rusted pins with new tuning pins also restores the original shine to the pins.
Winding wires are one of the areas where dirt tends to accumulate. When dust accumulates here, the dust attracts moisture, which in turn creates rust, and noise (jin-line and bon-line) is likely to occur.
Replacing with new windings will give it a cleaner appearance.
To make it more beautiful and precise without damaging the frame, strings of a predetermined number are strung with a predetermined number of windings and without twists.
*The work may vary depending on the condition of the piano’s exterior, type of paint, etc.
The following process is an example of a typical repair.
With the improvement and development of paints, the piano world has used a wide variety of paints. Some of these paints are incompatible with each other.
In such cases, the original coating is stripped to maximize the original performance of the paint to be used.
Piano paint is applied in layers and requires skill in spraying evenly even on complex shapes. Skilled technicians with knowledge of various paint combinations and the ability to spray evenly produce a beautiful, deep coating with excellent durability.
In addition, we must not forget that more appropriate paints are constantly being developed and further efforts to improve quality must not be forgotten in the ever-evolving and improving paint.
We use a belt sander to achieve a level of smoothness and work speed that is difficult to achieve by hand grinding.
The sanded surface is polished step by step using several compounds and buffing compounds.
The end result is a mirror-like reflection as well as coloration and greater depth.
We strive daily to achieve both speed and quality by using equipment suited to each type of work, such as large triple buffing machines, vertical buffing machines, and rotary buffing machines.
The most obvious change in a piano that has been used for many years is rust discoloration of the metalwork.
By removing rust and polishing with the appropriate machine and abrasives, dull metal parts are restored to their original brilliance.
This is an important part of the piano’s continuous performance. Often the tape is broken due to insect bites or deterioration.
Replace it with a new one to restore the piano’s original functionality.
Generally, filing is used when the hammer felt is deeply grooved by the strings due to frequency of use. After several times of filing, the hammer will reach the end of its useful life and will need to be replaced.
If the hammer is misaligned, it may affect the volume and movement of the action, so pay attention to the striking point, angle, and other factors.
Used piano dampers are subject to severe deterioration, insect infestation, and wear and tear.
The damper is an important part that stops the sound of the piano. Renewal of the damper will not only revive its appearance, but also its usability in performance.
The interior of the piano, an area that is not usually well cared for, has accumulated dust over the years and sludge has settled on the wood of the action.
Since this is a vital part of the piano, dust is painstakingly removed and wood stains are sanded to improve the appearance of the piano.
Some pianos have butt cords that break after a number of years.
If the buttcord breaks, the return of the hammer will be poor, making it difficult to strike repeatedly and affecting touch, so replace the buttcord with a material that is resistant to breakage.
The most frequently touched part of a piano: the keyboard. Of all the parts that make up a piano, it is the part that shows the most signs of use.
By replacing it with a new top surface, the keyboard will be returned to a brand new, white keyboard with no scratches.
If the keyboard bushing cloth is worn or eaten away by insects due to frequency of use or the environment in which it was placed, the keys will rattle more than necessary, making them less comfortable to play and less likely to reflect action and keyboard adjustments.
Remove cleanly and replace with cloth of appropriate thickness.
After years of use, the wood inside the piano has accumulated more dirt than expected.
Remove dust and dirt from the keyboard using abrasive paper or other means.
A rotating buffing machine with an abrasive is used to further polish slight scratches on the keyboard surface to achieve a beautiful luster.
The touch of the piano is brought out by adjusting the internal mechanism of the piano to the dimensions appropriate for that piano.
Repeat seasoning – adjustment several times, as new parts are prone to change until they blend in.
Adjust the tension of the strings to adjust the pitch of each note, one by one.
Newly strung strings are prone to stretching, so the strings will need to be tuned several times before they settle down.
After the line process is completed and stored in the warehouse, the finishing touches are adjusted again before shipment.
Strings tuned and blended in the previous process are fine-tuned again before shipment.
Here, scratches and polish residue from the process are thoroughly checked and polished.
The ability to make resourceful repairs that respond to the depth of damage and various phenomena is required, and perfection is achieved by skilled workers with many years of experience and the ability to make appropriate judgments.
The inspector in charge inspects the entire product and determines whether it is acceptable or not.
If a defective part is found, it is returned to the operator in charge of the defective part and re-inspected after correction work.