Piano Forum



International Piano Day 2024
Piano Day is an annual worldwide event that takes place on the 88th day of the year, which in 2024 is March 28. Established in 2015, it is now well known across the globe. Every year it provokes special concerts, onstage and online, as well as radio shows, podcasts, and playlists. Read more >>

Topic: Broken sustain pedal during lockdown!! Aargh!  (Read 1328 times)

Offline cecilwhosay

  • PS Silver Member
  • Newbie
  • ***
  • Posts: 1
Broken sustain pedal during lockdown!! Aargh!
on: April 26, 2020, 02:00:38 PM
As piano tuners seem not to have been classified essential workers, I have a bit of a problem.

The sustain pedal on my Ed Seiler upright is lying limp on the carpet. I opened it up and found that the head of the screw that holds the back of the pedal into the rest of the mechanism is somehow worn, so it can be pulled through the hole when it is under sprung tension. Clearly I’ll need to get a replacement screw (it’s also somehow become slightly bent).

But what really confuses me is that even when it is all temporarily put back together, the sustain still doesn’t work. Even when I manually manipulate the lever that the top of the rod pokes into, it makes no difference and the dampers still come into action when I release the key. Unfortunately I can’t really see how that lever works without getting in from behind the piano, which isn’t an option.

Do I have a secondary problem, apart from the faulty screw? Or would replacing the screw somehow make the lever work in a way that I’m not seeing?

Thank you. Not sure I can face only playing Bach for the rest of the lockdown.

Offline quantum

  • PS Silver Member
  • Sr. Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 6221
Re: Broken sustain pedal during lockdown!! Aargh!
Reply #1 on: April 26, 2020, 02:43:55 PM
Hi and welcome to Pianostreet.

You can do a temporary repair with string or wire to substitute for the worn screw. 

Look to see if you can find a vertical rod that transfers the motions from the system of levers at the bottom of the piano the pedal trap work to the action above.  That vertical rod has likely fallen out of place when the worn screw pulled through the hole.  All you have to do is put it back.  It is probably held in place only with the tension of the pedal levers, so do the temporary string/wire repair first, then put the rod back.  You may have to remove the front panel of the piano to see the linkage for the rod in the action. 

Made a Liszt. Need new Handel's for Soler panel & Alkan foil. Will Faure Stein on the way to pick up Mendels' sohn. Josquin get Wolfgangs Schu with Clara. Gone Chopin, I'll be Bach
 

Logo light pianostreet.com - the website for classical pianists, piano teachers, students and piano music enthusiasts.

Subscribe for unlimited access

Sign up

Follow us

Piano Street Digicert