Reconditioning
Regulating Punchings & Keybed Cleaning
On each of the balance rail and front rail pins, the key is cushioned underneath by a felt punching. The felt punchings under the keys and other felt parts can become compressed, moth eaten, and/or misshapen after heavy use. Note the moth eaten felt in the photo below. Theses photos are of a vertical piano, but the same type of punchings are used in grand pianos. Many old uprights are 80-100 years old, which sometimes means 100 years of dust inside! I once found a mouse's nest of shredded newspaper under the keys, with an intact mouse skeleton in the nest.
While the keys are removed, I will clean and vacuum the inside of the piano. (For grand pianos, this only includes vacuuming the keybed and cleaning dust out of the action. Cleaning the soundboard is an extra process and I charge an additional amount for that. See Piano Cleaning.) If the key pins are tarnished they can be polished and sprayed with lubricant. If the felt punchings have deteriorated, they are replaced. If they are still in good condition, I leave them in place and vacuum around them.
The felt punchings, and the paper punchings under them, can be replaced, but because replacing the punchings will change the relationships among the parts of the piano action, the action will have to be regulated. [See the Regulation page.]
