Ivory reglueing

[Rick Patten]

Hello everyone. I would like to first introduce myself. My name is Rick Patten and I am a piano technician living in Washington State, USA. My main interest and income comes from piano rebuilding. My question for you all is the result of a continually reacuring problem I am having with one particular piano. I have a client with a 9ft. Baldwin Grand with ivory keycovers. My problem is with the front half of the ivory keycovers. They have repeatidly delaminated from the wood key. I have tried many methods to reglue the ivory. I have used all the methods many times on other pianos and have never had this problem ever come up before. What methods have you technicians been using to reattach old ivories, and has this problem ever come up for you?

[Barrie Heaton]

Hi Rick

All depends where I am if I am in a clients house I will use CA Glue for a quick fix if I have more time and need to do an invisible mend I use AcryliKey but that is an expensive way to do it if you have a lot to do – if I do I bring them home to my workshop and use Animal Glue and titanium oxide


I have had a clients piano that the ivory kept coming un glued but that was a very damp house but the one I re glued did not come off so far


Barrie,

[Rick Patten]

Thank you Barrie for your reply. I have used CA glue, ivory wafers, hide glue, marine epoxy, and standard carpenter glue. All of these have failed on this piano. I find it interesting that you mentioned the humidity issue. I have noticed that the air in the house felt damp and I have discussed that problem with the customer. I suggested that she concider replacing the ivory with plastic to permanently fix the problem but the owner is intent on retaining her ivory keycovers. She is a piano teacher that refers a lot of students to the store that I contract a significant amount of work through. The store did not sell her the piano but still wants me to solve this problem for her. Do you have any inspirations that might solve this problem? The piano does not have a damp-chaser system, but she resists the idea of installing one. The damp-chaser would be too far away from the keycovers to do any good anyway. You mentioned Acrylikey. Is that the Richard Wagner system for chip repair you are refering to? I am quite familar with that system. I knew Dick Wagner when he was putting that system together. I was the recipient of the first kit he made as a favor to me. I have repaired hundreds of keys with that product. I have attempted to use it to attach an ivory to wood but found it wanting. Other methods worked better. How are you using it to reattach ivories?

[Barrie Heaton]

Acrylikey. Yes it is the one Richard Wagner started I did a lot of work with Richard 8 years ago on Acrylikey II when I use to do a lot of ivory work in the UK not so much now as a lot of old pianos are not worth spending money on. I still run the UK Acrylikey web Site the sales side I handed over to F&N as I did not have the time. It was sad about Richard

As to gluing using Acrylikey I just use like a cement but as I said it is an expensive way to do it, but you do get a clean joint and I have only used it on site when I have had no other way of doing it as hand

Are you are having failures with marine epoxy if you are there must be a big swing in humidity. Are the children not flipping the tops off I had a music teacher who had that problem what I did was to put thick CA glue under each of the lips of each ivory that stopped it

Have you asked her about an dehumidifier for the room that would be more effective on all of the piano than a damp chaser

[Rick Patten]

Hi Barrie,
No I have not suggested a dehumidifier for the room. Thank you for that suggestion. That would certainly help the situation. I think she might even go for that.
Thanks again,
Rick Patten