Beginning a long overdue rehab of my 1975 #Rhodes Stage 73 - replacing the ratty tolex and adding a Miracle Mod from Vintage Vibe to smooth out the key action.
I bought this from the trunk of a shifty character at an Iowa truck stop back in 2002 and it’ll forever be the best $400 I’ve spent. These pianos are among the greatest instruments ever created. #RhodesRefresh
I’m not crazy about paying out the nose to keep this piano maintained, so I’ve learned to be my own Rhodes tech - buying NOS parts wherever I could find them until Vintage Vibe began reproducing parts about 10 years ago.
This’ll be my most ambitious repair job by a mile: replacing the tolex, refreshing all the chrome hardware, replacing the Rhodes badge, and the extremely tedious process of improving the sluggish keybed. #RhodesRefresh
@jepyang Rhodes pianos can develop “key bounce”, which is when the keys and hammers briefly bounce after release. It results in sluggish action and more mechanical noise under the hood - no bueno.
The miracle mod involves gluing a small piece of plastic and a strip of felt onto the key where it comes in contact with the hammer. This allows the hammer to rest snugly on the felt after a note is released, eliminating the bounce.
Here’s an explainer vid. https://youtu.be/FsQgwFtRoDQ
Jeremy Erwin
eyajpng