Actually, hard candle wax -- "paraffin" in the U.S., but NOT in
Britain: we had a go around about this on the list some time ago --
works very well for lubricating keys and some makers use it
exclusively for this purpose. Keep in mind that there are different
kinds of waxes. Soft waxes are tacky and sticky. Hard waxes are
slippery. Beeswax, for instance, can be used to make things sticky,
but paraffin will not do this.
Hard wax has the advantage over graphite of being less messy: you
won't end up with black fingertips if you handle the keyshaft for any
reason, and it won't stain non-black keyshafts (like beech). Many
times you can simply pull the offending keyshaft out, rub it over a
block of paraffin (sold with canning goods in the U.S. because it is
used to seal some kinds of home canned foods), pop it back in, and be
good to go for months.
However, if keys are sticking badly or if lubricating them does not
fix the problem, you need to look examine the keys carefully to
figure out *where* they are sticking. It might be that there is a
high point on the key that could gently scraped or sanded down. I
found once that a key had physically twisted over time and the end
was rotated about five degrees with respect to the other end, so I
had to pull it out, carefully true it up, and then shim the upper key
slot with parchment paper to keep the key from rattling around since
the shaft was now smaller. Some times you might need to gently
reshape the keyslot if it has shrunk for any reason. If you aren't
brave about working in this manner with your instrument, a maker
should be able to make repairs of this nature in a few minutes.
-Arle
On Sep 12, 2006, at 6:47 AM, Angela Höfer wrote:
I would believe, that the most outstanding characteristic of wax is
to collect dirt and get even more sticky in use even when
polished ...?
For tangents sticking to the box I use graphite i.e. rubbing with a
very soft pencil over the sides of the (dismounted) tangent/
(keys?), if its not the problem of the humidity making the
wood ... swell(?) - well you know ...
In case You mean the things sticking to Your fingers preventing
fast play, perhaps talcum is really a good idea?
But I am interested in knowing more about the wax idea, as in what
they say about the effects it is supposed to have and where to
apply ...
- angela -
---------------------------
Am 12.09.2006 um 03:06 schrieb Pat Wright:
What is the fix for sticky keys? I read that candle wax can
help.....
