ABSTRACT
There are numerous rails in a piano. The function of a rail is primarily to support a common body of parts or to support one element of the instrument. Merle Mason lists over thirty-eight rails in his excellent compilation of piano parts. Here are a few: ACTION support raila bar across the lower framework of an UPRIGHT; DAMPER guide raila thin wooden bar positioned above and protruding beyond the forward edge of the SOUNDBOARD into the action housing; HAMMER rail in an upright, the long cloth-covered bar on which hammershanks lean when at rest; main action raila bar, generally of wooden construction, varying in thickness and running the entire length of the action, which provides a stable base for the moving parts of the action.
