Sostenuto pedal question

Hi,

The sostenuto pedal on my Steinway A is catching a couple of hammers - is this a possible do-it-yourself adjustment?

No; you've got to pull the whole action. But exactly what do you mean by 'catching'? That's what it's for: you play and hold any notes, then push down sostenuto, and then you can release your fingers from those notes and only those will be sustained. For example, you can hold a chord, then play a run elsewhere without the notes slurring together.

Here's a test: push down the sustain pedal, then push down the sostenuto and hold. Now release sustain. All the dampers should stay up. When you release sostenuto, they might fall at slightly different times.

What I mean is that when it is depressed it is also sustaining a few other keys that it should not. Of course you need to pull out the action. What then?

Thanks,

Well, after pulling the action, you're hardly just a 'handyman'. Given this problem, it's not some simple adjustment like moving the entire sostenuto rod forward or back (unless the 'extra' keys are all at one extreme end or the other of the keyboard?). There's some problem involving the tabs and/or flanges in the back action for those keys, for which you would need special tools and parts (e.g. if repinning is necessary). For a wonderful piano like your 'A', call a technician. You can find one here: http://ptg.org.