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Lugged spring, making a piano in outhouse (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

shlepped

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'lugged spring' is the definition.
The definition and answer can be both to do with contact as well as being past participle verbs.
Maybe there's a link between them I don't understand?

'making a piano in outhouse' is the wordplay.
'making' becomes 'lep' (I can't explain this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'a piano' becomes 'p' (musical abbreviation).
'in' is an insertion indicator.
'outhouse' becomes 'shed' (a shed is an outside building).
'lep'+'p'='lepp'
'lepp' placed into 'shed' is 'SHLEPPED'.

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I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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