Voicing

[Richard Brekne]

Hi Lance

I suppose if you have fit hammers to strings then you have already done enough
reshaping to insure a nice hammer surface to mate with the strings. Groved
hammers can cause buzzes even if they are somewhat soft.

If you can put a needle in the middle shoulder area with little or no
resistance... and I mean really no resistance.. then there is probably nothing
to be gained by needling more.  Once the power of a hammer is needled away I
cant see how you can retrieve it. Laquer will add hardness, but offer only
limited help in the dynamics of the sound. You can try however dropping some
laquer on the crown, and then after a minute or so dropping a bit of thinner on
top of that to more or less drive the laquer deeper into the hammer. That seems
to simulate the springy resilience of hammers to some degree.

Otherwise I suppose you have checked for agraff noise and capo noises.

RicB

Lance Lafargue wrote:

> Hi list,
> I have a situation coming up that I thought was common, but not talked about
> in detail much.  I will be prepping and maintaining a Steinway D next week
> for a week-long competition with recitals,etc.  Very good players,
> often-times Van Cliburn contestants/winners (12).  This piano has been
> approved to get new Hammers, Shanks, flanges, damper felt, and maybe back
> checks, but not in time for the competition.  The hammers have been filed
> many times, running out of felt with some areas weak, lots of nasty
> twang/buzz.  I have leveled strings, seated them and fit hammers to strings,
> but I suspect most of the problem is in the hammers.  The piano is from mid
> 80's. These hammers have been worked on and stabbed by several techs, so I
> don't know the whole history.
> The Question:  What are some of the common (if any) remedies needed on older
> hammers in this situation.  Do you sometimes have to harden again after much
> needling, (weak areas) do specific needling, (noise) after this much use?
> Are there common procedures followed to extend the usefulness and increase
> the quality of tone in these older hammers?  I would appreciate input from
> the experience out there. Thanks,
>
> Lance Lafargue, RPT
> Mandeville, LA
> New Orleans Chapter, PTG
> lancelafargue@bellsouth.net
> 985.72P.IANO