Harpsichord Questions

[Jim]

Dear Jeff:

You can get harpsi.. wire from Schaff and Pacific Piano Supply if they are
still doing it.

The jack with the slit for the damper (bushing cloth) sounds like a
Hubbard kit.  I built one up about 20 years ago.  When the shift
doesn't work, it is usually because there is a deep indentation in the
damper felt.  Replacing the bushing felt is not a real difficult job
on that type jack.  There needs to be follow-thru just as in pianos, so
you can see that the jack really rides on the string or strings.  If you
are out in the field and you find just one or two bad dampers, you can
sometimes just remove the bushing cloth and turn it upside down to get rid
of the indentation problem.  The Hubbard type jack usually has an
adjustment screw in the top which controls how far the tongue & plectra
extend.
Are the plectra flat or round?  Hubbard's are flat.  Is the tongue the
same type nylon as the jack?

The sliders are called register stops (like organ stops).  You got the
buff stop figured right.

Does it have oblong tuning pins or square?  The purists use the oblong
with no hole for the becket ( dumb idea, but cheap ).  The sloppy coils
do two things:  increase the bearing on the Agraffe bar, and help avoid
the problem of the wire jumping over its own coil (which greatly increases
string breakage).  The bronze wire in the Bass breaks very easily if the
wire jumps over its own coil.  Don't ever raise pitch without making
clearance for the coil.  When you make the loops on new wire, you can use
the round end wire handles of your rubber mutes for doing the
twisting, then make 4 or 5 tight revolutions with the pigtail end, then cut
off the excess.

If the tuning pins are the oblong or flat type, you need
to extend the end along the side of the tuning pin until you have several
coils to hold it in place, then you can roll the pin to complete the
remaining coils, keeping it snug until the pin in driven in.  If you have
loose tuning pins, you can use paper shims (about 1/8 in. wide, 1
in. long) before driving the pins. Extreme cases may require finishing
paper - fine grit out.  I would NOT use pinblock restorer in this case.
You can't get oversize tuning pins, hence the above repair.

Perhaps with a little ascii art, you can draw a picture of the jack, jack
tongue, and the plectra mounted in the jack tongue.  Keep the right
margins plenty clear, so that the picture is not messed up on some screens.

Jim Coleman, Sr.



On Mon, 9 Dec 1996 TunerJeff@aol.com wrote:

> Dear Folks,
>
>    I've got a question or two for you hand-crafted reproduction of
> 'hysterical' instruments types. A local high school has just recieved a 6-ft.
> hand-made instrument back from being on loan to the community concert
> association. It has a brass dedication plaque that dates it to 1965. There is
> no makers-mark. There is no identification of company or source for it's
> parts or pieces. The case is totally plain, with no ornamentation of any
> kind. The hinges on the folding top, which folds all the way over the keys,
> are standard cabinet hinges.
> It is-
> 57 keys- From an A to an F (4 octaves and a smidge)
> Single strings from bottom to top- Minimal changes in string-size (...like 7
> sizes from; .025 to .009)
> Two hand controls or stops. One at either end of the keyboard. Bass control
> shifts a rail with felt pieces near the end of the speaking length, acting as
> a sort of 'buff'-stop. Treble control shifts the line of the plectrons closer
> or farther from the strings for a heavier 'bite' on the string. (Currently
> does not function because the damper-felts are too worn, when you attempt to
> shift  the action the felts force it back.)
>
>      It has 6 broken/missing strings. The music rack has disappeared. The
> wires in it appear to be different sources, as they range in color from a
> silver to an almost copper/brass color, and there are wierd jumps in string
> size (...as in; "Oh, the string's broken. Here, this oughta fit... it looks
> ok to me!")
>
> Questions-
> 1. Good source for harpsichord strings?
> 2. Stringing scale for this little 'kit-creature'?
> 3. Source for replacement plectrons or plectron-units? (Plastic pieces
> mounted to an adjustable peg, with a light spring that forces the return of
> the plectron, there is a slit for mounting a folded piece of felt that serves
> as a damper-felt. There is a small round lead weight, too. Several are broken
> or cracked.)
> 4. Can you identify the maker, or at least the source for the kit?
> 5. What pitch should it be tuned to? (435? Or lower?)
> 6. Which temperament would be appropriate for it? (I'm an aural tuner, and I
> have Jorgenson's massive tome "Tuning" to draw from. I'm leaning towards
> Kirnberger, as I need to educate the local accompanist on tuning it!)
> 7. The strings are, to my eye, badly strung. They are simply twisted several
> times and slapped over the hitch-pin & the tuning pins have loose 'wads' of
> string simply wound on to them... the bearing from the termination varies
> from string to string because of this.
> Is it appropriate to give them a proper 'bass-loop' and neatly coil them on
> the pin? Is there a correct angle from the termination point or number of
> coils?
> 8. The damper felt  resembles folded medium key-bushing cloth, will this
> serve? Or should I simply razor the felt currently in place for a clean line?
> 8. Is there a harpsichord equivalent to this TechList? If so... WHERE!?
>
> Thanks for your time,
> Jeffrey T. Hickey, RPT
> Oregon Coast Piano Services
> TunerJeff @ aol.com
> (541) 756-7701
>
> ps- The local teacher wants this creature in service for a concert in 9 days.
> I got my first view of it on Saturday evening. Help.
> Thank-you!
> ;>)
>