Voicing depth

[Keith A. McGavern]

>Ok, Keith, here is a newbie question.
>
>I've been reading Reblitz about voicing hammers, in which he says to
>needle deep on the sides and shallow on the striking surface.  For
>deep voicing, he says to have the needle sticking out 3/4", and for
>shallow he says to have it sticking out 1/16".  Are those two
>distances the depth of the needling, i.e. the needles should go all
>the way in?  If not, how deep should they go in?
>
>/Allen

That's how I would interpret what you have posted.  However, it's only a
starting place for someone who has limited or no experience with this
activity.  And the approach of depth can be different depending on which
section of the piano you are needling (bass, tenor, or treble hammers).

Another problem that can occur with accepting this method as a sure fire
method is that it won't work with all types of hammers.  I can recall one
instance many years ago when I tried to follow the book like Reblitz, but
discovered that I was physically unable to penetrate a particular set of
hammers.  That was a very frustrating experience.  Broke 40+ needles and
some of my spirit for voicing before I ended up using pliers as a last
ditch effort to voice the hammers down.  Now I'm not recommending pliers to
you as a carte blanche method, but that's what I had to do in this given
instance.

Make no mistake, voicing hammers is an art and is approached in many
different ways.  Why, just as I sit here typing this to you, I have on my
desk a five page letter dealing with voicing just one brand of hammers.
This is a vast subject, Allen, but maybe what I have said will satisfy you
for a little bit, and maybe some others on the list will have something to
say on this subject as well.

Keith A. McGavern, RPT
Oklahoma Chapter 731
Oklahoma Baptist University
Shawnee, Oklahoma