>Why are so many piano makers still using the butterfly type rep. lever
>spring? The other kind is sometimes called the Schwander type (Sch). It
I think you hit the nail on the head when you wrote that some makers do it
because Steinway does. Most of the time I wish they hadn't...
>pointed out to my customers the schwander type whippen as a PLUS FEATURE. I
In some respects that's true. It takes less effort, technique and expense to
keep a Schwander-type action regulated. If you own a Steinway though, you
should expect to pay more to service it. If you own one of the Korean pianos
with butterfly springs, good luck! Some of them are so clumsily-made that
it's easy to break pieces off when you finally get the tool in there to get
at the spring, which won't move anyway. At least the Steinway rep is made
with a certain amount of elegance.
>really believed it to be true. Then about 1988 Kawai changed to butterfly.
>My sales rep didn't know why for sure but mentioned tests had proven the
>butterfly to be faster. I just can't reason it out why the butterfly would
The explanation might be that the Schwander-type (if I have my types right)
has a "silk" loop connecting the spring to the jack whereas the butterfly
spring goes directly into the wood of the "fly" (Steinway's term) at a
precise angle to provide the return tension. The solid connection of one end
of a long spring in wood plus the other long end of the spring pushing up
the rep lever rather than just a short tang doing the job may make the
difference in speed. Another factor might be the butterfly wippen should
theoretically have a longer life as there are fewer parts and no delicate
threads to break or deteriorate (those darn mice again!). That sounds like a
sales gimmick to me except in the case of an "heirloom piano" (need I
mention a name?). Also, that tiny silk loop might be enough for some
pianists to feel faintly "disconnected" from the action, a complaint I've
heard echoed about the carbon jack and teflon bushings. I'm not in a
position to say whether that's valid or not, but I have heard that
description before.
Finally, a Schwander-type wippen is more expensive to produce. There are
only a few more parts (four?) in the Schwander but there is some extra
machining and assembly to be done in the factory, making them more complex
and costly. A cheap butterfly-type is worse than useless though as the rep
lever is usually too wide, the spring too cheap and the jack poorly made.
>In my daily work I don't regulate grands as often as maybe the university
>technicians. But let me tell you, adjusting the spring tension by bending
>that stupid spring is not my most enjoyable hour (or hours). I'm always
It's a matter of the proper technique, practice and the proper tool. The
springs _must_ be in good condition and not bent out of shape and weak. If
they are, new springs are in order if the rest of the parts are OK (and it
doesn't have the early Steinway flys). I agree... they can be a REAL pain
regardless of who makes them even when fairly new. If they've been worked
over by someone who wasn't sure of what they were doing you have a bigger
problem.
BTW, I made my own spring tool after than buying several that didn't work
right and having them lay around. It's basically just a brass hinge-pin
ground flat with slightly offset notches on the top and bottom of the "hook"
to hold the spring. The long end can be glued into a dowel for a handle or
you can spend some time making one that fits your hand. I consider it to be
a "personal tool" - one that should be made to fit how you work.
>wondering about the friction and is it clean. I'll adjust the schwander and
>whistle a tune while I work.
On the other hand, tweaking schwander springs takes a few minutes and may
not cost a customer much, meaning you don't make much except on customer
relations. If butterflies aren't free (!!!) it may be a day's extra work,
which hopefully most owners can afford and almost all private technicians
could use!
>One can be reluctant to post when there a possibility you might end up
>looking stupid. I'm about to turn 65 after 38 years in this work I don't
It was a good question which made me think a bit. BTW, my father tuned his
last piano for a customer when he was 76 after learning to tune in 1925...
By then he'd kept just a few customers who had become old friends just for
"something to do". B-}) I hope in 2027 I'll be doing the same thing.
But that's yet another story which will be too long (as usual!) if I get
started... <grin>
John
John Musselwhite, RPT
Calgary, Alberta Canada
musselj@cadvision.com
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