Strip muting problem

[Lance Lafargue]

Sounds like you'll have to use a little different tuning procedure, use
more mutes, take longer, etc.  Sounds like a $135.86 tuning to me.  Isn't
it interesting how we learn a method that works perfectly for us on 99% of
the pianos (mostly modern) that we see and unfortunately become inflexible?
 I sympathize!  I came across one the other day. 
Lance Lafargue, RPT
New Orleans Chapter
Covington, LA.
lafargue@iamerica.net

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> From: Jerry Hunt <jhunt@geocities.com>
> To: pianotech@ptg.org
> Subject: Strip muting problem
> Date: Wednesday, December 03, 1997 3:16 AM
> 
> After doing some repairs on a 1911 Feuhr & Stemmer (the subject of a
> previous post, for which I received some valuable tips - thanks again),
> and a couple of pitch raises, I went a couple of days ago to do the fine
> tuning. I discovered, much to my chagrin, that because the strings are
> very close to the plate (this appears to be by design, and not due to
> some problem that has crept up over the years), it was nearly impossible
> to get a strip to stay between the strings. So I used my thinnest strip,
> poked it in the best I could, and juggled wedge mutes frantically, but
> that made checks, such as series of thirds, etc., quite difficult.
> 
> Does anyone have any suggestions as how best to handle this sort of
> problem? My first inclination was to tell the customer that I needed to
> burn in a hammer and "accidentally" set the whole piano on fire, but
> then decided that would be bad customer relations :o) But seriously, any
> help with stripping, or alternative (other than using 50 wedge mutes)
> would be greatly appreciated.