Imported used pianos

[Les Smith]

Hi, Roger.

Please accept my apologies. I sometimes fire off posts which are not at
all what they first appear to be on the surface. That was the case here
and I fear that you misinterpreted what I was saying. Far from trying to
"chastise" YOU for referring to pressure ridges as a problem, my post was
meant as a spoof, a farce, a "shot", if you will, at those who contend
that pressure ridges, far from being a problem, actually constitute a
virtue and are to be viewed as a sign of a superior soundboard. What a
crock! I am decidedly NOT in that group. My feeling is that if a piano--
be it new, nearly-new, or old--has a soundboard which exhibits pressure
ridges, it has a soundboard which is predisposed to failure. Buying such
an instrument is like buying a house built directly on St. Andrea's
Fault-- it's not a matter of IF, it's merely a matter of WHEN. As Del
recently said:
	Compression ridges are, by definition, areas of wood in which
	the wood fiber has been stressed beyond its failure point. The
	cracks are ALREADY there. They are just waitimg to open up and
	become visible as the wood dries out enough to make this pos-
	sible. 
Thus I put the argument that pressure ridges are the signs of a superior
soundboard in the same category that I do that statement by the salesman
who tried to explain away the empty player action cavity in an old Dou-
Art grand as being a "specially tuned acoustic chamber". In other words,
totally specious.

The problem is that in a world overrun with hypesters, hustlers and spin-
artists, the truth is becoming an incresingly rare commodity and it's get-
ting more and more difficult to separate fact from fiction. Fortunately,
for those of us involved with pianos, there still exist people like Del
to act as a counterbalance, to help keep the record straight, and to give
us the facts as they really are, rather than as those who have a financial
stake in the outcome frequently misrepresent them to be.
 
Once again, I'm sorry if you misunderstood the intent of my post. I was in
NO WAY criticizing your statement about pressure ridges constituting a
problem, I was--obliquely--AGREEING with it. Hopefully, if you reread my
original post you will now see that that was my intent. If you have not
yet encountered the "pressure ridges are the sign of a superior sound-
board" argument, you eventually will. Keep reading Del's stuff and you'll
be well prepared for when that happens.

Keep those fine posts rolling in!

Les Smith
lessmith@buffnet.net

On Sun, 7 Dec 1997, Roger Jolly wrote:

> At 09:23 PM 12/6/97 -0500, Les Smith wrote:
> >
> >
> >On Sat, 6 Dec 1997, Roger Jolly wrote:
> >
> >> The super dry specs for our climate would give another type
> >> of problem in other destinations, (e.g. Pressure ridges in sound boards
> >> etc.)  
> >
> 
> Greetings Les,
>                The comment was intended as a loose generalization, I have
> seen pianos arrive in this area that have been used in Europe for many
> years, and have arrived with pressure ridges, That has pushed the board up
> off the ribs, about 1/8", and giving no apparent tonal or buzzing problems.
> When drying down in this region however, the crack opens up and the planks
> tend to curl away from the board. I agree with your statements that the
> ridges are not a problem on newer pianos and could in fact be an asset. On
> a new piano with good fresh glue no problem, when dealing with 30 to 50
> year old units coming from wildly different conditions I don't think the
> argument would be valid. I have been convinced by Al Jeske and other
> respected techs that maybe 2 years is the safer time span to see what
> happens. It seems to me that an older piano needs to cycle a couple of
> years just to find out where it wants to sit with regards to swelling and
> shrinkage.
> 
>        On the lighter side I feel gently chastised, but respect the brain
> power and experience of the techs on the list. Some times putting ones
> thoughts on a page or two is not easy, so take the thread in the spirit
> that it was posted.
>  Sound board geometry and impedence, along with internal tension X
> coefficents of expansion, rim vs board is a whole new discussion. I'd have
> to do some more homework to participate.
> 
> Thanks for your comments point well taken.
> Regards Roger
> 
>