String Breakage (Reply)

[Tony Caught]

Barrie,

Have you ever replaced a bass string with a hexcore bass string 400 miles
from your home bass knowing that you will not be going back there until next
year ?.  Of course the hexcore replacement will go out of tune by more than
just a little.

By tieing the broken bass string the chances are that the string will remain
in relative tune are very high.

Also, in many cases the string has broken through age or rust or some other
cause that is also effecting the other strings.  The choice is replace the
lot, restring the piano or just repair the broken string if possible .

Keep the piano alive until the customer can afford to repair or replace is I
suppose my motto when working in remote places.

It takes me about 15 minutes to repair the string, tighten the knot and tune
it.

Tony Caught   Australia caute@accessnt.com.au


-----Original Message-----
From: Barrie Heaton <Piano@forte.airtime.co.uk>
To: pianotech@ptg.org <pianotech@ptg.org>
Date: Wednesday, 20 January 1999 3:30
Subject: Re: String Breakage (Reply)


>Dear All,
>
>I must admit this thread has me gobsmack, you have tying strings as part
>of your PTG test!!!
>
>Why not just change the string do you not carry Hexcore bass strings,
>until you have a replacement made,  this is definitely a no no in the
>UK.  We have seen it in Reblitz and it has all ways got a polite :-) and
>a few odd comments.
>
>It is an interesting concept though, do you do this on steel as well?
>What is the failure rate, How do you cope with strings that the pin is
>close to the agraph or v-bar. Do the over hangs from the tying not
>scratch the plate (frame) when you pull up the string.  How long from
>start to fin for the job.  How is the stability of the string compared
>with a new bass string. Some of you have said they use a larger gauge
>will this not make tying the knot harder.
>
>Barrie,
>
>
>
>
>
>--
>
>Barrie Heaton                                  |  Be Environmentally
Friendly
>URL: http://www.uk-piano.org/                  |  To Your Neighbour
>The UK Piano Page                              |
>pgp  key on request                            |  HAVE YOUR PIANO TUNED