evaluating sdbd. crown, etc.

[Frank Weston]

-----Original Message-----
From: Robert A. Anderson <fndango@azstarnet.com>
To: pianotech@ptg.org <pianotech@ptg.org>
Date: Saturday, September 25, 1999 1:30 PM
Subject: Re: evaluating sdbd. crown, etc.


>Frank Weston wrote:
>
>>One of the most successful and largest volume restorers on the East Coast
>>uses a method similar to the one I describe above.  They have tried
>>alternative methods (shaping ribs) but had an inordinate amount of
>failures
>>of soundboards so constructed and long ago reverted to traditional
>>construction.
>
>Who is this, please?

I hope I am not offending anyone by divulging names.  The company is A.C.
Pianocraft.  The method I describe is the method they use.  A. C. Pianocraft
replaces soundboards in all pianos I restore.  Their work is flawless, the
pianos sound great, and they are truly nice people to deal with.  Because I
have a background in wood/composite construction from another industry,
early on, I experimented with my own soundboard construction.  Swiftly I
concluded that I just can't match the quality of their work for an
equivalent cost, or maybe at any cost.  They must do 100's of soundboards
per year and they have been at it for generations.

>
>Frank also wrote:
>
>>Their observation was that not only were the alternatively
>>constructed soundboards more likely to fail, but they were also less
>>responsive musically.
>
>This statement motivates quite a list of questions - 1) Which pianos use
>"traditional" (in Frank's terminology) sb's?

Most.

 2) Does the unnamed
>restorer reinstall "traditional" sb's in pianos that were originally
>manufactured with "alternate" sb's?

I don't know.  I think that all of their restorations are done with
traditional soundboards.  It is probably unlikely that they will encounter
any rib crowned boards since they specialize in Steinway and M&H.

3) If so, what specific changes does
>the restorer make to accomodate a different kind of sb?

I don't know.

4) What
>proportion of pianos that this restorer restored had "traditional" sb's?

I don't know, but I would guess all most all of them.  See 2. above.

>There are other questions, but answers to these would go a long way in
>elucidating Frank's advocacy of "traditional" sb's. It would be
>especially helpful to know which manufacturers use "traditional" sb's
>and which use "alternate" sb's.

Here is the list of manufacturers that I know use "alternate" soundboards.

--------

Frank Weston