fun at the piano store!

[Bdshull@AOL.COM]

Hi, Terry:

A couple of ideas:  You might log humidity from day to day in the store.  Use 
the Radio Shack humidity gauge (temperature too, especially if the piano is 
sitting in the sun), or one you can buy from Schaff.  Put this info on your 
billings to the dealer.   Of course the piano is new anyway, and will be 
going out bigtime because of this - even a new Yamaha.  Also, if the C5 had 
gotten some heavy playing you expect unisons to go, also.  Very fast when 
new, no matter how hard you work on setting pins/strings.  You should see the 
new lease pianos at the university!  Same thing.

Everyone has their own stories about Yamaha pianos and pitch instability - A 
teacher's two C3's, same age, side by side, one rock stable, the other 
constantly moving, even 10 years later.  Why?  I believe the soundboard 
movement is a factor (rising and falling with humidity swings, as on any 
piano but more so with a new piano).  The pinblock fit at the flange has been 
labeled the culprit, and many technicians have driven hardwood shims between 
the flange and the block, with reported success (never helped me any).  I 
understood that Yamaha was more concerned with the block/webbing fit then the 
block flange fit, so you might make sure that the pinblock screws are not too 
loose, also.  I bet Roger will have some good things to say about this.

Missed you at the Pomona Valley PTG meeting last Monday!  Hope you might make 
it sometime - we would love to hear your store tuning stories, problems and 
solutions!

Bill Shull
University of Redlands, La Sierra University, Riverside City College


In a message dated 3/17/00 9:55:34 AM Pacific Standard Time, 
charly_tuner@hotmail.com writes:

<< Hi all,
 
 Well, I just finished logging my FIRST month as a floor tuner! All's going 
 great with 65+ pianos tuned in that time. I've been averaging about 15+ 
 pianos per week , 4 days per week. About 1/3 include a pitch raise. In this 
 time I have also been asked to regulate and/or make minor repairs in some of 
 our older trade-in stock, as well as some our new "less than top of the line 
 models" which has been a real education!
 About a week ago, I tuned a new Yamaha C5, and after I was finished, I 
 played it for a while and made sure it was stable, and sought out any stray 
 unisons and so on. i left that piano in solid tune. I reported for work, as 
 usual this past Monday, only to be asked by the General Manager: "Are you 
 making sure that you 'set the pins' when you're tuning?" Now I thought this 
 was a silly question, tantamount to asking a limo driver if he "remembers to 
 disengage the emergency brake before he starts driving" but I said that I 
 did, indeed. He then informed me that the SAME C5 (which I had tuned), was 
 now sounding "terrible", so he had the other tuner (who is much more 
 experienced than I, "re-tune" it. I thought to myself.."oh boy, this does 
 NOT make me look good." But I COULD NOT understand how a piano could "go 
 out" so fast! Yes, there is NO climate/humidity control of ANY kind, but 
 still the piano should not have gone out so fast. So...YESTERDAY I walked 
 into the (cold) studio where it is on display and decided to play each note 
 on the piano; chromatically from A0 to C8..GUESS WHAT??? almost EVERY UNISON 
 WAS O U T !!!!!!!!!!!! AGAIN! I immediately brought this to the attention of 
 the manager, hoping this would prove that my tuning was/is NOT suspect 
 afterall! He was a bit surprised, but it was clear that, for whatever reason 
 that piano went out of tune only days after EACH of us had tuned it, the 
 culprit was not bad tuning, but either the piano itself not holding, or more 
 likely because of wide fluctuations in temperature and humidity.
 
 Terry
  >>