pull up to pitch or leave it there?

[Stephen Airy]

((note: for some reason on the computer I'm using right now, I can't send 
mail to pianotech with the webmail client from my normal pianotech email 
address (stephenairy@fastmail.fm), but it works fine from the other 
computer, which I don't have access to at this time.  Although I am sending 
this from a different email address, I am NOT changing my address - it's 
still stephenairy@fastmail.fm - I'm just using this one cause the other 
address is having problems on my local computer and I can't figure out why 
for the life of me it's doing what it's doing!))


When you're tuning an older piano, what are some things you consider when 
deciding whether or not to attempt to pull the piano up to concert pitch or 
to leave it where it is?  (assuming the piano is no more than 50 cents (1/4 
step) flat)
I just tuned my cousin's Geo. Steck upright (I'd say approx. 52" - didn't 
measure it...) today.  The serial # looked like it was in the 13000s or 
15000s - I don't remember - might have been 13543 or 13513 - but I think the 
4th and 5th digits were 43, and first was definitely 1.
Anyway.. this piano looked to be built in the 1880s or 1890s.  It had 88 
keys, a 3/4 plate, was overstrung with an underdamper action.  Piano was 
approx. 40 cents flat, and it looked like several strings in the mid to high 
treble had been replaced not long before.  Considering the replaced strings 
and the 3/4 plate, I tuned it where it was.  The action definitely needs 
some work, and the piano could use restringing (unichords 1-10, bichords 
11-27 (break between 26 and 27), and wrapped trichords 28-31 were quite dead 
sounding, and a lot of plain steel strings up to middle C seemed to be 
somewhat rusty, not to mention the strings in the upper treble that had been 
replaced.  Oh,  this piano had square shaped agraffe-like termination points 
throughout the entire piano on the upper termination points.
How do you determine whether or not to pull a piano up to pitch?



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