Recently I set up an action for a concert level pianist who needed a very light action (hand problems). I set it up using my standard balance weight method. After playing the action for awhile, she decided that the upper half of the instrument was too light. Fortunately, I had set this one up with assist springs (the only way to get it as light as she needed). Because they were adjustable assist springs (very smart of me, in this case) it didn't take long to change the weight. What I ended up doing was increasing the balance weight proportional to the decrease in friction associated with the progressively lighter hammers, in other words, even down weight. That, as it turned out, seems to be exactly what she wanted, though she did not express it in exactly those terms. The dynamic model would have had me increasing the weight to get even inertia throughout the piano, something we haven't discussed much yet (How's it going Stephen B.). Why do we assume that even balance weight should be the standard which translates to a lighter feel at the upper end of the piano than at the lower end. Anybody experimenting or setting up pianos with a graduated and increasing balance weight or, better yet, with uniform inertia? David Love davidlovepianos@earthlink.net
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