compression vs rib crowning

[Brian Trout]

Hi Terry,

It's been a long time since Brandon University, but if I remember right, 
Andre made his boards with some crown cut into the ribs and the rest of the 
crown coming from soundboard panel compression.  I don't think he ever gave 
exact numbers, at least not at the seminar we were at.  (If I had to take a 
guess, I'd probably guess maybe somewhere around an 80' radius, but that's 
pure speculation, nothing more.)

That being said, I think I'd have to agree that he's not exatly 
"duplicating" what was there but may be ending up with a product that he 
believes is an acceptable replacement.

Whether Andre changes his setup for different pianos I don't know if he 
himself would tell you.

I say if you're going to change it at all, and anything less than sending it 
back to S&S's restorations department would be 'changing' it, you might as 
well do it to the best of your ability.  And if the best of your ability is 
radically different than original Steinway specs, so be it.  Of course that 
is predicated on your customer's desire and approval and also their 
financing.

Regardless of whether you can build Ferrari engines, some people will never 
want more than the Chevy Chevette engine... 'cause that's what was in it 
when it was built.  Different ears will perceive things differently.  What 
some would call a sweet, pure, 100 year old Steinway soundboard tone, others 
might call thin, nasal and lacking body of tone.  I won't go so far as to 
say either group is wrong.  But I know what my ears tell me I like.  (And 
it's not the old one...)

To each his own.

Just my opinion.

Brian T.







>From: "Farrell" <mfarrel2@tampabay.rr.com>
>Reply-To: Pianotech <pianotech@ptg.org>
>To: "Pianotech" <pianotech@ptg.org>
>Subject: Re: compression vs rib crowning
>Date: Mon, 10 Mar 2003 23:32:03 -0500
>
>So are you saying that Andre builds his boards just like Steinway? And what 
>does he do when he gets an order for an 1892 Knabe soundboard, or an A. B. 
>Chase, or a Chickering, a Mason & Hamlin, a Decker Bros., etc. Does 
>everyone make soundboards exactly the same? How does he know what the 
>radius cut into each rib was originally? Or the MC at the time of rib/panel 
>glue-up? I'm not picking on Andre, but anyone that "duplicates" old 
>soundboards. I say you can't do it unless you know exactly what the radius 
>of each rib was, the radius of any mold used during rib/panel glue-up, and 
>the MC of the panel at rib/panel glue-up. Perhaps for Steinway, one can 
>duplicate a board as this stuff I think is known. But I really don't think 
>any of that is known about piano companies that went out of business 100 
>years ago.
>
>So. How does Andre Bolduc or anyone else "duplicate" those boards? I say 
>that they redesign them while keeping the appearance of the originals.
>
>Terry Farrell


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