David Love queried: >The issue of how tight the balancier pinning should be has come up in the >past but not, to my recollection, been quantified. The resistance should >be greater than the hammer flange and it should not exhibit totally free >movement. An argument can be made that with tighter pinning in the >balancier you can increase the tension in the repetition spring and you >will get smoother and more predictable return without the hammer >jumping. Some years ago I seem to recall Rick Baldassin saying that he >routinely repinned the balancier on a new wippen with a pin one size >larger in order to improve repetition. Does anyone out there actually >measure the resistance on the balancier and repin for a specific target? > >David Love Dave Porritt responded: >When I'm doing a real performance regulation I like to have the balancier >pinned to somewhere between 6 - 8 grams measured at the drop screw contact >point with spring disengaged. I think it makes a lot of difference. > >dave and Topperpiano added: >I have always been pretty careful to have the rep lever pinned also >somewhere between 6-7 grams. Pinning of course if a whole "nuther" >subject but consistency is the key. If the rep is too fast then the >spring naturally gets regulated to a more weak position, and on Steinway >whippens affects the jack return ability. If the spring is too weak the >jack is slow. In my experience the only way to get better repetition is >to increase the friction of the rep pinning........TP In the not too distant past, if I bought what I considered to be good quality parts (the subject line says Renner), I would just put them on. These days, I generally check all pins, even on new parts. I find that the pinning is inconsistent, even on what I would consider good quality parts. I usually find that I'm only happy with the jack pinning, and due to inconsistency I will end up repinning some of those. I find that the repetition lever centers and the flange centers seem too loose to me, as well as being inconsistent, so I usually end up repinning many, if not most, of those. I also use the 6-8 gram number at the drop screw point. I would also add, that while adding some friction to the rep lever center seems to improve repetition, you can go overboard. A little increase in friction seems to help repetition, while a large increase doesn't seem to improve it further, and in my experience will negatively affect the checking on a soft blow. Phil Phillip Ford Piano Service and Restoration San Francisco, CA
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