CRESCENDO GRAND PUNCHINGS

[David C. Stanwood]

Hi All,

I'm always very interested when the discussion turns towards felt.  Being married to a feltmaker has given me a deeper insight into the science and nature of wool felts.   I've devoted years to the studying felt making felt and experimenting with felt.  Many of you may remember many of the PTG classes I used to give on the science of felt and how I promoted in the 1980's a return to cold pressed hammers and the use of finer quality fiber in piano hammers.   I'm excited to see a renewed interest in improving fiber quality and production methods for piano hammers.  I love the cold pressed Wurzen felt hammers made by Ronson.  However.......

I'm here in Holland at the shop of Frans Pietjouw and I'm looking very skeptically at one of these conical punchings.  I'm struck by the fact that they are made from presssed felt and not woven felt.   Woven felt is the technical choice for high impact areas because it greatly reduces compaction of the felt over time.   That is why it is ALWAYS used for back rail cloth, balance rail, and for front rail punchings.  

I would never recommend the use of this type of felt on the front rail because it is a high impact area.  Using pressed felt in this area is technically the wrong choice.  Over time, pressed felt will compact more quickly than woven felt causing dimensional changes which will effect regulation and it will get harder faster than woven felt when exposed to repeated high impact.

I have also just tried out these punchings in a very beautiful vintage Steinway A which is in the shop down stairs and I notice no difference whatsoever in sound when changing from original new Steinway punchings to the conical punchings.  I know that a sample of one means nothing statistically and this is only one example but there it is.

David Stanwood