Re voicing hammers

[antares]

On 14-mei-05, at 3:11, Andrew & Rebeca Anderson wrote:

> Just got a rebuilt piano from SAMA with new Ronsons hung on it.  They 
> need a little filing to get rid of cupping.  The sustain is a little 
> short in the middle, got to look over damping a little, but I think 
> that some voicing would be called for.  Are the instructions for 
> voicing Renner hammers good for voicing the Wurzen felted Ronsons?
>
> Thanks,
> Andrew

Hi Andrew,

As Dale Erwin pointed out the Ronsen and Renner hammers are quite 
different, depending also on the wishes of the individual customer of 
course.
I do not know very much about the Ronsen hammers but from what I 
learned from Dale it would seem that they are a bit softer, that is.. 
not as hard pressed and made by hand.
Both hammers, the Renner's and Ronsen's have Wurzen felt. The basic 
hammer made by Renner has A-quality Wurzen, the Wurzen felt Ray Negron 
uses is, I think, AA-Wurzen which is a finer quality and more dense 
than the A-quality.
The Renners are all done in a fully automated press and are generally 
speaking a bit harder pressed, again, depending on the wishes of 
individual customers.
All factories have different wishes for their hammers and for instance 
Schimmel wants the hammers very hard because they have a pre-voicing 
machine (I personally do not see the logic in this, but that's how it 
is). If you have to voice new Schimmel hammers by hand, you'll be 
hacking and breaking needles for hours.

On the other hand, the general principles of voicing apply to basically 
all hammers but methods differ, depending on which instrument one is 
working on.
How many times one has to put ones needles in a hammer depends on the 
hammer maker, the taste of the owner, the taste and experience of the 
technician, and of course on what the instrument has to offer.
To know about he difference in method is a crucial aspect because a 
Bechstein for instance is needled in a totally different way than a 
Steinway (made in Hamburg).
Aside from that, American technicians have developed different methods 
and are often more in favor of using hammer hardeners or steam voicing.
It is for that reason indeed much better to ask an American technician 
for advice.
The info I give here is purely to point out the difference between 
European hammers and American hammers.


friendly greetings
from
André Oorebeek

www.concertpianoservice.nl

"Where music is no harm can be"