[pianotech] Industrial Strength Nightmare!

[Paul McCloud]

Hi, Alan:
    Be glad the tuning pins didn't shear off.  Count your blessings.
    Paul McCloud
    San Diego 
    (Veteran of Belarus pso's- got the shirt- been there, broke that)


----- Original Message ----- 
From: Alan Barnard 
To: pianotech at ptg.org
Sent: 07/07/2010 2:12:16 PM 
Subject: [pianotech] Industrial Strength Nightmare!


Asked to tune a Schubert (made in Belarus) piano. It is about 20 years old and hadn't been tuned in 3 or 4 years. Was about 30 cents flat.
I was pitch-raising the bass using Tunelab, A0 on up ... got to the top of the bass bridge, last two notes, and all four strings broke at the upper termination pins - POW, BANG, SNAP, BOOM. No visible rust or other obvious problems.

These are the first strings to break under my lever in about 3 years and the last ones that did were in 80+ year old beaters full of rust. So you can imagine I was spooked, to say the least.

Any thoughts at all?  Owner had had it tuned several times over the years without any strings breaking. Anything about strings from that part of the world?

 
"Every difficulty slurred over will be a ghost to disturb your repose later on."  Frederic Chopin
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