[pianotech] tuning grands left handed

[Encore Pianos]

Hi Jim:

I haven't been near my computer since Friday afternoon to get your post.
I'm really pleased with your success.  Keep playing with it!

As far as false beats, yes, it is really helpful as far as cutting to the
chase on the best compromise possible (even saying that much is overthinking
it!).  If you are moving towards the pitch point with sufficient discipline
and control you will hear the octave or unison "drop in place" in maybe 1/3
of a second.  Listening to the note any longer doesn't make your accuracy
any better, and allows the false beats to confuse and distract you, to no
greater gain.  

When I was in grad school I had a part time job working construction
building a house.  There was a stone mason there who was about 60 and
probably weighed 125 pounds soaking wet.  It was a thing of beauty to watch
him work.  His movement patterns were utterly pared down to the essential.
I could watch him pick up some pretty heavy stones and drop them in place on
the wall he was building, and virtually never have to reset them, or remove
them and replace them with another.  Made it look like the simplest thing.
For him, (quite literally) it was the simplest thing.  

Will

-----Original Message-----
From: pianotech-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf
Of Jim Ialeggio
Sent: Friday, January 25, 2013 8:27 PM
To: pianotech at ptg.org
Subject: [pianotech] tuning grands left handed

Will and Ed,

Thanks so much for the left handed posts...

I tried again today. Besides the specific grand lefty advice, the
significant lowering of the pitch 10cents or so before starting  a slow
pull, let me dial in the nicest high treble I've done. Much of the rest of
the scale was faster and easier as well.

  I've been reluctant to move the pin this much, as it seemed the less
movement the closer the pin/string stay to their equilibrium point. 
However, at least on this victim, where the pins had reasonable torque, this
seemed much faster and precise to get where I wanted to be. The placement of
the pin foot seems easier to read, as you can feel the thing moving and
still moving as you slow down and dial in the last important cent or
fraction of a cent. It also allows one to read the best possible compromise
easily when dealing with false beats.  Instead of the high treble yo-yo as
Will calls it, dropping pitch and coming back up, maybe twice makes clear
what will or will not be possible on that note. This was true both lefty and
righty.

Its a good day...I learned somethin'...yay!

Jim Ialeggio



-- 
Jim Ialeggio	
jim at grandpianosolutions.com
978 425-9026
Shirley Center, MA