Hi Lance & the rest of the CAUT gang, This is a situation that may require some quick & dirty, but reversible tricks. I would be very hesitant to put on new parts without some break-in period before an event like this, even if they came in time. Stuff changes with new parts, & you want to be sure most of those changes have been made before the potential "Van Cliburn" gets to the crucial moment of his/her carreer. As to the voicing/juicing, necessity drove me to a quick fix which I'm sure will cause righteous indignation in some circles --- but it works and is easily reversible. Juicing always takes time & can be unpredictable. Not a good combination on short notice. I have used a can of spray laquer, actually sanding sealer, to good effect, but it must be done sparingly. Putting newsprint under the hammers & over the shanks to protect from overspray, I give the weak areas a very light coat, perhaps one quick pass on front & back of the hammers. The farther you hold the can away from the hammers, the drier the coat & less the penetration. "Crust! Crust!", I hear the cries, which causes me to follow up immediately with a bit of acetone directly on the crown of the hammer, which takes the still-wet laquer into the felt, leaving little, if any, crust to form on the strike point. The more acetone used, the deeper the laquer goes. Light applications of spray laquer & acetone flash off very quickly for almost immediate evaluation of the results. If you get the hammer wet from the laquer spray --- you've used way too much & turned them into rocks -- and you're in big trouble! But very light coats can be controlled quite easily, & can be removed with a light filing. If you bet a bit of ping from a little crust, try a bit of sugar coating to break up the surface. Try it out on another piano first, & remember that less is definitely more with this method. Okay, there it's out!! Let the stonings begin! Otto ----- Original Message ----- From: "Lance Lafargue" <lancelafargue@bellsouth.net> To: "Caut (E-mail)" <caut@ptg.org> Sent: Wednesday, July 10, 2002 11:58 AM Subject: Voicing > Hi list, > I have a situation coming up that I thought was common, but not talked about > in detail much. I will be prepping and maintaining a Steinway D next week > for a week-long competition with recitals,etc. Very good players, > often-times Van Cliburn contestants/winners (12). This piano has been > approved to get new Hammers, Shanks, flanges, damper felt, and maybe back > checks, but not in time for the competition. The hammers have been filed > many times, running out of felt with some areas weak, lots of nasty > twang/buzz. I have leveled strings, seated them and fit hammers to strings, > but I suspect most of the problem is in the hammers. The piano is from mid > 80's. These hammers have been worked on and stabbed by several techs, so I > don't know the whole history. > The Question: What are some of the common (if any) remedies needed on older > hammers in this situation. Do you sometimes have to harden again after much > needling, (weak areas) do specific needling, (noise) after this much use? > Are there common procedures followed to extend the usefulness and increase > the quality of tone in these older hammers? I would appreciate input from > the experience out there. Thanks, > > Lance Lafargue, RPT > Mandeville, LA > New Orleans Chapter, PTG > lancelafargue@bellsouth.net > 985.72P.IANO >
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