h'chord LM

[A440A@aol.com]

Wim asks: 
<<  How much lost motion should there be on h'chords? On our French, I can 
push the key almost one-third of the way down before it activates the 
"plucker." (I know there is another word for this, but just can't of it right 
now.) >>

The plectrum plucks the string, it is held by the tongue,which is carried by 
the jack.   The plectrum should be below the string sufficiently to allow the 
damper to stop the note. Any more lost motion than that is just wasted space. 
However, the soundboards on harpsichords move up and down, carrying the 
strings with them, so if there is no lost motion in the middle of summer, you 
will find that there are notes failing to reset in the winter, when the 
strings drop down.  
   If you have adjustment screws in the bottom of the jacks, or under the 
backrail, the lost motion can be easily kept to a minimum year round.  
Otherwise, you have to suffer with extra lost motion in the summer, and the 
occasional hanging note in the winter.  
   Set the lost motion to be even on all the notes and it will be acceptable 
to most players, even if it is a little excessive, overall. 
Regards,  

Ed Foote RPT 
www.uk-piano.org/edfoote/
www.uk-piano.org/edfoote/well_tempered_piano.html