dilemma

[Fred Sturm]

Hi Wim,
	I want to second the advice you've received - to recommend using Steinway 
factory (ie, C & A Dept) techs as the outside consultant if at all 
possible. Or at least making sure the consultant is someone with a track 
record working specifically on Steinway concert instruments, preferably 
"setting them up" (doing initial prep and voicing) as well as on-going 
maintenance. I can see a situation where a well-meaning, pretty 
weel-skilled tech comes in and decides he needs to saturate the hammers in 
lacquer once or twice, manages to get the piano sounding acceptable, and 
then, weeks later, you end up with hammers a needle can't penetrate.
	My take (obviously from a distance) is that probably all that's needed is 
some judicious filing/shaping, perhaps a mild application of acetone to 
crowns to draw solids to the surface and give added zing, perhaps judicious 
application (very focused/targeted and very shallow) of mild keytop to 
crowns where needed. At any rate, the bottom line is that a tech with lots 
of specific experience is more likely to get to the root of the perceived 
problem, and not cause you more problems down the road.
	Whoever does end up coming, I'd be sure to keep a close eye on exactly 
what is done, so you have a good idea what you will be dealing with, and so 
you can learn from the results. Wouldn't be a bad idea to document what is 
done (just write down a description in your daily log or whatever).
	Just another couple cents to stick in your back pocket.
Regards,
Fred Sturm
University of New Mexico