[CAUT] impact hammer, Wurlitzer piano

[Fred Sturm]

On 11/10/05 10:42 PM, "Leslie Bartlett" <l-bartlett@sbcglobal.net> wrote:

> 
> I tuned the tightest "pin block" I have ever seen today. It was so bad that
> when I finished my muscles were just beginning to cramp....    It was a 1930
> Wurlitzer baby grand, and when I put the hammer on the first pin I was
> simply shocked. No Baldwin was ever this tight............   It was quite by
> accident that I discovered there was no pinblock, but this was using the
> plate as the block. The tuning pins were slotted from the bottom, each
> having a wedge driven into the slot, much like a wedge is driven into the
> handle of a "regular hammer" to hold the handle on by the outward pressure
> caused by the wood.   Does anyone on the list know the history of this
> notion, how it started, why it ended.  It was utterly fascinating to tune.
> Couple loose pins, I simply tapped the wedge a bit tighter.  There would be
> no wearing out, though it was tough on the muscles.........
> 
> thanks for any info.
> les bartlett
> 
> _______________________________________________
> caut list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives
> 
Yep, those are "interesting" all right. A bear to get through a tuning, a
real "trick" to get fine adjustment. I've got one in my client base. Lovely
client, someone I like a lot, so I don't complain too much.
    Wurlitzer was very inventive and progressive for a period of time, mid
20th century. I suspect this particular invention was abandoned largely
because it was so expensive to manufacture. I have trouble visualizing how a
stringer could manage to get a loop on a pin, get the pin in place, and get
the wedge into the slot in the bottom of the pin. Must have had a jig of
some sort, but I haven't been able to visualize one that would work
efficiently. Also, it would be a trick to get the wedge inserted with just
the right force to make it tight enough but not too tight (I think they
erred on the side of too tight).
Regards,
Fred Sturm
University of New Mexico