[CAUT] Baldwin SD

[Jim Busby]

Hi Avery,

What's the other end look like? Downbearing, bridge, etc.?
Did you buy it yet?

Jim busby BYU

-----Original Message-----
From: caut-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:caut-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf Of
Avery Todd
Sent: Saturday, April 01, 2006 8:09 AM
To: caut at ptg.org
Subject: [CAUT] Baldwin SD

List,

I put this on the pianotech list Saturday PM but so far have only had 
1 response. I also want to pick anyone's brain on this list who might 
have knowledge of this problem and/or the best way to correct it.
Thanks.

Avery Todd
University of Houston


Do any of you have any direct experience with an SD-6 #118127 (1952 I 
was told)? My atlas is
at the university.

Today, I went to look at one for sale at a store at a good price. For 
several years, we've been
needing one to put into our large orchestra/band rehearsal hall to 
avoid having to move one into there from our major performance hall 
for rehearsals of big concertos.

It's been refinished and had new hammers (Renner Blues, I think) 
installed on the old shanks.
Graphited knuckles, etc. Anyway, I'm not worried about all that. 
That, I can handle.

My question is, there is a tone problem in the middle agraffe 
section. (It's so hard to describe sounds in an e-mail.) The dealer 
kept saying he thought it was primarily a hammer fitting/string 
leveling problem. Yes, there is some of that that needs to be done. 
But I believe it's a problem in the agraffes themselves. This isn't a 
hammer fitting type of sound. It's a distorted/zinging kind of sound. 
Like a termination problem or something not seated well. There are 
some agraffes that are not parallel to the strings and I first 
thought that was the problem. But there are also some with that same 
sound where the agraffes are lined up correctly. I'm assuming it 
probably came that way from the factory. And it's only in that one 
section. I didn't have my tools with me because I didn't expect 
anything like that to come up, so I couldn't even experiment a 
little. You don't really notice it all that much when just normally 
playing it. Just when playing each note individually. Especially with 
a little power.

The piano has never been restrung. Even still has the aluminum 
wrapped type upper bass strings. But it sounds great. A BIG bass 
sound! Decent sustain. The only real problem is in that one area. 
Have any of you run across this? Can the agraffes be straightened a 
little without removing the strings? My semi-educated guess is that 
that section is going to have to be restrung with new agraffes. Or at 
least, "redone" agraffes. They did buff the tops of them, though. :-)

This is pre-accujust hitch pins and from the first treble break down, 
has one single-tie string on each unison. The tech at the store said 
they could correct the problem, which I would prefer to have done 
before we buy it but I was wondering if any of you had any ideas? The 
dealer said he'd pay me to do the regulation & voicing. Which it needs.

Am I on the right track about the agraffes? Thanks.