[CAUT] Schwander balancier pinning

[Susan Kline]

>Mason & Hamlin are also recommending a much tighter pinning here 
>than is typically accepted.

I concur. I don't like the very free pinning I usually find on
performance grands. They get heavy use, so that the pinning gets
freer yet, which makes the action harder to control, and has a
bad effect on the tone. JMO.

I think that pinning which starts out quite loose probably has
two causes: manufacturers are afraid the pianos will end up in
damp climates and seize up, which they are more afraid of than
that will end up in dry climates and be too loose; and people
"treat a number" by wanting very low down weights, though
they sometimes give up other benefits to get them.

What you people with dry winters and muggy hot summers can
do about pinning, I don't know ... but I'm glad that I don't
have the problem here. I don't see any good answer to the
seasonal shifts.

Susan Kline
OSU, Newport Arts Center