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Ed -<br><br>
No smiley faces, so I'm not sure if you're serious. In case you
are, here's what I think:<br><br>
At 06:02 PM 4/8/2004 -0400, you wrote:<br>
<blockquote type=cite class=cite cite>Fred wrote:<br>
> The real thrust of my musing was to consider<br>
> "going with the flow" in real world situations, where
recapping or bridge<br>
> replacement aren't going to happen (at the particular moment).
"Curvature<br>
> happens." Bridge tops crush at both sides more than on top.
This is what we find<br>
> most often in the field.<br>
and<br>
> BTW, if anyone reading really believes that
light tapping doesn't crush<br>
bridge<br>
> tops, take a piece of wire, lay it on a bit of exposed bridge top
(above C8, eg)<br>
> and give it a tap with your brass rod. Even with your hammer shank.
Give the<br>
> amount of tap that has "given focus to the tone,"
"allowed you to see the string<br>
> drop," "dropped pitch 4 cents," whatever. Then look
at that bridge top. I<br>
> guarantee you'll see a little groove where none was
before.<br><br>
So, this suggests we should be tapping the string in the
middle!<br><br>
Not near the termination points, but along the arc in the center of the
bridge<br>
cap.</blockquote><br>
<font color="#000080">The question again is, "Why are you
tapping?". What are you trying to accomplish? If there IS some
benefit to be gained, even temporarily, it will be had by tapping either
pin or in front of the bridge, not on the bridge surface. If there
is some negative front bearing, tapping on the bridge string
segment will not seat the string. The question still remains
whether you want, or need to seat it, against its natural inclination to
form a straight line. If you think seating improves the tone, what's the
cause?<br><br>
<br>
</font><blockquote type=cite class=cite cite>If humidity change can crush
the wood at the edges to make the curved string<br>
groove, then tapping forcefully in the middle should be able to deepen
the groove<br>
in the middle so that the string is not lifted away from the termination
points at<br>
the edges.</blockquote><br>
<font color="#000080">I don't think you're visualizing the real
configuration, but apart from that, if you <b>could</b>, in fact achieve
string seating like that, what would you be doing to your
downbearing? <br><br>
<br>
</font><blockquote type=cite class=cite cite>Would we then reach a point
of stability as the crushed wood becomes harder, or<br>
would we just be starting the process over again, so that the next rise
in<br>
humidity would push the edge grooves still
deeper?</blockquote><br>
<font color="#000080">I am also curious whether the crushing process
increases the resistance to further deformation.<br><br>
</font><blockquote type=cite class=cite cite>Let's hurry up and get this
figured out, I'll be restringing the next piano in<br>
about 2 weeks!<br><br>
Ed Sutton</blockquote><br><br>
E<font color="#000080">d -<br><br>
Great opportunity for some documentation. Are you willing to do
it? Measuring all the downbearing (front, rear, net, bridge
profile)? One question I would have would be how much downward
movement you would observe in the seating process, once the piano is
under tension. In other words, what would prevent the strings from
seating themselves, at least in a piano with positive front and rear
bearing?<br><br>
<br>
</font>David Skolnik<br><br>
<br>
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