<html><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; ">Hi Alan,<div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>I iron new letoff punching felts, too. They have a fuzzy surface, and I think the regulation takes a while to stabilize if you don't iron it down. Which may be a source of the notion you need to set letoff at 1/8" to avoid blocking. </div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>With old felts. it depends on the condition. Sometimes there are caverns in the felt, and it's hard to get to a flat surface even with some judicious sanding. If that seems the case, I replace.</div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>My experience is that if I iron the punchings, regulating letoff goes much faster (when you make a slight turn, it actually affects the regulation the amount it should, and doesn't affect it in the opposite direction), and lasts better.</div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>BTW, I have begun applying teflon powder to the punchings after ironing, using a pipe cleaner, on the theory that there will be less actual wear of wool fibers, as opposed to packing of fibers. I also brush a wee bit of water on the punchings before ironing to make it more effective - the steam sets the fibers better than just heat.</div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>This takes lots less time to do than to write about. Probably a couple minutes tops, and saves time down the road.<br><div apple-content-edited="true"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div>Regards,</div><div>Fred Sturm</div><div>University of New Mexico</div><div><a href="mailto:fssturm@unm.edu">fssturm@unm.edu</a></div><div><br class="webkit-block-placeholder"></div></div></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"> </div><br><div><div>On Jul 25, 2008, at 6:08 AM, <a href="mailto:reggaepass@aol.com">reggaepass@aol.com</a> wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote type="cite"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Fred (& List),<br> <br> You have shared so many very helpful tips regarding grand action regulation in recent years. In his class at the Anaheim convention, Jim Busby related your method for steaming and ironing action cloth (e. g., let-off punchings and wippen support [AKA capstan] cloths). I was wondering: in the case of let-off punchings, is the result you get "as good as" replacing with new or more in the realm of not quite as good as new, but a substantial improvement, and less time consuming than replacement?<br> <br> What sayest thou, oh sage?<br> <br> Alan Eder<br> <br> </font><div id="u8CABC664E4C80BE-B18-4B23" class="aol_ad_footer"><font style="color: black; font: normal 10pt ARIAL, SAN-SERIF;"><hr style="MARGIN-TOP: 10px">The Famous, the Infamous, the Lame - in your browser. <a title="http://toolbar.aol.com/tmz/download.html?NCID=aolcmp00050000000014" href="http://toolbar.aol.com/tmz/download.html?NCID=aolcmp00050000000014" target="_blank">Get the TMZ Toolbar Now</a>!</font> </div></blockquote></div><br></div></body></html>