<!doctype html public "-//W3C//DTD W3 HTML//EN"> <html><head><style type="text/css"></style><title>Re: buffing aggraffes?</title></head><body> <div>Hello all,</div> <div><br></div> <div>Further to the contributions so far, I would agree with Ed that there is a risk with re-installing  fatigued agraffes. However, I have found that new agraffes are just as likely to have poor string hole profiles, so we re-cut the string holes even with new agraffes<font color="#0000FF"> (we use a small mill/drill for good depth stop control of the specially profiled centre drill)</font>. The last new set we installed un-cut was 1994 - a set for a Steinway D. At the time, I had been recutting original agraffes for some years but was never satisfied that they were perfect. There always seemed to be one or two which remained noisy. So I decided to use a new set for the D I was rebuilding at the time. The result was far noisier than the previously re-cut originals.</div> <div><br></div> <div>Following this disastrous outcome, I cut a couple of the surplus new agraffes in half through the string holes to inspect the profile. I was shocked to find that some had parallel sections through the string holes and other irregularities that I didn't care for. We've been re-cutting all new agraffes ever since.</div> <div><br></div> <div>In some cases we still retain the original agraffes when rebuilding. The early style Kawai KG agraffes were a much better design than the later offerings, which are much less robust with a larger minor diameter in the string holes. The smaller string holes seem to be less noisy, other things being equal.</div> <div><br></div> <div>Ron O.</div> <x-sigsep><pre>-- </pre></x-sigsep> <div >           <span ></span>      OVERS PIANOS<br>        Grand Piano Manufacturers<br> _____________________________<br> <br> Web:    http://overspianos.com.au<br> Email:  mailto:ron@overspianos.com.au<br> _____________________________</div> </body> </html>