<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 3.2//EN"> <HTML> <HEAD> <META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; = charset=Windows-1252"> <META NAME="Generator" CONTENT="MS Exchange Server version = 6.0.4630.0"> <TITLE>Tuning stability</TITLE> </HEAD> <BODY>  All,         Our main performance piano is a 1974 Steinway D, which to = my knowledge has never been restrung.  It has gotten increasingly = hard to tune over the last few years - a lot of false beats and very = hard to get clean unisons, much less get them stable.  I have been = able to get it there in the past, but recently the unisons just don't = seem to hold.  Is this a symptom of "worn out" = strings?  Am I losing my touch?  The piano was not used very = much until the #1 piano got worn out - but since this one became the #1 = piano about 5 years ago it has gotten extensive use.  I would = appreciate knowing why the aging/extensive use of the strings would = cause instability - if in fact it does - so I can back up that claim and = it doesn't sound like an excuse.  I suspect loose bridge pins are = part of the equation as well.          The action is, of course, on the same slippery = slope.  I'm starting to feel like Chicken Little around the = department - the contract currently covers tuning and not much more, so = it's no surprise.  I'm pushing for a half time position - for = better or worse - but in the meantime money for maintenance is = minimal.  Short of restringing, is there anything I can do to help = this situation?  Thanks for your input. Jeff Stickney, RPT University of Montana jpstickney@montanadsl.net </BODY> </HTML>