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<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT
color=#000080>Alan,</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT color=#000080>I see what =
you're
getting at. I don't know of any simple answer to troubleshooting =
the
friction other than removing parts and testing for friction. You =
can do
general troubleshooting by swinging the action to find the loosest and =
tightest
parts, and you can measure down and upweight to get general friction =
levels, but
removing parts and feeling the softness of the bushing and checking the =
friction
with a spring gauge are really the definitive way to know what's
up.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT color=#000080>Here are =
some pertinent
thoughts, though I'm not sure I can give you any real helpful procedures =
to
follow:</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT color=#000080>- Too much =
friction
causes a dull tone with poor projection and sometimes poor =
sustain. It
affects the action performance as well, of course.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT color=#000080>- Too little =
friction
causes no problems in tone at all <U>in and of itself</U>. It is =
only
because we are using cloth bushings that low friction results in poor =
tone
because the hammer is not controlled in its motion well enough. =
Please
understand me here - if you have a very, very firm bushing that =
will pin
with low friction and still have excellent side control, the tone should =
be
fine. It is the limitation of using a soft bushing material that =
forces us
to pin with sufficient friction to get the control we need. It is =
not the
friction itself which gives good tone - it is the firmness of the
bushing.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT color=#000080>- Teflon =
bushings gave
excellent tone with 0 friction, but they didn't last long enough. =
They
were an excellent idea, but the bushing material was not nearly as =
durable as
good bushing cloth, so it deformed with use and got =
noisy.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT color=#000080>- Poor =
quality cloth
forces us to use more friction in the center to get the controlled =
motion of the
hammer. I used to work on some grand pianos in the 80s that came =
from the
factory with very poor, spongy cloth in the hammer centers. I =
would
re-size the bushings with water and alcohol, then repin from the factory =
#19
pins up to #20 1/2 pins. This made thinner, firmer bushings, =
allowed
pinning at about 2 - 4 grams friction, and resulted in dramatically =
improved
tone. These pianos were dull and lifeless from the factory with 6 =
to 10
grams friction in the soft hammer centers, and a firm fit with lower =
friction
really made them sing.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT color=#000080>So, when =
evaluating
friction levels in a given piano, I judge by sound and by feel of the =
parts, and
decide how to work with them. Now I work mostly with Kawai parts, =
and the
bushings are very firm with mostly excellent control of the =
hammer. In dry
climates they sometimes get too thin in tone because the hammer center =
bushings
dry out and become too loose, and repinning them to fit the climate =
brings the
power back up in the tone. I find that if I pin for good solid
tone in the mid treble, that same friction level is great for =
the
whole piano.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT color=#000080>Don
Mannino</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578500117-22102003><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE dir=ltr
style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000080 2px =
solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader lang=en-us dir=ltr =
align=left><FONT
face=Tahoma size=2>-----Original Message-----<BR><B>From:</B> Alan =
McCoy
[mailto:amccoy@mail.ewu.edu] <BR><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, October 22, =
2003 9:30
AM<BR><B>To:</B> College and University Technicians<BR><B>Subject:</B> =
RE:
Pinning and Tone<BR><BR></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=861432016-22102003><FONT face=Garamond =
color=#800000>Thanks
Don,</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=861432016-22102003><FONT face=Garamond
color=#800000></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=861432016-22102003><FONT face=Garamond =
color=#800000>In part
what I am trying to get at here is distinguishing between friction and =
firmness in the bushing. Can you hear the tonal difference between a =
note that
has a friction problem vs one that has a firmness =
problem?</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=861432016-22102003><FONT face=Garamond
color=#800000></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=861432016-22102003><FONT face=Garamond =
color=#800000>My
normal procedure in reconditioning an action includes checking action =
center
friction, duh, and I check side to side play gang-style checking for =
winking
hammers, but I'm looking around to see if someone has figured out a =
way to
systematically check for both friction and firmness in an efficient =
way (ie
without painstakingly removing every flange!!)</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=861432016-22102003><FONT face=Garamond
color=#800000></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=861432016-22102003><FONT face=Garamond
color=#800000>Alan</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=861432016-22102003><FONT face=Garamond
color=#800000></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=861432016-22102003><FONT face=Garamond =
color=#800000>PS Bob,
Sending them to Marcia is cheating! :-) Hope things are =
great down
there in Modesto.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE dir=ltr
style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #800000 2px =
solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader dir=ltr align=left><FONT =
face=Tahoma
size=2>-----Original Message-----<BR><B>From:</B> =
caut-bounces@ptg.org
[mailto:caut-bounces@ptg.org]<B>On Behalf Of </B>Don =
Mannino<BR><B>Sent:</B>
Wednesday, October 22, 2003 8:11 AM<BR><B>To:</B>
caut@ptg.org<BR><B>Subject:</B> FW: Pinning and =
Tone<BR><BR></FONT></DIV>
<DIV>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader lang=en-us dir=ltr =
align=left><FONT
face=Tahoma size=2></FONT></DIV><SPAN =
class=265252321-21102003><FONT
color=#000080>Alan,</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=265252321-21102003><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=265252321-21102003><FONT color=#000080>The tone =
of the
piano can be the best gauge, as poor pinning has a pretty =
distinctive sound
to it. I would describe it as a thin and weak tone. =
Checking the
friction level in a thin sounding note, repinning it, and listening =
will
tell you a lot.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=265252321-21102003><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=265252321-21102003><FONT =
color=#000080>Experience is the
best teacher here. I don't have a specification to tell you, =
except
firm enough by feel and a good solid tone by ear. I =
suppose the
engineers could give you a spec, though. X amount of =
deflection with Y
amount of force applied Z distance from the pin.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=265252321-21102003><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=265252321-21102003><FONT color=#000080>Don
Mannino</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=265252321-21102003><FONT
=
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></BLOCKQUOTE></BOD=
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