Here's another way: Suppose we are tuning a grand. I position my hammer on the tuning pin so that the shaft is pointing away from me and is parallel to the string. I usually tune in this position. Before dealing with the "sticition" string let me say that I am always making mental images in my memory of where the pin is in the pinblock. I do not let the change of the pitch of the string affect that judgment but rather only what I can feel of the pin in the pinblock. Now to deal with the overpull where the pin has moved to a sharper position but the pitch of the string has not changed; I lift straight up on the end of the shaft until the pitch of the string changes. Keep in mind that what I am doing is actually bending the pin and not moving it in the block. Next I give a jiggle to the pin to restore it to equilibrium at the same time I am delivering hard blows to the piano key. Repeat steps as necessary. Likewise you can tune a string to a lower pitch in which case you would bend the pin in the opposite direction. Michael Wathen "Mike in Cincinnati"
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