Hi, Keith! I think this technique was first advocated by "Bart" Christofori almost 300 years ago and has more or less been SOP ever since! It is especially effective on older, neglected instruments where you can see a substantial amount of corrosion on the strings, pins, pressure bar (upright), capo bar, agraffes, and even bridge pins. As you first lower the tension on the string. you can often hear a slight "tick" as it breaks free from the bearing point. I have no doubt at all that this technique has saved me numerous broken strings over the years. Note that I still employ this technique on older, neglected instruments, even though the first thing I do is to apply a small amount of a high-quality lubricant like Protek, to those same bearing points. All I can say is that the technique has worked for me. A few years ago I ran into real piece if "bad news" (thanks to a refferal) that was 700(!) cents flat and hadn't been tuned in over forty years. Although it took me more than one session, by employing the above technique, I eventually got the piano back to a stable A-440 without breaking a single string. Hey, That even surprised ME! When I finished up and the lady paid me, she told me "that the piano had never sounded so good" and that she would be sure to call me again "Next time". As I walked out her front door, I thought to myself "Lady, I'm probably not even going to be ALIVE another forty years from now"! Les Smith lessmith@buffnet.net On Tue, 8 Apr 1997, Keith A. McGavern wrote: > >On the initial pitch raise do you break the tuning pin flat first before > >you go up in pitch? This simple procedure reduced my string breakage on > >pitch raises by about 80%... > > > >Warren D. Fisher > > Dear List, > > Thank you Warren, for mentioning this procedure, as it has stirred memories. > > I have heard this method mentioned many times in my years of tuning pianos, > tuning the pin flat before going up in pitch as a means of reducing string > breakage. I was wondering if any others also have personal experience or > knowledge concerning this procedure as really being beneficial, or is this > possibly one of those proverbial "wives' tales" handed down through the > ages. Don't have a clue myself. > > Sincerely, > > Keith A. McGavern > kam544@ionet.net > Registered Piano Technician > Oklahoma Chapter 731 > Piano Technicians Guild > Oklahoma Baptist University > Shawnee, Oklahoma, USA > > >
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