Imported used pianos

[Roger Jolly]

At 09:23 PM 12/6/97 -0500, Les Smith wrote:
>
>
>On Sat, 6 Dec 1997, Roger Jolly wrote:
>
>> The super dry specs for our climate would give another type
>> of problem in other destinations, (e.g. Pressure ridges in sound boards
>> etc.)  
>

Greetings Les,
               The comment was intended as a loose generalization, I have
seen pianos arrive in this area that have been used in Europe for many
years, and have arrived with pressure ridges, That has pushed the board up
off the ribs, about 1/8", and giving no apparent tonal or buzzing problems.
When drying down in this region however, the crack opens up and the planks
tend to curl away from the board. I agree with your statements that the
ridges are not a problem on newer pianos and could in fact be an asset. On
a new piano with good fresh glue no problem, when dealing with 30 to 50
year old units coming from wildly different conditions I don't think the
argument would be valid. I have been convinced by Al Jeske and other
respected techs that maybe 2 years is the safer time span to see what
happens. It seems to me that an older piano needs to cycle a couple of
years just to find out where it wants to sit with regards to swelling and
shrinkage.

       On the lighter side I feel gently chastised, but respect the brain
power and experience of the techs on the list. Some times putting ones
thoughts on a page or two is not easy, so take the thread in the spirit
that it was posted.
 Sound board geometry and impedence, along with internal tension X
coefficents of expansion, rim vs board is a whole new discussion. I'd have
to do some more homework to participate.

Thanks for your comments point well taken.
Regards Roger

   
>Hi, Roger.
>
>I thoroughly enjoy your contributions to Pianotech, but someone has to
>warn you about making inflammatory statements like the one above which 
>blatantly refers to the presence of pressure ridges in a soundboard as
>a "problem". Oh-oh, you're treading on dangerous ground here. There are
>some out there who will tell you that pressure ridges-- even if they are
>present in the dead of winter, or in mid-summer, in a house that is air-
>conditioned around the clock until if feels like Siberia during the "cold
>season"--far from being a problem, or cause for concern, are actually a
> virtue and a "feature" of the very best soundboards. Further, "they"
>will tell you that this is true even if the piano is brand new, or only a
>few years old. I just wanted to help set things straight. Foolish me, I
>too, used to think that if a soundboard felt like the back spine of a
>Tyrannasaurus Rex, it indicated a problem, but fortunately "they" set
>me--along with anyone else who might question this issue--straight on
>the facts of this misconception on my part. Since I, like you, don't
>want to get on any manufacturer's you-know-what-list, I definitely
>will not mention Steinway's name here, but I think you can probably
>guess whom I mean anyway, right?
>
>All the best, but watch those inflammatory posts! :-)
>
>Les Smith 
>
>
Roger Jolly
University of Saskatchewan
Dept. of Music.