hammers

[Roger Jolly]

Hi Jim,
          A clear description of hammer weight, close to meaningless it
todays world, I would like to see the suppliers quoting the physical weight
of No's,1,44 and 88, this would have some relevance to touch weight at
least. In the old days the weight of the sheet ment something, hammer
presses were the cold press type so the main variable was the pressure used
on the cauls. Today we add quite a bit of heat due to the use of thermo
setting glues, heat and time in the press has altered the density of the
felt dramtically.
Warm regards Roger




>David;
> From Merles book.....
>Hammer weight--A hammer is made from a sheet of felt approximately 36.5wide
>,by 38.5 to 42 inches in length. The weight of the sheet gives the weight
>ascribed to the individual hammer, e.g., a hammer bearing the weight
number of
>15 lbs. has been cut from a sheet of felt weighing that many pounds; or the
>whole set may carry that number...........
>
>   Of course numerous sets may be cut from one sheet and no individual set
>weighs 15 lbs.  :-)  14, 15, or 16 lbs gives you 'some' idea of a hammers
>characteristics but it is not quite that easy I'm afraid.  Other factors such
>as felt density, cold press, hot press, reinforced, non reinforced, etc.,
>effect the tonal quality/possibilities of any individual hammer and one can't
>just say, for instance, that a 16 lb hammer "should" be used on grands
above 6
>foot in length. There are many generalities that may be stated but what holds
>true for, say a hammer from Renner, will not needfully hold true with a
hammer
>from Issac or Ronson.
>
> This subject gets much more confusing as you learn more and more but it is
>worth the effort to study...........unfortunately experience is what it will
>boil down too :-(
>Hope this helps somewhat.
> Jim Bryant (FL)
>
Roger Jolly
Baldwin Yamaha Piano Centre
Saskatoon and Regina
Saskatchewan, Canada.
306-665-0213
Fax 652-0505