help!I've gotta tune a..

[harvey]

Hi Patrick,

Hmm, 11:47a in your world. I'm seeing it at 4:22p in mine. I'm not so sure
the Internet is _that_ instant, especially with my mail server off-line at
the moment for upgrading.

Since you've no doubt been on the call by now, you will have noticed that
M&H grands don't bite. Quite the contrary, they usually reward your
efforts. Depending on the vintage, you may find your "first" (in every
sense of the word) tuning is not as stable as subsequent tunings. Some
Masons left the factory with strings quite high on the hitch pins.  Some is
acceptable, even necessary, due to a high bearing bar between bridge and
hitch pins, but the strings can often be settled for better long-term
stability -- albeit at the risk of short-term instability. Others,
sometimes on the same instrument, have an inordinate amount of side-bearing
as the strings cross the bridge. And some offer quite a high/tall/excessive
counter-bearing rise between tuning pins and agraffes/capo. And on some,
the pin torque on the first 1/2 octave may feel "iffy" compared to the rest
of the piano. Some things can be corrected, others you just need to be
aware of. However, collectively these things could make you question your
own tuning ability.

Depending on the scale, you may want to opt for a different starting point
for your temperament, since some models run bichords quite high after the
break, and may affect your decision-making while tuning. Finally, you may
want to temporarily "kill" (mute) the duplexing while tuning, as
applicable, to prevent confusion in the high treble.

I hope this is the type of information you wanted, and after today, I'm
sure you'll wish you had more Mason & Hamlin's to service (I wish I had as
many as I used to).

harvey
(who prefers the 'A'lright for a little fella', and the 'B'ig'B'oomer models)

At 11:47 AM 2/16/99 -0500, you wrote:
>I've got to tune a mason & hamlin grand today and I have never tuned one
>before.  Any tips or tricks to remember?
>Patrick


Jim Harvey, RPT
Greenwood, SC
harvey@greenwood.net