pitch raising

[jim krentzel]

Les,
I usually don't wade into topics like this, but after reading a few of the
responses that you have received, I'll give you a different point of view.
First of all, I think that a piano can be pitch raised and tuned to A-440
all within the same day.  All of the added pressures on the piano are
occuring as the piano is being pitch raised.  A wait of 2 or 3 weeks has no
effect on that.  I would have 7 or 8 beats overshoot be the maximim, no
matter how flat the piano is.  Anything more that this is putting too much
pull on the strings. If I'm starting with a piano that is 1/2 step flat, an
overshoot of 9 or 10 beats would be best to end up with a piano close to
440, but since 9 or 10 beats overshoot is more than I think is good for the
piano, I'd begin with 7 beats overshoot.  This first pass would take about
20 minutes and leave me with a piano at about A-435.  The second pitch raise
would also take about 20 minutes with an overshoot of about 2 bps.  At the
end of the second pitch raise, the piano should be close to 440, and is
ready for the final tuning.  If the final tuning takes an hour to
accomplish, you would be in the customers home a total of a little under 2
hours, and you would leave a piano that is as stable as any other.  I
realize there are many points of view on this subject, but this method has
worked for me for many years. 
Jim Krentzel

At 08:18 PM 7/15/00 -0500, you wrote:
>I'd like to get some feedback on pitch raising, aural style.
>	My teacher says he can do a 100 cent pitch raise, and make it "stick" on
>the second pass.  Another tech, local, says "NO" to that notion, and says
>one should tell the customer "It will take three tunings, two weeks
>apart", to get it stabilized.  My question is regarding the
>"stretchiness" of strings on ordinary pianos needing PR's of 50 cents or
>more, and better pianos which need less adjustment, but may not have been
>tuned in two-four years.  I'd be most appreciative of the experience of
>others.
>les bartlett
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