String rollers

[Tom Servinsky]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Graeme Harvey" <gharvey@netsource.co.nz>
To: "Pianotech@Ptg.Org" <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Thursday, October 04, 2001 4:45 PM
Subject: String rollers


> Greetings all,
>
> How many among us use the string roller tools for stretching and settling
> new strings in a piano?
> I have one but rarely use it and I was reminded of it a few days ago when
> visiting a local retired tech. (Yes he gave me some piano materials he no
> longer required)
> He was saying that in his time (UK trained some years back now) it was
usual
> to really lay into the new wire with a string roller to remove as much
> stretch as possible. I tend to chip up daily for a couple of weeks and
then
> pound in a few tunings with the action in. I've noticed that the strings
> settle reasonably well this way without the possibility of over stretching
> the wire if that is possible.
>
> Any thoughts here?
>
> Regards,
>
> Graeme Harvey
> New Plymouth
> New Zealand
>


You could avoid much extra time in doing repeated chip tunings by listening
to the old timer and rolling the strings.  Rolling is simply messaging the
string to remove much of the slack out of the new string. Or you could do
daily chip tunings and utilize much additional time. The bottom line is to
get the piano stabilized as best as possible so that pitch can be somewhat
maintained. IMHO, repeated chip tunings is cutting the dog's tail off and 1"
at a time.
How about string leveling and seating around the termination  points? Are
you counting on the chip tunings to eventually secure those points as well?
Aside from rolling the strings, securing all termination points will allow
the piano settle into a stabilized situation more quickly than doing
repeated chip tunings.
Tom Servinsky,RPT