Weird Frontweights

[Delwin D Fandrich]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Bill Ballard" <yardbird@pop.vermontel.net>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: October 07, 2001 3:23 PM
Subject: Re: Weird Frontweights


>
> I seem to remember that for some interval during the last
> fifteen years, Baldwin was sending its smaller grands out with 100%
> of their leading set by pattern.
> -----------------------------------------------------

As they should be. At least in any piano purporting to be of good musical
quality.

This whole idea of 'individually weighing off keys' is one that should have
died some decades back just as soon as the concept of uniform touch was
figured out. It was a bad idea when it was conceived and it remains a bad
idea.

It is a practice of using lead to make up for variations in the
action--mostly those of irregular friction--so that static downweight is
uniform. But static downweight is a parameter of complete inconsequence to
the pianist.

The best way to set key leading is to engineer it for a specific action/key
combination and then use static downweight tests as a troubleshooting guide
to tell the factory technician where to look for problems. The idea, of
course, is that the problems should be fixed before the piano is shipped.

Del