Dear list, Why is this list, which so many of us look to for technical information, piano related problems, solutions, etc. getting absolutely BOGGED down with trivia? PLEASE! let the piano tech list be a "tech" list. There are many other places that this mindless chit-chat can have a happy home. If you are not posting something to do with pianos, please go elsewhere. If your post doesn't contain something that is useful to the list, you are being counter-productive. If it is socializing that you need, take it to the MPT list, that is what it is for. Ah! echos from the sixties, "If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem". So, to that end, I have just learned some useful information. Many of us have had to deal with pinning problems in the newer Steinway pianos. The problems are usually pins that are tightening up, creating a lot of friction. This seems to be mostly in the hammer pinning, though jacks are in there, too. I was told, on good authority, that the problem stemmed from the factory attempting to use larger pins, and treating the cloth with more "reducer" or "sizing solution" to arrive at the correct friction. The felt was thus made much denser in order to shrink it enough. This worked until there was exposure to humidity,and then the overly compacted cloth began to swell, creating the problems. On factory advice, I used the alcohol treatment on a row of tight hammer flanges, and the next day, there was a tremendous amount of erratic pinning. Many of the pins were loose enough to allow the hammers to visibly move (laterally) when resting on a long screwdriver that was wiggled side to side. As Roger might say, "the tone was gone". Jolly well right! The only real fix that I found was to repin, and to pin at the loose end of the scale, at that. ( I use the swing test, feeling that the heavier hammer can perform well with slightly more friction in the pinning.) I am told that the pinning now is being done with smaller pins, and more resilience left in the bushing cloth. Have others noticed any difference? Regards, Ed Foote RPT
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