Unlacquered S&S hammers:

[Richard Brekne]

JIMRPT@AOL.COM wrote:

> In a message dated 29/09/01 5:11:41 AM, rbrekne@broadpark.no writes:
>
> <<" All this might clear up for example why you report that Able hammers are
> so
> hard.. and some of us over here are scratching our heads about that as well as
> being potentially very enlighting as a whole">>
>
> Richard we need to keep in mind that all "Abels" are not created equal. Abel,
> and other makers, have a range of different weights, density, and hardness in
> their hammers and as such one can't say 'all Abels are too hard' and really
> be accurate.

>  'Hard' and 'too hard' are really meaningless concepts except to the
> individual tech and *their* 'typical' usage.  For new and redesigned boards
> generic hammers are in the mix but, as Del and Ron have said, might not be
> the preferred ones.......

Yes,,,,, well.. of course yours and Rons response are things one sort of knows
about from before... or should anyways... I guess I read something into Rons
earlier posting that perhaps wasnt there. Yet you seem to repeat a hint in that
direction in the sentence above. As I read it, Ron seemed to be saying  that the
kind of soundboards they are designing...with scale and all the other
considerations he listed included, needed significantly softer hammers in order to
be able to voice well. Dels posts seem to point in the same direction... (ie no
laquer on very soft hammers except the top 6 or 7 notes on his new designed
panels)

So... this struck a little bell of possibilities in my head about the potential
for some predictability regarding the choice of hammers not dependent on our ears
and related experience... but more based on design factors.... and I thought
well... heck... perhaps we can tell something about appropriate hammers based on
some measureable factors relating to soundboard construction... and of course I
wondered what those might be....

BUT... grin.. looks like I was barking up that old  Satswookie tree I got out back
again... Still... its was an interesting thought while it lasted... :) Thanks for
the replies Jim and Ron.

>
> Jim Bryant (FL)

--
Richard Brekne
RPT, N.P.T.F.
Bergen, Norway
mailto:rbrekne@broadpark.no