stringing

[Avery Todd]

List,

Since I got permission to post it, below is the response I got from Joel R,
after I mentioned him and Pris' method of stringing. This seems like a good
post to respond to it. :-)

At 07:24 AM 08/05/02 -0400, you wrote:
>List,
>I'm a "wind the coil on the pin then drive the pin" stringer.  I've toyed
>with the driving in the pins first but I like the advantage of having one
>side of the pin completely accessible for coil lift and the sorts. I'm very
>anal on nice coils and beckets which align beautifully. Every advantage I
>can get to meet my needs I'll do.
>That being said, I'm wondering if any out there would/could comment on the
>use of an air impact driver to wind the strings onto the coil ( while in the
>block).  I'm thinking that between a palm nailer and impact driver,
>stringing could become  a lot less physical.
>Tom Servinsky, RPT

============================================================================ 
====
You are 100% correct; that's how we each do it. I learned factory stringing at
Bechstein in Berlin and Pris did factory stringing at the Pfeiffer factory in
Stuttgart, where each of us respectively did the pianos for our Masters 
Diplomas.
Pris's way avoids picking the hammer (not tuning hammer, regular hammer) up 
for
each string; you put the tuning pins in at a pre-determined height all at 
once.
After the coils are made, the tuning pin is just about at the correct end 
height.
The disadvantage to me is that you have to keep lots of tension on the wire,
using your fingers, to get decent coils on the tuning pins when the pins are
already in the block. The way I do it, using a T-hammer on each tuning pin,
allows me to make nice coils while holding the pin up in front of me. I 
stand a
bit higher over the piano than Pris does and it is easier for me to do it that
way without constantly bending down. It's just a preference.

She really is fast at it (factory work helps you to develop fast and good
techniques) and probably not comparable to the technicians to which David
Koelzer refers. ("The stringers I personally know who use the same technique
as Priscilla take several hours longer...")

(David I. writes "Wouldn't it be nice to have a air driven wrench.").......
which prompts me to say that with "my" method, I drive the tuning pin in just
enough to keep some tension on the wire, then when the whole section is done
(or even all the plain wires, if you feel confident), I can use an air hammer
with a special tip to drive all the pins down to very close to the end height.

It's noisy, but fast -- yes, I wear ear plugs -- and fun...... another
technique learned at Bechstein.