Flag poling Petrof pins?

[Richard Brekne]

Hi there Robert.

Sounds familiar to me. Petrof tuning pins and blocks have
kind of a funny feel to them and have always been pretty
inconsistant.... and on the loose side. I replaced a split
plank a couple years back with some standard 30 ply material
and was appaled at what I took out. This was on a 6 footer
to be sure but still. The block was rather poorly fit as
well, tho tuning pin bushings are supposed to allow for
this.

Stability has always been a problem with Petrofs in my
experience, but the installation of a standard DC unit has
helped IMMENSLY !!! with the two we have at the University.
One is a 220 or so, and the other is a full sized concert. 

High coils is also typical Petrof, and I just bang em in.
This makes tuning easier, tho I havent experienced that it
makes much difference to stability issues. 

I have a wholllle lot of Petrof tunings under my belt. 

Ricb


>      Hello,
> 
>      I would like to inquire if anyone else has
>      observed excessive flag poling of Petrof tuning
>      pins.  The piano: Model III.  The place:
>      Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas.  The piano is
>      heavily used for moderate Jazz, (6-12 hours a
>      day), in a lounge.  The piano is tuned twice per
>      week.
> 
>      Stability seems to be a problem.  This piano has
>      an open faced pin block which means that the
>      pins stand upright and do not lean back as in a
>      conventional design.  The coils stand 1/4" -
>      3/8" above the block.  The hypothesis is that
>      the pins may be bending excessively due to the
>      high coils, making setting the pins more
>      difficult.
> 
>      A possible cure would be to simply set the pins
>      deeper into the block,  although this is
>      speculative theory, (particularly since this is
>      how it was designed).  Additionally this would
>      add friction to the pins which may contribute or
>      create a new problem.
> 
>      Anyone experienced with this piano and had
>      similar problems?  If so what solution?
>      ------------------------------
> 
>      Rob Goodale, RPT
>