test blows

[cswearingen@daigger.com]

Hi Don,

No, there is no back cover on the upright and while the temperature is
somewhat constant in the house, the humidity can vary quite a bit.  This is
probably the reason for a small movement of 2-3 cents over a few months.
It's never more than that (even during seasonal changes) so I know the
Dampp-Chaser is doing a fairly decent job.

Yes, I've heard from others that with an impact hammer, one should try and
impact the pin at the exact same time the key is struck.  Dean Reyburn,
also an impact tuner, told me once that he prefers to impact the pin above
and below the target, moving in closer and closer until the final impact is
"up" to the target.  This, he believes, adds more stability since it
ensures that the non-speaking length is at a slightly higher tension than
the speaking length.  I've never quite understood this since it seems to me
that if the non-speaking length is at a higher tension than the
non-speaking length, a hard-blow by the pianist would have a tendency to
make the string go a bit sharp.  Another impact tuner I have spoken with
prefer to bring the note to pitch from above as opposed to below.  Once
thing I know is that even though these impact tuners I have described have
different techniques, they both create very beautiful and stable tunings.
So, I suppose the technique isn't as important as the consistency of
setting/settling the string/pin.

Corte


                                                                                                         
                      Don                                                                                
                      <pianotuna@access        To:       Pianotech <pianotech@ptg.org>                   
                      comm.ca>                 cc:                                                       
                      Sent by:                 Subject:  Re: test blows                                  
                      pianotech-bounces                                                                  
                      @ptg.org                                                                           
                                                                                                         
                                                                                                         
                      08/19/2003 09:46                                                                   
                      AM                                                                                 
                      Please respond to                                                                  
                      Pianotech                                                                          
                                                                                                         
                                                                                                         




Hi Corte,

Do you have a back cover on your upright? How old is it? What is the
variation in temperature in the room in which it is stored?

Try to synchronize your impacts with the key striking the note rather than
doing multiblows. Tune from above pitch rather than approaching from below.

At 07:37 AM 8/19/2003 -0500, you wrote:
>Hi Don (and everyone),
>
>Ok, in my case, I'm a fairly new tuner (and a part-time tuner at that).
My
>own piano is a Yamaha U1 and I have a Dampp-Chaser system installed.  I
>tune my piano about every 2 or 3 months and each time before I tune, when
I
>measure with my Verituner, all notes seem to be off by 2 or 3 cents?  So,
>in my opinion, the piano goes out of tune enough in 2-3 months that I feel
>it necessary to retune.  Many times, I notice unisons starting to go out
>slightly after only a few weeks of playing (the piano gets played daily).
>Would most of you experienced tuners consider this normal or would you
>expect a piano with a Dampp-Chaser to remain in tune for longer?  In your
>opinion, should an experienced tuner be able to get a tuning that stays
>right on for 6 months or is this asking too much?
>
>I use a nicely designed impact hammer for uprights and a special T-impact
>hammer for grands.  As I move the pin, I'm playing the note once every
>second or two and playing each note maybe 6-8 times with a forte blow
>before I feel everything is settled and stabilized.  I'm not a fast tuner
>by any means.  I always do two passes - a 30 minute pitch raise followed
by
>a fine tuning.  It takes be about 2 hours to do a pitch raise and fine
>tuning.

Regards,
Don Rose, B.Mus., A.M.U.S., A.MUS., R.P.T.

mailto:pianotuna@accesscomm.ca
http://us.geocities.com/drpt1948/

3004 Grant Rd.
REGINA, SK
S4S 5G7
306-352-3620 or 1-888-29t-uner
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