String wire gagues in Japanese pianos

[Roger Jolly]

Hi Robin,
                   Did you lift the new strings?(grand) or rub down on a 
vertical.  That can often be the cause of the problem.
Regards Roger




At 06:09 PM 6/11/2003 -0400, you wrote:


>      I overheard a conversation recently at a Guild meeting that has
>me wondering about a few things.What I heard was that American and
>Japanese wire sizes are different.Meaning that if a Kawai has 15 gague
>marked on the bridge(or plate)you should put 14.5 gague American wire
>to match the string you are replaceing.I usually use a micrometer when
>replaceing strings so I haven't paid much attention to the written
>guage markings.I worked on a Boston today that had a broken string in
>the upper treble.I mic'ed it and it measured 15 gague which was what
>was marked on the bridge.When I got it up to tension,the string level
>was not correct.When testing the hammer to string fit,the two lengths
>that were replaced were blocking on the hammer,but the original string
>was ringing.I am thinking now that the tech before me replaced the
>same string without checking it on the micrometer.I guess I failed to
>mention that the same string had broken about three years ago(Same
>situation where the owner reports the string broke while playing).
>     What puzzles me is that I have worked for a Kawai dealer for over
>twenty years,and have never heard of any problem with wire sizes.But
>it is clear to me that the problem with string breakage on the Boston
>I saw today is due to the wrong size wire being replaced.
>      Any thoughts?            Robin Olson RPT
>
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