antares writes: << And I have a theory that we should actually not file hammers at all or at the most just one time. Besides, when we file hammers really thoroughly, they weigh less and give a more shrill tone. There is less 'meat' to stick your needles in and it won't hold as long as you would expect. So what am I saying? File as little as possible, with a maximum of one time per hammer life, then do a hammer change. result? Happy customer, happy tech. >> Greetings, Um, in an ideal world, yes, however, there is one problem with this approach. It assumes that the hammers were the optimum size to start with! I have seen more than a few factory installed hammers that were too large for the piano and/or the action they were on. Steinways and some of the '70s vintage Mason and Hamlins come to mind. I have weighed hammers on a Steinway M that were the same weight as a Steinway D, so I would be reluctant to propose that hammer size is exactly "standard". Also, it is not uncommon to find a piano on which the hammers have already been changed, and what was installed were too large. I usually file the concert hammers at the school here once a year for their normal 4 year lifespan. They do get brassy in that last year, but that is the nature of school budgets. I also have few customers that would be happy to pay for new hammers every three or four years....... Regards, Ed Foote RPT www.uk-piano.org/edfoote/ www.uk-piano.org/edfoote/well_tempered_piano.html
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