---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment Dale Erwin writes: "Every concert level tech I know likes as close a hammer let off as feasible.possible." If the final decision was "feasible," I agree, if "possible," not so much. Dean May writes: The Kawai Shigeru Master Tech said the diameter of the string is a good guide for letoff. And he said nearly no drop. Another "rule of thumb" I have heard is twice the diameter of the core. This amounts to 1.5 mm tapering to 2 mm on the plain wire as you go down, and about 2.5 mm in the bass (safety factor to stay out of the way of the string's greater excursion). This is unnecessarily long on many pianos, but one diameter is unsafely short on others. I don't worry too much about the actual letoff measurement. Too close and it's unreliable, too far away and it's insensitive; but it's not the same piano to piano. Each action seems to have a sweet spot where it works best, and in addition it seems as if there's a small range within which you really CAN'T tell the difference. For instance, maybe it works equally well between 1 and 1.5 mm, but inside 1 blubbers occasionally, and at 2 is beginning to feel unreliable at pianissimo. Then it's a judgment call which end of the risk you want to take, depending upon who's playing what, the condition of the regulating button felt and especially the knuckles, and your knowledge of the instrument's nature. Further, whether you want to have the jack and the balancier "shelf" together also depends upon the artist. You can make a difference in the feel (and perception of controllability) by changing the timing. I have had them prefer the balancier to hit a little earlier for a slightly spongier, more resistant landing, and it's not hard to accommodate. Conversely, having the jack tender touch slightly early makes for a softer feel, as the weight of the shank stays on the balancier longer. Even though this requires longer letoff, some artists find it more controllable at pp. Bob Davis ---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: https://www.moypiano.com/ptg/pianotech.php/attachments/74/75/50/88/attachment.htm ---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment--
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