[pianotech] Carbon Fiber Lever (was Hammer Technique: was Q & ARoundtable)

[David Nereson]

    I bought the one I bought because of limited funds, because 
another tech on this list recommended it, and figured that the 
$400 carbon fiber levers were $400 not because one type of 
carbon fiber was stiffer than another type of carbon fiber, but 
because of the use of exotic woods, fancy shapes, and 
non-standard-shaped custom-machined heads, one of which receives 
complaints about not being able to see the tuning pins when 
placing the lever.
    The websites and ads for these levers give very little data 
from any actual tests of flex or leverage, and I don't see any 
cross-sectional diagrams, comparisons of competing types, 
specific info. about the molecular structure of different types 
of carbon fiber (if there are different types), etc.
    The stiffer lever doesn't speed up tuning any.  It gives a 
more positive sense of what the pin is doing, so it's a tiny bit 
easier to have a feeling that the pin is set, but that's about 
it.
    By the way, the cost of the $400 ones is not paid for with 4 
tunings unless your tunings are 100% profit.  Mine are not.
    --David Nereson, RPT