[pianotech] Blocks

[Ed Foote]

Ok,I renamed it,

Greetings,
       Re the "Hexagrip Pinblock", the site says, "The tighter the grip
on> the tuning pins, the longer the piano stays in tune.">>

   If this is true, then why doesn't Steinway and Sons use something
like Falconwood, where 200 in/lbs is an easy to get target?
   And, if this is true, why do so many Steinways have lower torque in
the low bass than in the high treble? I have seen this repeatedly and
one of these is a very expensive belly job from the Steinway
Restoration Dept. I  really think it should be reversed. Who on earth
needs to wrestle 150 in/lbs in the top octave? Maybe it is a case of
"why use finesse when brute force will do?"  A competent tech can tune
a 100 in/lb block as stably as a 150.
     Any experienced tech knows better than to give credibility to the
idea of Hexagrip superiority. The material is as good as any, but the
factory stringing so far down the line in quality compared to almost
any other brand I have seen it is hard to know it. Dealer techs usually
don't point out low torque pins, as long as the tuning holds, but if I
think a problem is up the road, I sure do.
     Maybe if the tech is employed by the brand, and has tasted deeply
of the Kool-Aid, the  sense of torque could be distorted by allegiance,
but I am not seeing these blocks as impressive in practice. Too much
inconsistency after a few years to lay any claim to greatness.
Regards,
Ed Foote RPT
http://www.piano-tuners.org/edfoote/well_tempered_piano.html