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<DIV><SPAN class=929325119-03032002><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff =
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<DIV><SPAN class=929325119-03032002><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff =
size=2>Jerking and "yanking" of the tuning hammer and pin seems to me =
the most
rapid method to weaken the strings.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=929325119-03032002><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff =
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=929325119-03032002><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff =
size=2>When I
was a beginner tuner I had a few strings broken because of jerking. =
Actually I
use a much softer method, did not break a string in years (even on some =
rusty
old out of pitch pianas I had put in a little better shape
sometime).</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=929325119-03032002><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff =
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=929325119-03032002><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff =
size=2>Sometime we hear it when a string is near to break, while =
tuning the
string you hear it is not stiff enough, even when rendering well the =
hammer
produce less effect than expected. A short time after, the string will =
break if
not while tuning. </FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=929325119-03032002><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff =
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=929325119-03032002><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff =
size=2>During
the concert you hear a unison slipping , at the end the sting
snaps!</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=929325119-03032002><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff =
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=929325119-03032002><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff =
size=2>Isaac
OLEG</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=929325119-03032002><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff =
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=929325119-03032002><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff =
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=929325119-03032002><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff =
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=929325119-03032002><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff =
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE dir=ltr
style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px =
solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader dir=ltr align=left><FONT =
face=Tahoma
size=2>-----Message d'origine-----<BR><B>De :</B> =
owner-pianotech@ptg.org
[mailto:owner-pianotech@ptg.org]<B>De la part de</B> Kevin E.
Ramsey<BR><B>Envoyé :</B> jeudi 28 février 2002 =
02:41<BR><B>À :</B>
pianotech@ptg.org<BR><B>Objet :</B> Re: String
Replaced<BR><BR></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Laura wrote;</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> "<FONT =
face="Times New Roman"
size=3>Now that the Middle C string has been replaced, here is what =
the
technician<BR>thought about my Baldwin: he said it was "not =
undangerous"
to tune because<BR>the pins are quite tight, but when they move they =
move a
great amount<BR>unexpectedly. He thought I probably had that
happen.<FONT face=Arial size=2>"</FONT></FONT></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> A tuning pin that =
is still
tight may give a cracking sound when you finally get it to move, but =
it won't
move far enough to break a string. Do you have a few pins that are =
unusually
loose for the rest of the piano? If so, you can go to the next =
tuning
pin, thinking that you're going to have to give it a mighty yank, like =
all the
rest, and it goes zoom! Even then, I doubt that very many people would =
go too
far before they stopped pulling on the tuning hammer. Perhaps what =
really
happened here, is that the piano has really really tight pins, and =
over the
years various tuners have been yanking those tuning pins back and =
forth trying
to get that pin in tune. All that flexing of the wire can weaken
it.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> "<FONT =
face="Times New Roman"
size=3>Apparently, there are also two or more cracks in the =
soundboard, which
were<BR>repaired earlier, but he also suggested it makes string =
breakage
more<BR>possible; somehow to do with getting the piano pitch to A 440, =
which
was<BR>done two weeks before, but makes for tricky tuning. Too =
advanced
for me,<BR>I'm afraid. "</FONT></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=3></FONT></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> First of all, if =
the cracks
have been repaired, then they may as well not be there. I have =
tuned
many pianos that had cracks in the soundboards, and they tune just the =
same as
regular pianos. The problem with the cracks is they might affect =
tuning
stability (Never had any complaints, though) and they can cause buzzes =
against
the ribs.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> "<FONT =
face="Times New Roman"
size=3>Incidentally, the technician replaced the string in about 20 =
minutes;
the<BR>Middle C string passes under the bass strings, which makes the =
process
a<BR>little harder and takes a little more finesse. (It's also =
much
more<BR>difficult to reach the bridge pins, since they lie under the =
bass
string<BR>section, in order to tap them in.) However, he noticed =
the
bridges were<BR>made with a graphite treatment/layer for the strings =
to pass
over them with<BR>less friction. I asked him to lubricate them, =
but he
didn't see the need<BR>given the graphite layer on the bridges. =
Baldwin
evidently has a clever<BR>feature there!"</FONT></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=3></FONT></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> You mean the =
bridges you see
there don't have graphite on them? I don't think I've ever seen =
a piano
that didn't have that black stuff on the bridges. Getting the string =
back to
the hitch pin isn't really a problem to any of us either. Why? =
Because
we're not afraid to get in there and move those bass strings to the =
side if we
have to. We'd probably touch up the tuning after doing a string =
replacement
anyway, so no big deal.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> It's normal to be =
cautious
when learning to tune, but I don't think that you should be so
concerned. Good luck, and don't worry so much. </DIV>
<DIV><BR> <BR></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></FONT></BODY></HTML>