<HTML>In a message dated 3/7/02 4:21:13 PM Central Standard Time, gcasper@pacbell.net writes: <BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE style="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px">Now a question. I have a friend who has a 1910 Pease baby grand, 5'2". She says she heard a "popping" sound one day, and since then her piano is untuneable. She had a tuner in (don't know if it was a tech or RPT or not), and he told her it would cost her several thousand dollars JUST TO DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM! So, she's giving me the piano to get it out of her home. I checked the plate and soundboard and can find no sign of cracking or any defect. Didn't get to check the crown. In playing up the keys, things seemed reasonable until I got to the bass break, which is at C2 on this piano. The B was close to pitch, but the C was probably a FOURTH sharp! Just as a quick test (I was severely time constrained), I dropped the pitch on that string down to octave with the higher C, and within a few minutes it had already sharped by what I would guess to be at least 50 cents! Any idea what could cause such behavior? Thanks. Greg Casper </BLOCKQUOTE> Greg Welcome to pianotech The problem is most likely a cracked plate. You might be able to see it, especially if it on the underside of one of the struts. With the experiment you did, I would highly recommend you lower the tension of the whole piano. It doesn't happen very often, but the thing could literally explode, and if you are in the vicinity, it could get ugly. Willem (Wim) Blees</HTML>