<html> <body> Hi Juli,              To clarify.  Hammers need to be correctly shaped with no significant grooves before any artificial hardeners are used, Also hammers need to filed and fitted to the strings before any significant amount of needling is done. After heavy needling, some reshaping and string fitting is needed. Hammer filing is an art, and it has to be learned , experience will tell you when to just follow the contour of the felt, and when to make the hammer a little more pointed..  There are several techniques for shaping hammers . Needling to obtain a brighter tone is usually done at the 8-9 o'clock zone, and needs to be done very deep. 10-15mm. My final step on ALL voicing/ reshaping jobs, is support the tails of the hammers and give them a firm ironing with a small travel iron.  The iron is hot enough to press any loose felt, firmly down, but not hot enough to discolor the felt. This operation will brighten up the hammers quite a bit. Don't be shy about being a rookie.    I am still learning. Regards Roger   At 07:54 PM 4/5/2006, you wrote: <blockquote type=cite class=cite cite="">  GHreetings Rodger,                                                    What do you mean by pre-filed? Is that filed before I needled them? If so,  Yes, I have filed the grooves out of the hammers, but I hear the hammers' tone get more sublte when I file them, not brighter. Is this just a matter of syntax/word preference or is there a particular methiod of filing that will make the hammers brighter? Afterall I AM a rookie.   Thanks again, Juli Gottshall</blockquote></body> </html>