<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD><TITLE>Message</TITLE> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> <META content="MSHTML 6.00.2900.2963" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>FWIW, I, as well as many others, have been using Roger's steam method for years and it works like a gem. So fast, so easy, so effective.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Terry Farrell</FONT></DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE dir=ltr style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV> <DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A title=thetuner@ivories52.com href="mailto:thetuner@ivories52.com">Geoff Sykes</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=pianotech@ptg.org href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">'Pianotech List'</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Friday, September 15, 2006 1:45 PM</DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> RE: Alcohol and hard hammers</DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV> <DIV><SPAN class=187363817-15092006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>Hi Roger --</FONT></SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN class=187363817-15092006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV> <DIV><SPAN class=187363817-15092006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>Having the Journal CD's I found your article on Controllable Steam Voicing in the May 1999 Journal. After reading it I'm going to abandon the tea kettle idea and invest in a voicing iron like you describe. The method you describe is both easy and controllable. And it's grace over brute force. I like it. Thank you for your contribution to this question. </FONT></SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN class=187363817-15092006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV> <DIV><SPAN class=187363817-15092006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>-- Geoff Sykes</FONT></SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN class=187363817-15092006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>-- Assoc. Los Angeles</FONT></SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN class=187363817-15092006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV> <DIV><SPAN class=187363817-15092006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE dir=ltr style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"> <DIV></DIV> <DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader lang=en-us dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Tahoma size=2>-----Original Message-----<BR><B>From:</B> pianotech-bounces@ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org] <B>On Behalf Of </B>Roger Jolly<BR><B>Sent:</B> Friday, September 15, 2006 8:04 AM<BR><B>To:</B> Pianotech List<BR><B>Subject:</B> RE: Alcohol and hard hammers<BR><BR></FONT></DIV><FONT size=3>Hi Geoff,<BR>                    I DO NOT  advise using a steam kettle, one of my reasons for writing the article in the Journal, a few years ago, was that there is very little control, and very inconsistent results.<BR>Give me you address off list and I will send you a reprint copy.<BR>Alcohol and water tends to deform the hammer shape and you can very quickly ruin a set of hammers, unless you have some voicing experience.<BR>If you do not have an electric voicing iron, you can get the same results using the tip of a clothes iron, it's just a little more difficult to work with.<BR>Regards Roger<BR><BR><BR><BR>At 11:55 PM 9/14/2006, you wrote:<BR></FONT> <BLOCKQUOTE class=cite cite="" type="cite"><FONT face=arial color=#0000ff size=2>Of course! I'd forgotten about the vice-grip trick. But wait, there's more. I'm so glad that this list has an archive. After reading Alan's reply I did a search on both vice grip voicing and steam voicing and was rewarded with some very informative and helpful ideas. Including the suggestion of an 8 to 1 alcohol to fabric softener treatment from 1995. Steaming the hammer, quickly, was the all around preferred method of dealing with extraordinarily hard hammers. I think I'll pick up a little electric tea kettle on my way in tomorrow morning and give steam a chance first before resorting to the vice grip method. I almost feel like I'm about to perform a magic trick.<BR></FONT><FONT size=3> <BR></FONT><FONT face=arial color=#0000ff size=2>Thanks to all --<BR></FONT><FONT size=3> <BR></FONT><FONT face=arial color=#0000ff size=2>-- Geoff Sykes<BR>-- Assoc. Los Angeles<BR></FONT><FONT size=3> <BR> <BR></FONT> <DL> <DD><FONT face=tahoma size=2>-----Original Message-----<BR> <DD>From:</B> pianotech-bounces@ptg.org [<A href="mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org" eudora="autourl"> mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org</A>] On Behalf Of </B>Alan R. Barnard<BR> <DD>Sent:</B> Thursday, September 14, 2006 8:28 PM<BR> <DD>To:</B> pianotech@ptg.org<BR> <DD>Subject:</B> RE: Alcohol and hard hammers<BR><BR></FONT> <DD><FONT size=3>I'd be leaping on those puppies with my modified Vice-grips (a la Wally Brooks) followed by a lightly damp rag and the back side of my voicing iron, i.e., steam.<BR><BR> <DD>The needle-in-a-Dremmel works well.<BR><BR> <DD>I'd try all those things before spending a day trying to, as one put it, "split hickory knots using a corn dodger as a wedge and a pumpkin for a mallet."<BR><BR> <DD>A quote for Texans: "The universal food of the people of Texas, both rich and poor, seems to be corn-dodger and fried bacon."  Frederick Law Olmsted, 'A Journey Through Texas' (1856)<BR><BR> <DD>Alan Barnard<BR> <DD>Salem, MO<BR> <DD>Joshua 24:15<BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <DD><BR> <HR> <DD>Original message<BR> <DD>From: "Geoff Sykes" <BR> <DD>To: "Pianotech@Ptg. Org" <BR> <DD>Received: 09/14/2006 8:09:38 PM<BR> <DD>Subject: Alcohol and hard hammers<BR><BR></FONT> <DD><FONT face=arial size=2>Tomorrow I have to go up against a new, out of the box, upright piano with ROCK hard hammers. I have been asked to voice the hammers down significantly in order to reduce the unpleasant brittle harsh cold sound. Last time I had to do this I just aggressively needled away for a long time. Very aggressively with lots of broken needles. Even after I was "finished" I was still unable to get a needle in more than about 1mm. <BR></FONT> <DD><FONT size=3><BR></FONT>  <DD><FONT face=arial size=2>Not too long ago, on the list, I read that treating hard hammers with a little alcohol would help un-compact the felt. However, these are new hammers and are probably hard because of a hardening treatment. Today's question is: Would a small alcohol treatment help? If not, what would you suggest?<BR></FONT> <DD><FONT size=3><BR></FONT>  <DD><FONT face=arial size=2>-- Geoff Sykes<BR> <DD>-- Assoc. Los Angeles<BR></FONT><FONT size=3></FONT></DD></DL></BLOCKQUOTE></BLOCKQUOTE></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>