<html xmlns:v="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word" xmlns:st1="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40"> <head> <META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=us-ascii"> <meta name=Generator content="Microsoft Word 11 (filtered medium)"> <o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PostalCode"/> <o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="State"/> <o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="City"/> <o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"/>  <style>  </style> </head> <body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple> <div class=Section1> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size: 10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>What kind of piano is this? Are you sure it has a wooden pin block?<o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size: 10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p> <div> <p class=MsoAutoSig><b><font size=6 color=navy face="Bradley Hand ITC"><span style='font-size:22.0pt;font-family:"Bradley Hand ITC";color:navy;font-weight: bold'>Dean</span></font></b><font color=navy><span style='color:navy'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p class=MsoAutoSig style='margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt'><u1:PersonName u2:st="on"><font size=3 color=navy face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt; color:navy'>Dean May</u1:PersonName>             cell 812.239.3359 <o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p class=MsoAutoSig style='margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt'><font size=3 color=navy face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:navy'>PianoRebuilders.com   812.235.5272 <o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p class=MsoAutoSig style='margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt'><u1:place u2:st="on"><u1:City u2:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on"><font size=3 color=navy face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:navy'>Terre Haute</span></font></st1:City><font color=navy><span style='color:navy'></u1:City> <u1:State u2:st="on"><st1:State w:st="on">IN</u1:State></st1:State>  <u1:PostalCode u2:st="on"><st1:PostalCode w:st="on">47802</u1:PostalCode></st1:PostalCode></span></font></st1:place></u1:place><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <div class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'> <hr size=2 width="100%" align=center tabindex=-1> </span></font></div> <p class=MsoNormal><b><font size=2 face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt; font-family:Tahoma;font-weight:bold'>From:</span></font></b><font size=2 face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'> pianotech-bounces@ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org] <b><span style='font-weight:bold'>On Behalf Of </span></b>Tom Sivak<br> <b><span style='font-weight:bold'>Sent:</span></b> Wednesday, October 17, 2007 8:34 PM<br> <b><span style='font-weight:bold'>To:</span></b> pianotech<br> <b><span style='font-weight:bold'>Subject:</span></b> Extreme jumpiness</span></font><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'>List<o:p></o:p></span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'>Have had the displeasure of tuning an old upright which has been restrung with new oversized pins.  I was called in to tune it by the man who restrung it; he asked me to CA the pinblock because the strings kept slipping flat.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'>So I went, CA in hand, and found that about 20 pins had fallen, some were a 4th under pitch!<o:p></o:p></span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'>I got out my tuning lever and pulled the offenders up to pitch and was shocked to find how tight the pins were.  On some of the pins, I literally had to use ALL MY STRENGTH to make the pin move at all.  (And I'm 6 feet tall and 210 pounds.)  Then it would jump a whole step, and I'd try to coax it back, but it would jump back down, too low, and...you know the routine.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'>The reason I'm writing is to gain some insight into this situation, hopefully.  How can a pin be sooo tight that I have to extend my lever, watch it bend as I apply pressure, hoping that my lever won't break, just trying to get the pin to move...and yet not be able to hold?<br> <br> Now, I've been there three times in the last two months.  The first time, I did not apply any CA to the pinblock.  My God, they were so tight, yet jumpy to the max.  Because it took so much strength to get the pin to move, it was difficult to make any small movements.   I thought, with my superior tuning lever technique, I would be able to get the pins to hold.  HA!  <o:p></o:p></span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'>Next time I applied CA to all the pins that had slipped.  After it dried, they were tighter than ever, even harder to get them to move.  One month later, about half of them had slipped again.  I re-applied the CA and was there last week.  Only about 6 of them had slipped, but it still boggles my mind.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'>Understand that it is just as difficult to get the pins to go flat.  I mean, as you try and turn the pin, and it jumps to the sharp side on you, and then you try to push it back down, and it jumps to the flat side, and you toggle back and forth...it's just as hard to get the pin to move south as it is north.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size: 12.0pt'>Any thoughts?  Tuning pins too big?  Cracks in pinblock? (Open faced pin block, showing no cracks...)   Should I use WD-40 instead of CA?  (Just a joke...just a joke...)<br> <br> Tom Sivak<o:p></o:p></span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on"><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Chicago</span></font></st1:place></st1:City><o:p></o:p></p> </div> </div> </body> </html>