<br> <br> <br>   Hi John<br>   Petrified felt,  yes indeed a, Paul Bailey coined phrase.<br>    I've tried the Dremel many times & find it rather useless, but hey they can't be worse. I simply marvel at the lack of interest many piano makers have in tone as is evidenced by what they call piano hammers. Those who purchased the inexpensive pso simply need the paradigm shift that they got a bargain that they now need to invest in to make it a legitimate instrument. Like getting a great car cheap that needs a tune up & further performance enhancement. Ok....adequate car<br>   All our heroic voicing efforts in these cases as I see it.... are not our problem.<br>  I of course, suggest a hammer transplant as usual.<br>   A for effort John<br>   Dale<br> <br> <div id=AOLMsgPart_2_feba23d5-9bde-438b-bc78-702d2d49d87a> <STYLE type=text/css> #AOLMsgPart_2_feba23d5-9bde-438b-bc78-702d2d49d87a blockquote,#AOLMsgPart_2_feba23d5-9bde-438b-bc78-702d2d49d87a dl,#AOLMsgPart_2_feba23d5-9bde-438b-bc78-702d2d49d87a ul,#AOLMsgPart_2_feba23d5-9bde-438b-bc78-702d2d49d87a ol,#AOLMsgPart_2_feba23d5-9bde-438b-bc78-702d2d49d87a li { padding-top: 0 ; padding-bottom: 0 } </STYLE> <div>><FONT face=Arial color=#000000>...then perhaps its your general needling approach that needs adjusting.</FONT></div> <div><FONT face=Arial color=#000000><br> </FONT></div> <div><FONT face=Arial color=#000000>Sometimes needles won't work at all.  Last week I was servicing a Wurlitzer</FONT></div> <div><FONT face=Arial color=#000000>grand with petrified hammers. A needle would not penetrate and squeezing</FONT></div> <div><FONT face=Arial color=#000000>with parallel pliers felt more like a piece of wood than felt.</FONT></div> <div><FONT face=Arial color=#000000><br> </FONT></div> <div><FONT face=Arial color=#000000>I used a damp cloth and an iron on the shoulders and a little on the crown.</FONT></div> <div><FONT face=Arial color=#000000>This relaxed the hammer enough to be able to squeeze the shoulders with</FONT></div> <div><FONT face=Arial color=#000000>parallel pliers.  It was still plenty loud but the piercing edge was now gone.</FONT></div> <div><FONT face=Arial color=#000000><br> </FONT></div> <div><FONT face=Arial color=#000000>I'm considering voicing with a fine drill bit and a Dremel tool on slow speed</FONT></div> <div><FONT face=Arial color=#000000>so as not to scorch the fibers. Maybe this will create small gaps for the fibers</FONT></div> <div><FONT face=Arial color=#000000>to expand into and ease the density.</FONT> It certainly couldn't hurt these HSO's.</div> <PRE>-- </PRE> <div><br> Regards,<br> <br> Jon Page</div> <div><br> </div> <div>HSO: Hammer Shaped Object</div> </div> <div id='u8CA736A421110CA-5A4-912' class='aol_ad_footer'><FONT style="color: black; font: normal 10pt ARIAL, SAN-SERIF;"><HR style="MARGIN-TOP: 10px">Get the <A title="http://www.mapquest.com/toolbar?NCID=mpqmap00030000000003" href="http://www.mapquest.com/toolbar?NCID=mpqmap00030000000003" target="_blank">MapQuest Toolbar</A>, Maps, Traffic, Directions & More!</FONT> </div>