<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:x="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:excel" xmlns:dt="uuid:C2F41010-65B3-11d1-A29F-00AA00C14882" xmlns:m="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/2004/12/omml" 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 12 (filtered medium)"> <style>  </style>  </head> <body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple> <div class=Section1> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>Kendall:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>The physical properties of tuning pins is well within my great store of ignorance.  I take them out of the box and pound them in.  I have here some “Genuine Yamaha” pins that I got a year or so ago and they are nickel and the threads are not blued.  They look just as your center one in the picture.  In the piano they seem to work fine.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>dave<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>David M. Porritt, RPT<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><a href="dporritt@smu.edu"><span style='color:blue'>dporritt@smu.edu</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p> </div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <div> <div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'> <p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'> pianotech-bounces@ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org] <b>On Behalf Of </b>Kendall Ross Bean<br> <b>Sent:</b> Monday, July 07, 2008 10:46 AM<br> <b>To:</b> pianotech@ptg.org<br> <b>Subject:</b> Nature of tuning pins<o:p></o:p></span></p> </div> </div> <p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Hi, I haven't posted to the listserve before so let's see if this works.</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>I had some questions about the different types of tuning pins and wondered if someone here could answer them. (I'm <em><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>trying</span></em> to write an article about tuning pins).</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>It might be nice to have some discussion on something that many technicians seem to take for granted: why tuning pins come in the types and form that they currently do.</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>(This may have all been covered before somewhere in the Archives, but if it was, I couldn't find it. So if it's there, I apologize in advance; could someone just point me to where it is? Thanks.)</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>I've attached a photo for reference. </span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>The photo refers to the three basic types of tuning pins we routinely see. (These were all photographed together at the same time on the same white background. The photo is "unretouched." -The colors in the photo seem to be fatihful to the genuine articles.)</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>On the far left is a blued steel pin, in the middle a nickel plated pin, and on the far right a nickel plated/blued thread pin. (The end pins are Nippon Denro, the middle pin I think from an Asian piano, maybe Kawai, as it seems to be metric.)</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>The pin in the middle has generally fallen into disrepute (I think I know why, because the threads are plated, right?) -but perhaps we need to re-examine this. Maybe this type of pin is still valid for certain extreme humidity applications?</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>The following questions pertain mainly to the "blued" vs "nickel-blued pins".</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>The questions I have are:</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>1) Why are the threads on the "blued steel" pin a different color than on the "nickel-blued" pin? (also - Why aren't the the threads on the "blued" pin the same color as the unthreaded portion of the pin?)</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>2) If the threads on the "nickel-blued" pin are cut after nickel plating, (which should remove the plating on the threads right?) and then are heated in the bluing oven, why aren't they the same color blue as the unthreaded part of the "blued" pin? </span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>3) I am speculating that perhaps the threads on the blued pin are cut after bluing (which removes the bluing, to a certain extent, just like it removes the layer of nickel plating on the nickel blued pin) while the threads on the nickel blued pin are blued after cutting. Does the order in which the operations are done affect the quality of the thread? Does having to cut through nickel plating produce an inferior thread?</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>4) Would anyone here care to restate why the blued pins (as opposed to nickel-blued) are preferred over the nickel-blued by many piano technicians?</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>5) What is the real purpose of the threads on the tuning pin, (besides to help back the pin out in restringing. One source I have read says the threads make it easier to turn the pin in the pinblock (as opposed to an unthreaded pin). Any thoughts on this?</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>6) Today apparently all tuning pins have "cut" threads, as opposed to "rolled" threads. Why is this? What does "rolled" threads mean? Why would they be inferior to cut threads?"</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>7) Catherine Beilefeldt, in her book "The Wonders of the Piano", in describing the process at AMSCO (when it was still around), says that there both the nickel-blued and blued pins were blued after threading. Does anyone know if Nippon Denro does it differently? How about Fly Brand? Diamond?</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>8) What, exactly, are the infamous "reverse cut" threads that were touted so highly by certain sales reps and dealers of Japanese pianos?</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>9) What about Larry Fine's and Art Reblitz's contention that if this were really the case (if the "reverse cut" or "reverse thread" pin turned more easily in one direction than the other) it would wear the pin block out faster?</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>10) Why, really, did manufacturers (except Bosendorfer) stop using tapered pins? </span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>I have a number of books that touch on the manufacture of piano tuning pins, but none that really seems to have more than a superficial understanding of why tuning pins are made the way they are today. </span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>If anyone knows of a reference work or resource that would have the history of the development of tuning pins, or an article in the PTJ (or even a thread in the CAUT or Pianotech archives) that addresses these issues, I would be very grateful if they would let me know where I can find it. You can either post your answers on the listserve, ideally, where all could benefit, or e-mail me personally at address below, if you prefer.</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Sincerely,</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Kendall Ross Bean</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>PianoFinders </span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>(e-mail: </span><a href="mailto:kenbean@pianofinders.com" title="mailto:kenbean@pianofinders.com"><span style='font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>kenbean@pianofinders.com</span></a><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>)</span><o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> <div> <p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p> </div> </div> </body> </html>