<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: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 14 (filtered medium)"><style></style></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1>Look at the drawing below. <o:p></o:p><img width=290 height=249 id="_x0000_i1026" src="cid:image003.jpg@01CD3545.78A9EC70"><o:p></o:p><o:p> </o:p>Ribs #2 and #4 extend across the width of the working portion of the soundboard. The low end of the bridge has an extension that goes over the floating portion of the soundboard liner. These three ribs provide all of the stiffness the area around the bass bridge needs.<o:p></o:p><o:p> </o:p>The rest of the ribs are all sized to provide the necessary stiffness to the area around the tenor/treble bridge. <o:p></o:p><o:p> </o:p>In the Fandrich piano the ribs that terminate in the Z-Bar—i.e., ribs #5 through #13—are set into notches in either the Z-Bar or the soundboard cutoff bar. The lower ribs—#1 through #4—terminate about 10 mm in from edge of the soundboard panel. <o:p></o:p><o:p> </o:p>The M rim set up against the soundboard assembly do highlight the Z-Bar but this is not quite how the Z-Bar works. The Z-Bar presents a very rigid termination to the soundboard panel in the area around the treble end of the bridge. The further down the scale you go the Z-Bar its termination impedance decreases—its stiffness decreases--allowing the edge of the working portion of the soundboard to move with increasing freedom. <o:p></o:p><o:p> </o:p>The termination impedance of the soundboard panel varies with the frequency of the energy waves traveling across the soundboard assembly; the fundamentals and lower partials are affected more by the stiffness—which is decreasing down the scale—of the Z-Bar while the higher partials are affected more by its mass which also decreases further away from the point where it is solidly fixed to the back assembly. The soundboard assembly actually appears larger to the fundamentals and lower partials; smaller to the higher partials. In practice this has the effect of increasing the dynamic range of the instrument through the tenor section of the piano.<o:p></o:p><o:p> </o:p>The Z-Bar also adds both stiffness and mass to the area around the tenor end of the bass bridge. By coupling the ends of the Z-Bar and the bass bridge together the bass bridge extends the effectiveness of the Z-Bar further down the scale keeping the effective area of the soundboard relatively smaller than it would otherwise be which improves the efficiency of the soundboard around the low end of the tenor bridge. The bass bridge is able to take advantage of the entire soundboard area in the lower half of the soundboard assembly.<o:p></o:p><o:p> </o:p>That’s the short version and I think I got it all straight. It’s late and it’s been a very long day—I’ve been moving shop equipment and tools and other stuff—so I’m not guaranteeing anything. I’m sure if I got something turned around someone will be happy to point it out to me….<o:p></o:p><o:p> </o:p>ddf<o:p></o:p><o:p> </o:p><div>Delwin D Fandrich<o:p></o:p>Piano Design & Fabrication<o:p></o:p>6939 Foothill Court SW, Olympia, Washington 98512 USA<o:p></o:p>Phone  360.515.0119 — Cell  360.388.6525<o:p></o:p><a href="mailto:del@fandrichpiano.com">del@fandrichpiano.com </a>— <a href="mailto:ddfandrich@gmail.com">ddfandrich@gmail.com</a><o:p></o:p></div><o:p> </o:p><div><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0cm 0cm 0cm'>From: pianotech-bounces@ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org] On Behalf Of Gene Nelson Sent: Friday, May 18, 2012 5:26 PM To: pianotech@ptg.org Subject: Re: [pianotech] S&S K(52) Restoration<o:p></o:p></div></div><o:p> </o:p>Great pics Terry, thank you.<o:p></o:p>Getting your cauls up off the floor is a nice feature.<o:p></o:p>I am having trouble seeing just how the bass bridge is supported with ribs??<o:p></o:p>Did all of the ribs get notched into the rim/Z-bar assemblies?<o:p></o:p>The M frame highlights the Z-bar frame nicely – great way to visualize the concept.<o:p></o:p><div><div class=MsoNormal align=center style='margin-left:36.0pt;text-align:center'><hr size=2 width="100%" align=center></div></div><o:p> </o:p></div></body></html>