<!doctype html public "-//w3c//dtd html 4.0 transitional//en"> <html> Hazen, I would like to add my voice to Newton's much more experienced one.  I can certainly understand that you want to put in a new set of strings, but if nothing else changes, you may find breaking strings a chronic problem in the new set as well.  Now *that* would be a bummer!  Newton gave suggestions on reducing the power.  I suggest you follow at least some of them. I tune a small Young Chang grand (in a church) that had many repaired strings before I began servicing the piano.  Now it's down to maybe one string a year.  Since I didn't decrease the hammer blow power at all, I assume there is a new pianist who doesn't beat the tar out of the piano, quite as much anyway. Sometimes variables like that never filter down to the piano technician, who may only ever speak with the church secretary.  (In this case it may also have been an incompetent piano tooner.  I never saw so many nasty-looking string coils in my life in one piano, either before or since!) Regards, Clyde Hollinger, RPT Lititz, PA, USA HazenBannister@cs.com wrote: <blockquote TYPE=CITE>Hi list,  Friday I went to service a yamaha U1,which had 4 broke bass strings.It had about 10 or 12 tied strings (not textbook ties either),and I could tell there were several other new strings as well.I told the church,that in order for me to take their account,I would want to get rid of that mess,and start over.I called yamaha,and they referred me to mapes,and agreed with my decision,and I ordered a set of bass strings for this piano,1976 model.I am wondering what is the best way to do this.I restring pianos in my shop,and put on universals all the time.But I wonder if it's best for stability to start at A0 and go one at a time,or stagger them maybe,the pins feel good in the piano,so I'm not concerned with them being a problem.Also,I know we don't talk about price fixing,and I'm NOT going in this direction at all.But I would like some different BALLPARK prices,or help in what kind of ordeal I'm in store for ,as for as time-wise in getting stability back fast,return trips,et! c.... Thanks much, Hazen Bannister</blockquote> </html>