<HTML> Roger, David Thanks for the suggestions.  I hope that these are the problems, an= d that they are not of the "Phyllis Diller" variety(Ron, you may have come u= p with something lasting here....). This job won't take place for another month or so, but I have permission= from the dealer that sold the piano to use a floor piano as a guinea pig. &= nbsp; Dave S. In a message dated 3/5/04 8:51:42 PM Pacific Standard Time, roger.j@sask= tel.net writes: <BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE style="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARG= IN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px">            &nbsp= ;   I would pull the capo sections a beat or so sharp to the = centre.   Lift the strings You will find the tone will get stronge= r and sustain better.  After shaping and shoe shining hammers, fit them= to the strings.  Re tune to A440.  The string lifting/leveling, a= nd hammer fitting will have dropped the pitch back into range with the centr= e section. This will have cut down on the leakage into the forward duplex. For the = worst 'zingers',  move the strings around on the capo bar, it can help = to burnish off any cups in the bar.  Lift again and re tune. Now you are ready to start on the hammers.   Renner Blues I li= ke to use a single long needle  and go in very deep at 1-2 o'clock rang= e.   aiming for the tip of the molding About 5 or 6 insertions per= shoulder usually will do the trick. Very lightly needle the crowns, as needed to remove any impact noise!!!!= ! Frequently I can lift strings, fit and shape hammers, and never take the= needles from the box. Treat the problems and not the symptoms. </BLOCKQUOTE> After creating some resilience by deep needling in the 9:30 - 10:30 a= nd 1:30 - 2:30 shoulder of the hammer (this may have already been done), to = eliminate noise in the capo section, deep needle from 10:30 - 11:30 and from= 12:30 to 1:30.  Aim for a point where the felt joins the moulding on e= ach side of the hammer.  That will put the needle parallel to the mould= ing at the 11:30 and 12:30 position and angled slightly in toward the mouldi= ng as you move away from the strike point.    Stay away from = and don't stitch under the crown.  Use a single needle and insert it to= it's full length, 8 mm's or so.  Be sure that the hammer has a good sh= ape and is not flattened on the top.  Do not mute the duplex, it will k= ill the tone too much.   Don't voice this section in isolation. &n= bsp;Check back and forth against the tenor section to keep the piano balance= d. David Love <A HREF="mailto:davidlovepianos@earthlink.net">davidlovepianos@earthli= nk.net</A> </HTML>