<HTML><HEAD> <META charset=ISO-8859-1 http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; c= harset=ISO-8859-1"> <META content="MSHTML 6.00.2800.1400" name=GENERATOR></HEAD> <BODY style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #fffff= f"> <DIV> <DIV>       HI  <FONT size=3>Greg<= /FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=3>   Its a Novelty, a sales tool & an educat= ional device. How useful you find it is probably up to you. However, until I= made this tool I had no idea as to what was actually happening in the hamme= r & this is visual fascination.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=3>    Also Different types of hammer respon= d differently in the flex-o-meter. The hammers that don't compress= very much over & down to the molding also have restrictive movemen= t in the shoulders & for me I know from experience this is a hammer= to avoid as I have difficulty getting the tone I want. Comparing a new qual= ity hammer to an existing hammer out of a clients piano that really needs ha= mmers is verifying what you're saying. As is said a picture is worth........= .. Yes, It would be better if the tail rested on something solid but then th= ere would need to be some mechanism to adjust for various tail lengths and f= elt sizes. This was simply & convenient. I don't think it would matter. = You'll see what is most instructive.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=3>    Dale   Erwin</FONT></DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: blue = 2px solid"><FONT face=Arial>Dale,<BR>         How= useful is this jig really? I've never seen a hammer supported <BR>under the= low shoulder are like your jig does. Perhaps if it were made to <BR>support= under the wooden end you might have a better representation of <BR>what's a= ctually going on under deformation. Then again, perhaps there would <BR>not = be an appreciable difference.<BR><BR>Greg Newell<BR>Greg's piano Forté<BR>= mailto:gnewell@ameritech.net </FONT></BLOCKQUOTE></DIV> <DIV></DIV></BODY></HTML>