<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; = charset=iso-8859-1"> <META content="MSHTML 5.50.4134.100" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Thanks Bob, it didn't come out as = pretty as I wanted. I might have done it your way this time and come out better. A = little more time on the preparation could help. All in all, I didn't hurt = myself and have to remove any felts. The odd thing about this tray was all the = lifters were tilted to the right. I don't know if they were traveled or built that = way. They had a bend in the wire that used to be at the top of the lifter. = Now with either thicker key end felt or thinner damper felt that bend had to be straightened for the wire to slide in farther.</FONT><FONT face=Arial size=2> What a challenge regulating these are. </FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>The hard part is knowing whether you = are fixing a previous screw-up or altering a compromise that was made. If you're = altering a compromise it's nice to have a plan when you come up against the reason = the compromise was made in the first place.  It's tough when you are a = picky perfectionist with just enough knowledge. </FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Keith Roberts</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV>----- Original Message ----- </DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; = BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"> <DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: = black"><B>From:</B> <A title=BobDavis88@aol.com href="mailto:BobDavis88@aol.com">BobDavis88@aol.com</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A = title=pianotech@ptg.org href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">pianotech@ptg.org</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Tuesday, March 25, 2003 = 6:28 PM</DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: Grand damper felt alignment</DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica><FONT lang=0 = face=Arial size=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF">Keith (his message quoted below),<BR><BR>No flame = suit reinforcement needed as far as I'm concerned! I mostly agree with you. = I think you are making a reasoned response to the vagaries of individual = damper sets and I was speaking in general. There are also a couple of items of = individual taste. <BR><BR>I suppose if the original guide rail is going back in = exactly the same spot after removal for bushing, the plate winds up in exactly = the same spot after removal for finishing, and the original dampers were beautifully spaced, aligned, and traveled, I might also be tempted by = the method you describe. However, this combination of events is rare = enough that it doesn't come up too often for me, so I'd rather just start from = scratch with felts aligned to the heads, and adjust the side pressure, travel, = and timing after felting. In addition, many damper felts are as wide as = the damper blocks, which doesn't permit too much offset without peeking out one = side or another. <BR><BR>I am not sorry to say that I agree with you about = cosmetics. The piano is to me a truly beautiful object, and anything which = pleases the eye in addition to the ear adds to the aesthetic experience. When I = step on the pedal, I want the dampers to lift straight out of the strings as = one, without any lateral movement of the damper blocks toward or away from = each other. I don't know if a little traveling would be discernible in the = function of the dampers, but it might, and it is prettier without. Where the = agraffe spacing is uneven, some kind of compromise must be made. Whether the = heads are spaced evenly and the felts offset, or the heads spaced directly over = the strings, may depend upon the degree of unevenness and individual = taste. I guess I'm saying that in most cases, the agraffe spacing isn't enough = to bother me, if the traveling and timing are really really good. = <BR><BR>Bob Davis<BR></FONT></BLOCKQUOTE></FONT></BODY></HTML>