<HTML><HEAD> <META charset=US-ASCII http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; cha= rset=US-ASCII"> <META content="MSHTML 6.00.2800.1106" name=GENERATOR></HEAD> <BODY style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #fffff= f"> <DIV> <DIV>Matthew writes:</DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: blue = 2px solid"><FONT face=Arial>Well, thank you list for the responses, and fo= r making me feel like an idiot.</FONT></BLOCKQUOTE></DIV> <DIV>Hi Matthew,</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I'm sorry that some of the responses were less respectful than the= y could have been. That is unnecessary. The technicians I respect = most realize how much they have yet to learn, and are the most humble.<= /DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Earlier Steinways were designed with a different key ratio, a lighter h= ammer, and a different knuckle placement on the shank than is used in curren= t production. The factory's first response to rebuilders was to provide a "p= re-1984" shank (made by Renner) which was the same knuckle placement as the = older instruments. However, matched with the heavier modern hammer, this mad= e for a lot of klunky actions which certainly didn't feel "like Steinways." = In addition, the Steinway hammer has always been fairly soft. This becomes m= ore problematic when it is also made heavier, in that a heavier hammer requi= res increased stiffness to produce the high partials. In some cases thi= s requires so much lacquer that the resilience of the hammer is reduced beyo= nd its capacity to produce a tone with good dynamic shading, and actually ro= bs real power. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Factory parts went through a period of terrible quality, and only recen= tly have returned to very high standards of accuracy. I have experienced som= e pinning problems (as with Renner and Abel), but the traveling has improved= immensely. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Current production parts will function on older instruments, but the ch= anged leverage changes the keydip/blow distance ratio unusably, in my opinio= n. We have been using the factory repetitions for four or five years, but ar= e happy that other shank executions are available from the aftermarket.</DIV= > <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Bob Davis</DIV></BODY></HTML>