<HTML>In a message dated 3/20/0= 3 8:13:56 AM Pacific Standard Time, Richard.Brekne@grieg.uib.no writes: <BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE style="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-= LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px">Only from piano pounders :)= </BLOCKQUOTE> I dont pound, never have, never will. My tunings are solid = as the proverbial rock and <BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE style="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px so= lid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px">that has as lon= g as I remember been my strongest asset tuningwise. Pounding simply is not n= eccessary.</BLOCKQUOTE> IMHO, once the piano is settled, it will need a less-firm bl= ow to stay in tune.  From personal experience, when tuning a new piano,= especially lower and mid-range priced instruments, if I don't hit the notes= at least moderately hard, the strings will just not equalize properly aroun= d the bridge pins.   I can get many new pianos to drop more than a= half step in the mid-upper treble with a firm blow. It all depends on quali= ty and quantity of factory prep.   Older, more stable pianos seem to be a different matter, especially if t= hey've been tuned regularly by a decent tuner. But no matter how hard one hits the piano in tuning it, there is likely = to be a player who hammers it harder.  New hammer moldings and shanks s= houldn't snap--that I'm sure we can all agree on.  It was definitely a = defective hammer.   It wasn't at the staple, it was before the felt begins.  Upon furth= er inspection it looks as if there was a hidden  vein/crack in the wood= ...I hope it's a one-off and doesn't affect the contiguous hammers!  An= d I'm glad it happened in a store and not at a customer's house.  That = coulda been embarrassing. Dave Stahl </HTML>