<HTML> Richard, Jim, Bill and List:     String rendering determines just how well the piano will stay in tune, given both time and how much fortissimo playing is done - re: concerts in particular.     I would like to add to the 'hard pounding' thread something that, in 1966, made a icy, snowy trip to Louisville, KY well worth while.  I cannot remember the name of the instructor but this one hammer technique action I still find useful even today.  It goes like this - give it a try on the next tuning, particularly if "strings do not render easily.     In a majority of cases notes are being  'raised', not lowered, when tuning.  Therefore this procedure will work only in the majority of the cases.  After determining the note is flat, usually be listening softly. strike the key forcefully (as in Test blow) while simultaneously  forcefully kludging the tuning hammer upward.  The forceful blow definitely helps the string being tuned to move from friction 'freezes'.  Now give your test blow and neither you or the concert artist can change the pitch!  Try it.  You might like it - Mikie does!   Richard Moody wrote: <BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE>If I may add, this "bumping up and down of the pin"  is the best indication of if the string is RENDERING. Thank you Jim Bryant for bringing us back to this word.  I capitalize that because  that is what my teacher said , in effect, the setting of the pin depends on how the string renders.   He would say from time to time, "This string is not rendering" and give a test blow to prove it.  Then I would tune it, and he would give a test blow to prove it again.  Through this I became aware of how to find strings that were not "rendering".  It involves the "bumping up and down " of the tuning pin Bill Ballard mentions.         In a nutshell, if the pin is bumped up and no change  happens, the string is not rendering.  That means no matter what you do, for that particular string, sooner or later a hard blow will dislodge it.  Hopefully it will be later depending on what you do. Richard Itsalwayslater ---------- > From: Bill Ballard <yardbird@sover.net> > To: pianotech@ptg.org > Subject: Re: hard pounding > Date: Friday, April 10, 1998 6:55 AM >Bumping up and > down from what you hope is a settled tuning pin and string path is a far > better indicator of how close to the relaxed center the pin torsion and > tension differentials across friction barriers are. > "Richard Moody" <remoody@easnet.net> wrote: > >they (test blows)should demonstrate instead that the piano indeed has problems as you put > >it in the proper relationship of tuning pin friction but most importantly > >string friction at the pressure points. >  >If > string friction is higher that pin friction, there's no way the > "bump-up-bump-down" is going to work. I covered this in 2-3/91 PTJs. > ("String Friction and its Coordination with Pin Friction in Tuning > Mechanics".) > Bill Ballard, RPT > New Hampshire Chapter, PTG > > "We mustn't underestimate our power of teamwork." >  Bob Davis > ></BLOCKQUOTE>  </HTML>