<HTML><HEAD> <META charset=UTF-8 http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charse= t=utf-8"> <META content="MSHTML 6.00.2730.1700" name=GENERATOR></HEAD> <BODY style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #fffff= f"> <DIV> <DIV>In a message dated 11/6/2003 3:08:06 AM Pacific Standard Time, davner@k= aosol.net writes:</DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: blue = 2px solid"><FONT face=Arial>    Is that indeed what's happening = in a hammer with lots of tension -- like bending a rope sharply, then hackin= g at the top of the bend with a knife, gradually cutting the fibers and maki= ng it pull apart?  <BR>    --David Nereson, RPT</FONT></BLOCK= QUOTE></DIV> <DIV><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040>   <FONT size= =3><STRONG>Hi Dave</STRONG></FONT></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040 size=3><STRONG> &= nbsp; Having sliced & diced many Hammers looking for tension I've never = found Yamaha hammers to have any. If there was tension, meaning that the fel= t was stretched around the molding during pressing the when you cut the felt= open it should blossom like a flower opening. Does that make sense? To me i= t does.</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040 size=3><STRONG> &= nbsp;   I used to do this routinely when Bob Davis & I were te= aching a voicing class. We'd cut the felt open from the top thru the strike = point & on most hammers virtually nothing happened. zip. You could super= glue the felt back together & put it back in the piano. kidding.</STRON= G></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040 size=3><STRONG> &= nbsp;  The other way to demo this is to cut them open is on the ba= nd saw. Cut up thru the molding with the blade cutting up under the strike p= oint. If there is tension the hammers should spring apart. I've seen 2 hamme= rs demonstrate tension. The most active one is  The Ronsen & the ot= her the Isaac Hammer</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040 size=3><STRONG> N= utones had a little bit & every thing else was zip. Try it.</STRONG></FO= NT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040 size=3><STRONG>  = So I don't know why the Yam hammers are tearing apart but it's not tension.<= /STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><STRONG><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040 size=3>  = Perhaps its the wool being weakened by over bleaching or processing.</FONT><= /STRONG></DIV> <DIV><STRONG><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040 size=3>  = Dale</FONT></STRONG></DIV></BODY></HTML>