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<DIV>In a message dated 12/31/2003 7:10:31 AM Pacific Standard Time, jjgrana=
s@zigzag.pl writes:</DIV>
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2px solid">
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Hello y'all and tout le monde,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2></FONT><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040></=
FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I have come across a puzzling suggestion a =
few weeks ago: Namely, that downbearing is not really necessary in order to =
transfer the vibration of the string to the soundboard panel, the mere "grip=
" that the string has on the bridge being sufficient to assure this transfer=
. Would anyone of you with experience in such issues care to comment? </FONT=
></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2></FONT><FONT face=Arial></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Happy New Year everybody</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Wishing you all wonderful crowns, tigh=
t pins, and fautless repetition, </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2></FONT><FONT face=Arial></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Jean-Jacques Granas</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2></FONT><FONT face=Arial></FONT> </DIV></BLOCKQUOT=
E></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040 size=3><STRONG> &=
nbsp; Jean</STRONG></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040 size=3><STRONG> =
I agree with the rest of these posts. Look at all the old American upr=
ights you want, but you'll only find a few with soundboards that were design=
ed to have a crown and hence downbearing & Many of them sound very nice.=
In my mind the upright soundboard is more of a mass driven system. I.e. lon=
g strings and big soundboards. These boards are tapered, thicker a=
t the top in the treble & gradually thin down to about 1/4" near the bas=
s/ bottom end for flexibility. </STRONG></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040 size=3><STRONG> &=
nbsp; I recently put bridge caps on one of the first Baldwin Uprights&=
nbsp;(1880) ever built. (Gorgeous looking & sounding) The board was=
flat as a pancake. I shimmed hairline cracks and then applied scraped off t=
he old varnish and epoxy finish treatment to the front of the board. Th=
is is an amazing sounding piano. I really think that the hardness of the epo=
xy finish is also a contributing tonal factor.</STRONG></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><STRONG><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040 size=3> &=
nbsp; Food for the new year.</FONT></STRONG></DIV>
<DIV><STRONG><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040 size=3> &=
nbsp; Dale Erwin</FONT></STRONG></DIV>
<DIV><STRONG><FONT face="Times New Roman" color=#000040 size=3> &=
nbsp; Erwin Piano Restorations</FONT></STRONG></DIV></BODY></HTML>