<HTML style="FONT-SIZE: x-small; FONT-FAMILY: MS Sans Serif"><HEAD> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=windows-1251"> <META content="MSHTML 6.00.2900.2769" name=GENERATOR></HEAD> <BODY> <DIV> <DIV>Hi, Dave.  From the Acro's I've seen, they all have this acute angle over the bearing bar.  It's a problem waiting to happen, especially if the piano is old.  A few months back I replaced the bass strings on one of these, and did not pound the pins in as far as originally done for this reason.  It's too easy for the wire to "jump" the coils on the pin and cause it to break.  The only fix, other than trying to tie the old ones, is replacement.   I'd turn the pins out so it doesn't happen again.  JMHO.</DIV> <DIV>Paul McCloud</DIV> <DIV>San Diego</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV></DIV></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid"> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt Arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV> <DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A title=davespianotuning@earthlink.net href="mailto:davespianotuning@earthlink.net">Dave McKibben</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To: </B><A title=pianotech@ptg.org href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">Pianotech</A></DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> 10/30/2005 8:02:44 AM </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> acrosonic string breakage</DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV><FONT size=2> <P> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> <DIV>List:</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I just tuned a Baldwin acrosonic that by S/N was 15 years old, but it appeared to be older.</DIV> <DIV>My question revolves around the attached picture ( as best I could draw the problem ).</DIV> <DIV>The strings A2, A#2, G2, G#2, F2,F#2 and C3 all broke when doing an 80-100 cent pitch raise.</DIV> <DIV>I warned the owner that I could tune it to less than A440 to help reduce string breakage but she wanted it at A440 so she could play with other instruments.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>All the strings were on the bottom row of tuning pins, which creates a steeper angle to the Vbar.</DIV> <DIV>The angle to the Vbar was so great, that the last coil on the pin was trying to cut across the previous adjacent coil on the tuning pin.  ( see pic ).</DIV> <DIV>It appeared to me THAT is why the strings broke, each one right at the pin coil.</DIV> <DIV>It did NOT appear that the pins were pounded in, creating a steeper angle.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>My question is:</DIV> <DIV>Is this normal pin / string coil configuration for acrosonics?</DIV> <DIV>has anyone seen this before, and what might the problem and fix be?</DIV> <DIV>I'm sure someone on here knows the answer !</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Thanks much</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Dave McKibben</DIV></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <P></P></FONT></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>