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<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: =
black"><B>From:</B>
<A href="mailto:wparham@ozarkisp.net" =
title=wparham@ozarkisp.net>wparham</A>
</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A =
href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org"
title=pianotech@ptg.org>pianotech@ptg.org</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Friday, June 08, 2001 =
9:38 PM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> visegrip =
"voicing"</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2>Does anybody know about the technique to use =
visegrips to
voice an extremely hard hammer? Thanks, Wendy</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2>Well, some argue that visegrips "destroy the =
felt", but I
disagree -- they may destroy the ideal balance of tension and =
compression in
some hammers, but I use them anyway on extremely hard hammers. =
It's easy
to soften them too much if you're not careful, however. I set =
the tool
so it can't squeeze too much -- maybe to just 1/16 in. narrower than =
the
thickness of the hammer, for starters. Determine if the whole =
hammer is
hard or just the strike point, by trying to dig in with a thumbnail or =
by
probing with a voicing needle. If the whole hammer seems hard, I =
would
start at 9 and 3 o'clock or maybe 10 and 2, and squeeze midway between =
the
surface and the molding. Usually you have to see the felt =
actually
distort and flex A LITTLE, to know that it's "breaking up",
or loosening. Try one note first, barely compressing the =
felt at
all, see what it does, then if little effect, move closer to the =
strike point
or squeeze harder ("deeper") by turning the adjusting screw farther =
in,
allowing the grips to close a little farther. But be cautious -- =
it's
easy to go too far. Some hammers require squeezing right =
on the
strike point, but this tends to "cup" the striking surface, so I try =
to do
11:30 and 12:30, which may still scrunch the striking surface, =
especially in
the hi treble, but if they're really hard, I do it anyway, then smooth =
them
off with a sandpaper paddle, and use the voicing needle to fine-voice, =
since
the Vise-grips are more for a gross softening-down of
string-breaking "rocks". --Dave Nereson, RPT
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