Yamaha C3 voicing

[Newton Hunt]

The wonderful thing about working in a university situation
is that you can experiment and learn.

I have used pliers and have not been happy with the
results.  Not enough for too much work and blisters.

I have dipped hammers in a solution of near boiling water
and Woolite for good results but the strike point becomes
quite narrow requiring extra spacing time.  No real problem
and they did come down mostly.  A little needling finished
the job after a _lot_ of filing.

I have tried needles.  After three days I said enough
already.  I did not get the sound I wanted but it was not as
bright.

I used steam on a Kawai and the results were rather nice
with next to no effort.  I used a portable clothes steamer
about the size of a pint bottle of Scotch.  Steamer lower
over hammers standing up so it took maybe ten seconds to
cover the whole line left to right.  Go a little slower in
the bass and maybe go over them a little, very little, on
the shoulders.

I have not used the wet cloth method but I do like it. 
Control don't you know.

Some technicians have said that steaming will ruin a set of
Yamaha hammers.  Ruin is a relative term but based upon
whose standards?  I am sure Yamaha feels it ruins their
hammers but if it does what you want to get then you are
meeting your objectives.  We Americans prefer to hear a
different sound than the Asians do, just my observation.

Out of pure self defense I was putting Ronson hammers on
Kawais to help prevent broken treble strings.  I was
absolutely stunned at how open and round the tone became. 
BIG bass, nicely balanced middle and not so shrill a treble
but still a nice round tone.

So what if you "ruin" a set of hammers.  Change them, I
would like a set of Abels myself.

Get radical.

		Newton