Strings riding up (was Tuning stability)

Ron Nossaman rnossaman@cox.net
Thu, 08 Apr 2004 10:48:35 -0500


>      A couple factors which may have affect on this issue have not been 
> discussed.
>
>1.  A twist or fraction of a twist in a treble string could impose a force 
>to roll the string up or down a bridge pin rather than slide.  I suspect 
>many have accidental twists or partial twists.

Strings don't roll at a contact point where the wire has been bent around 
the point to beyond the plastic deformation limit of the wire. It's a 
permanent bend. A twist in a string, however slight or severe, would not 
affect this.


>2.  String curvature memory from having once been coiled which is visible 
>in string removed after 30 years of being at pitch.  This could have 
>different affects depending on how this curvature is oriented.

People with more experience and better equipment than I have intentionally 
tried to verify this bit of mythology. They couldn't detect a difference 
any more than I have been able to with my own experiments. Anything that 
critical should be pretty obvious to anyone who has ever replaced a string. 
Since it isn't obvious, I presume it isn't critical.


>My experience with our D was a definite perceptible improvement in 
>sustain, power, and clarity to some notes from taping once 
>judiciously/gently down on every bridge pin in the killer octave.   On 
>some strings, the tuning pitch dropped three or more BPS, on others it had 
>no affect.
>
>-Mike Jorgensen

By tapping the pins, you effectively seated the strings with the rough 
equivalent of a 20 pound weight courtesy of the friction from the offset 
angle. Yes, I expect it did sound cleaner.

Ron N


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