Re. Bobbling hammers on Yamaha upright

James Ellis claviers@nxs.net
Mon, 19 Apr 2004 15:52:44 -0400


Yes Vince, changing to a thicker butt felt, and then re-regulating, might
stop the bobbling, but it's not the fix I would like to see.  That would
also change the leverage ratio a little bit.  The ratio is just fine the
way it is.  The problem is too much of a hump at the very front of the butt
leather, making the jack have to move too far out before it will clear.

This is the only Yamaha upright that I tune regularly that does this.  It's
about two years old, in a church chapel, and does not get used a lot, so
it's not a matter of wear.  As I said, the funny thing is, a few hammers do
it badly unless I pound hard and really knock the jacks way back at
let-off.  The others don't, no matter how I play.  Everything is lined up
right on the money.  At full key-stroke and let-off, neighboring jacks line
up perfectly - same distance out.  One bumps the butt leather, but the
other does not.

The other funny thing is, no one has complained about it.  I don't think
they even notice it.  Next time I tune it, I expect to find a few more
bobbling, at which time I will fix it.

I'm glad I read all your various posts on the subject before it came time
to tune this piano again.  This is the first time it has started doing
this.  Having read your posts, I looked closely to see what was going on,
and that's what I found.

Thanks, Guys,

Jim Ellis



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