Barbara, Check out this site for shellac flakes: http://www.shellac.net/ShellacPricing.html Alan -- Alan McCoy, RPT Eastern Washington University amccoy@mail.ewu.edu 509-359-4627 > From: Barbara Richmond <piano57@flash.net> > Reply-To: "College and University Technicians <caut@ptg.org>" <caut@ptg.org> > Date: Mon, 23 May 2005 15:52:57 -0500 > To: "College and University Technicians <caut@ptg.org>" <caut@ptg.org> > Subject: Re: [CAUT] Self voicing hammers/work hardening > > Hey Susan, > > Great advice--though you'd never have to worry about me lacquering the heck > out of hammers. If they call me, this could turn out to be the first > time in my life I've worked on Steinway hammers that *weren't* lacquered to > death (but, I'm pretty good at working with the ones that have been!). > > By the by, where do you get your shellac flakes--paint store, word working > store, internet? I have also experienced the phenomenon of keytop/acetone > disappearing--maybe because I don't use a strong concentration and/or very > much of it, either. > > Barbara Richmond > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Susan Kline" <skline@peak.org> > To: "College and University Technicians" <caut@ptg.org> > Sent: Monday, May 23, 2005 3:15 PM > Subject: Re: [CAUT] Self voicing hammers/work hardening > > >> Hi, Barbara >> >> Maybe there's an intermediate course to pursue, in between waiting years >> for playing the >> Steinway to brighten up the treble, and lacquering the heck out of it, >> which would >> make you more trouble later on, and less variety of tone. >> >> A local church bought a brand new S&S B (yes! nice donor!!), and they had >> University >> piano majors come in and practice on it. Still, the voicing was a little >> off, erratic, >> not matching well between registers. When I started looking after it, I >> filed a dab, >> gave it hard tunings, and they started playing concerts on it, concerts by >> pianists >> who (while classical and unamplified) certainly didn't hold back on >> volume. In a >> year or two, it became very pleasant indeed, and without hardeners other >> than >> whatever was put in when it arrived. Now, of course, I'm working on duplex >> zings. >> >> Perhaps your church could get people to practice Liszt (or Rachmaninoff or >> Prokofiev) >> on it, and you might use a little bit of shellac just behind the strike >> point in >> the capo areas if it still seems hopelessly fluffy. The shellac breaks >> down over >> time instead of just getting harsher and harsher -- so as the playing in >> achieves >> its aims, the shellac bows out. I would use ultra-blonde flakes dissolved >> in 190 proof >> ethyl alcohol, so that it dries very fast and the color isn't too >> obnoxious. >> A fairly dilute cut. Be sure to keep the bottle closed so that water >> doesn't >> get into it from the air. Shelf life isn't indefinite, though longer than >> the >> hardware store shellac, which I wouldn't use. >> >> Well, ... it might work? Practice with the shellac on a piano with old >> hammers? It's what I'd >> think of doing, anyway. >> >> Susan >> _______________________________________________ >> caut list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives >> > > > _______________________________________________ > caut list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives
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