[CAUT] bechstein

[Ric Brekne]

Hi David

I mean that with a 5.7 ratio you could easily handle a bit heavier
hammers.  You see, for a specified 38 BW a 5.7 ratio matches very well
with a top medium strikeweight curve. This assumes a 9 gram WBW ... ie.
(KR * WRW). Yours is closer to 10 but thats not enough to make a big
enough difference to worry about for now.  With these givens (ratio,
wbw, and BW) you can match Strike weights to Front weights and the trick
is to end up at or below what is recommended as maximums for FW's.  What
actually should be maximums for FW's gets a bit subjective... but for
the sake of learning your Stanwood ropes just accept his table of
maximums.  With a 5.7 ratio, 38 gram BW spec, 10 gram WBW and going all
the way to the maximum FW's you can still handle a top medium curve
nicely.  Heavier hammers then that will require too much FW or
combination of FW and assist springs.  Essentially... you dont have
enough levearge to use a heavier SW curve then top mediums with these specs.

Takes a bit of practice... but if you work with Stanwoods formula and
his charts very much eventually becomes clear enough.  Alternatively...
you can do as many will suggest and go with a lower SW curve... such as
your exisiting one.  That will allow you to counter balance with FW's
well below the suggested maximums and still get a reasonably low BW.. 38
for example. This is attractive to those amoung us who believe much
lower mass levels in the keys is a desirable.

One immediatly will move into a more complicated series of questions
about mass levels in keys and its effect on play... but at your stage I
would suggest getting the basics of Stanwoods Balance methodology down
and understood. In its simplest form, I like to think of his method as a
very precise way of doing the weigh off process... one that utilizes
very even SW values key to key as a starting point.  Learn how to
balance a SW curve with an existing ratio first... then move on to
bigger and better things if you get my meaning.

I can offer you a walk through with your action off list if you like,
but only as much as Stanwoods patent allows for.  Essentially that means
you can not install FW's figured with his balance equation.  You can
figure them for the sake of learning... but you will have to install
FW's established a different way. And there are some good alternatives
given an even SW curve and a known ratio as a starting point.

Cheers
RicB





New parts will help the friction problems.   I'm still foggy on this
whole thing...you say the 5.7 ration is doable but I could go up a
notch...that means 5.8 or 5.6?   I'm looking at a 1/4 or 1/2 medium
hammer weight curve, right?   Do I follow the hammer curve before I hang
the hammers...HW...seems easier without the shank in the way?   I have
been reading through the archives and I feel like Terry Farrell back in
2002 when he was trying to learn this stuff...

David Ilvedson, RPT
Pacifica, CA  94044