[CAUT] Oops,My take on them,

[Wolfley, Eric (wolfleel)]

Ed,

 

As I have read your posts I keep thinking to myself, isn't it funny how
we can all be using the same group of hammers and have such different
results and opinions of them? My experiences with hard-pressed hammers
here have been almost exactly the opposite from yours. I'll digress a
moment here to mention that I used to be quite enamored of the Abel
hammers I was getting from Wally Brooks, especially the larger
"performance size" hammers. (This was during the period where you
couldn't count on getting a set of Steinway hammers within 6 months
after ordering them and when they came they looked like potatoes). I put
them on everything from Steinway Ds to Baldwin Ms and thought they were
the cat's pajamas because they made the pianos speak right up with a
clear voice. After a while though, I found that there was something that
just wasn't satisfying about the sound to my ears. I found the same
thing with Renner Blues, though I didn't use them as much. When I put
them on a Steinway, it sounded like....well, it sounded like a Steinway
with Renner hammers on it. It was missing something to my ears. At about
this time, Steinway decided they were going to have a real parts
department with parts in stock and I decided to try Steinway hammers
again. I was pleasantly surprised. The hammers looked better than ever
and have been improving ever since. When I fax in an order the hammers
are here 2 days later without fail. They also filled in what I heard was
missing in the sound...they made our Steinways sound like Steinways. I
like the Ronsen Wurzens too, and we have put them on quite a few older
Baldwins we have in our practice and rehearsal rooms. A caution: the 16
lb Ronsen Wurtzen are pretty darn heavy so you'll need an action with a
good ratio to handle them. I put them in larger pianos and they sound
really good. The 14 lb hammers work well in the smaller grands. I'll
probably try Wurzens on a couple of practice room Steinways next chance
I get to see how they compare. I love being able to experiment on
instruments that get a lot of use...you can find out a lot in a short
period of time.

 

As far as longevity goes, I've found that 2-4 years in one of our
piano-major practice rooms will pretty much do in any hammer made. The
more popular pianos will wear out faster because they are probably
played 20% more. I tried putting Abels on a couple of our Steinway Ls
and they sounded great for about 2 months and then started becoming
harsher and harsher very quickly. They sounded like hell after 1 year
and were beyond voicing because they were so flat on top. I replaced
them with Steinway hammers and found that they sounded better for a
longer period of time and were easy to voice down when they got harsh.
Even though they will ultimately wear out nearly as fast, they have what
I consider a longer "useful" life. That is, they sound better longer.
Ronsen Wurzens are about the same as the Steinway hammers. My experience
is that they have a longer useful life. The Ronsen Bacon hammers are an
economical alternative but don't sound as good to my ears and need more
juice to get them to speak.

 

Eric

 

 

 

 

Eric Wolfley, RPT 
Head Piano Technician 
Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music 
University of Cincinnati 

________________________________

From: caut-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:caut-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf Of
A440A at aol.com
Sent: Friday, September 14, 2007 7:41 AM
To: caut at ptg.org
Subject: [CAUT] Oops,My take on them,

 

I writes:






I think I am going to do just that. 


I think I am going to pay more attention to where I send the "reply"
button, sorry for the off-list reply, BUT,  while I am here.....

   I have no particular allegience to any hammer, but have been using
theRenner because I became familiar with how they develop and how I can
maintain them.  I don't like the amount of needling work they requre but
it has been worth it for the longevity and tonal range I can get out of
them.  
    How have the Ronsen AA Wurzen and the Ronsen Bacon felt hammers
performed in heavy use situations, out there?  
Thanks and mea culpa, 




Ed Foote RPT



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