[CAUT] left to right or R to L?

[Ron Nossaman]

>>     The stringing recommendation from Steinway (given decades ago in
>>     an undated "Parts Price List") is quoted below:
>>      
>>     /In stringing Steinway Grands /[sic]/, it is best to start at the
>>     top of the center section and work upwards thru the lower treble
>>     section and upper treble section to note #88.  Then start at the
>>     bottom of the center section and work up to the top, then start at
>>     note #1 and work up to the top of the bass section.  This stresses
>>     the soundboard properly to afford good working clearances in all
>>     cases./
> I heard a similar thing some 30 years ago that purported to come from 
> Steinway. I was told one should bring the strings to tension in 
> something like this order, or the "soundboard tone" might be killed. 
> There was a story of how this happened once (someone brought strings to 
> tension in the wrong order and the piano "was dead"), and the 
> "consulting tech" lowered all the tension and then re-tensioned in the 
> correct order, and the piano "came back to life." 

It's a miracle! Was there a blemish on the soundboard that 
looked like Elvis, if you squinted just right? <G>


> The person who told me this tale said he didn't really believe it. I 
> don't either. I take it as yet one more fable among the many out there.

And it probably came about by reading something "official" 
like the above about stressing the board to provide working 
clearances as a practical matter, and imagining some other 
magical curses involving "stress", like the peripheral posting 
this thread has generated.


> I think Ron N. has it right: a practical matter of getting the 
> soundboard low enough if it happens that bridges are too close to plate 
> struts. And I have to say that I wonder about whether that scenario 
> (bridge pins touching or nearly touching struts) would occur unless 
> somebody had made a mistake that maybe ought to be corrected before 
> putting strings on. But, hey, I'm just a bystander offering advice <G>.
> 
> Regards,
> Fred Sturm

If your board has any real crown, and you're putting any real 
bearing on it, this will happen. I wouldn't call it anything 
that needs fixed, because in actual use, it's not an issue. 
Just comes up in the assembly stage, and if we sent those 
Steinways back to the Mother Ship for proper rebuilding like 
any conscientious conservator should (instead of attempting to 
do it ourselves), we'd never know it even happened.
Ron N