[CAUT] practice rail

[Ed Sutton]

Fred-

Wood or aluminum, there is much to be said for your thought of a rail you 
lift in and out from above.
There is the problem of clearance of pins and pressure bars, and a tendency 
to tangle on the hammer heads that can happen with the rotating bar system.
There is also a potential for having different weights of moderator cloth on 
different rails for different degrees of tonal change. Thin cloth can be 
very musical.

Ed S.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <dew2 at u.washington.edu>
To: <caut at ptg.org>
Sent: Thursday, November 05, 2009 11:36 AM
Subject: Re: [CAUT] practice rail


>I installed a Quiet-Keys rail in a Charles Walter studio in 1998. I admit 
>to being skeptical at the start, but when I was done, it seemed to work 
>pretty well. I've even serviced the piano a couple of times since, and it 
>still works. It did take a bit of thought to get it all to work as well as 
>I wanted, but not a bad job. The one thing I don't know is how much they 
>actually use it. But I think I'd do it again in the sort of situation you 
>describe.
>
> Doug
>
> On Thu, 5 Nov 2009, Fred Sturm wrote:
>
>> He wants one so he can practice and not disturb the rest of his family. I 
>> am not impressed by the retrofit kits I have seen. I'm thinking maybe of 
>> just making a wood strip that would rest securely on the action brackets 
>> (grooves to make it secure, and spacers fore and aft), that he could 
>> place and remove. The piano in question is an old Steinway upright, with 
>> a split lid, so there is easy access. And the customer is the sort who 
>> could handle it. But I'd welcome some thoughts before I plunge in. (Yes, 
>> the letoff needs to be a bit wide so as not to block hammers).
>> I used one as a college student. I could practice piano at the same time 
>> as my wife practiced harpsichord in the next room. Certainly not ideal, 
>> but practical. Also good for middle of the night insomniacs.
>> Fred
>> On Nov 5, 2009, at 8:30 AM, Joe Goss wrote:
>>
>>> Hi Fred,
>>> Ask Why They want the mute.
>>> Personally my feeling is that it robs the upright ( PRESUMING ON MY 
>>> PART ) of dynamic level on the fff  and causes the action to be less 
>>> responsive due to larger let off needed so that the hammers do not 
>>> block.
>>> BTW is the regulation set so that the player can play soft as a whisper 
>>> and loud as a trumpeting elephant?
>>> Is this a Samick? No reflection negatively on the product, just thinking 
>>> of a key problem easily solved.
>>> Joe Goss BSMusEd MMusEd RPT
>>> imatunr at srvinet.com
>>> www.mothergoosetools.com
>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Fred Sturm" <fssturm at unm.edu>
>>> To: "College & University Technicians" <caut at ptg.org>
>>> Sent: Thursday, November 05, 2009 8:10 AM
>>> Subject: [CAUT] practice rail
>>>
>>>
>>>> A customer has asked me to install a practice rail (muffler felt). I 
>>>> haven't done this retrofit before. I see Jansen has one. Are there 
>>>> others? Any advice, comments?
>>>> Regards,
>>>> Fred Sturm
>>>> University of New Mexico
>>>> fssturm at unm.edu
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>
>> Regards,
>> Fred Sturm
>> University of New Mexico
>> fssturm at unm.edu
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>