strings cannot be tuned!

[David ilvedson]

> Date:          Thu, 16 Jan 1997 21:32:03 -0500 (EST)
> From:          Hrschm@aol.com
> Subject:       strings cannot be tuned!
> To:            pianotech@byu.edu
> Reply-to:      pianotech@byu.edu

Russell,

Could be the pinblock isn't pulled up tight against the plate.
Consider tightening all the plate screws including the ones into
the pinblock.  I had a stability problem on a Yamaha C7 some
years ago and the factory recommended letting the tension down
and tightening all the plate screws.  It worked!

ilvey, RPT
Pacifica, CA


>        I service a Howard Grand piano. The owner told me when I started
> tuning for him that there were three notes in  the upper treble that would
> not stay in tune . He mentioned that there had been a string or two replaced
> on those notes so I thought it must be going out of tune before the rest of
> the piano because of the new strings streaching . However, I had a terible
> time tuning these notes . they are the G6 , G#6 , and A6 . The G and G# are
> the two notes to the Left of the highest plate strut and the A
> is to the Right of the strut . Each time I would tune these notes a good test
> blow would knock them out again. Even trying to anticipates how much the test
> blow would drop the
> pitch of the note did not help. After about 15 minutes on these three notes I
> was somehow able to stabalize them and the owner said they stayed in tune
> longer than usual. On my next visit it was even worse . I must have spent 20
> minutes trying to tune these notes and when they were stabalized the unisons
> did not match well.
>
>        The bridge looks fine and the coils on the tuning pin looks good. I
> suspect because the notes are all beside each other and they are on either
> side of a plate strut that the problem is not in the strings but in the
> structure of the piano in this area . only these notes are a problem . Does
> anyone have any ideas as to what might be going on here
> I would greatly appreciate any input anyone might have
>
>
>                                Russell Schmidt R.P.T.
>
>                                 Lexington , KY
>
>
ilvey, RPT
Pacifica, CA