Tight and Squeaky Tuning Pins

[Jon Page]

A few season changes just may 'size' the holes enough
for the jumping to alleviate itself.

Jon Page

At 11:52 AM 08/01/1999 -0500, you wrote:
>Howdy,
>
>I just finished stringing a Kawai upright.  Before starting
>I always try a few preliminary tests.  My test indicated
>that 4/0 pins would do very nicely.  Slightly tight but not
>excessive, (I would rather see slightly tight pins than
>marginally tight since this will ensure long lasting
>tunability over the years).  I did not ream the holes, as my
>experience in doing this has not been favorable.  Having
>completed the stringing I am now finding that the pins are
>excessively tight, tighter than my pre stringing tests.
>They are also very jumpy and squeaky.  I have strung many
>pianos and have always had excellent results, even on my
>first piano.  This is the first time I have experienced this
>kind of result.  The piano is tunable but not anywhere near
>as friendly as it should be.
>
>Has anyone discovered a way of improving this condition?
>Obviously an impact hammer might be helpful in tuning but
>that is not my question.  I was thinking last night, I
>wonder if heating the pins might reduce the friction a
>little, kind of like heating a tight center pin.  Not enough
>to char the wood mind you, but perhaps it would ease the
>holes a little.  Of course this might polish the inside of
>the holes too and make things worse.  What do you think, any
>ideas?
>
>I eagerly await your thoughts ;-)
>
>thanks,
>
>Rob Goodale, RPT
>  

Jon Page,  Harwich Port,  Cape Cod,  Mass.  mailto:jpage@capecod.net
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