stability question

[Jim Coleman, Sr.]

Hi K:

You are lucky! The worst worst situation for church pianos is where heating
and air conditioning is turned on only on Sat. night and Sunday mornings.
Our church is this way. My son Phil and I take turns tuning the piano about
once every months or two. The only main thing which happens environmentally
in your situation is that the warm bodies come on Sunday.

If you can measure torque on the tuning pins, that may be and indicating
that you need to do something about the pins, however, if after you treat,
re-pin or whatever and you still have the problem, then you must try to
find out how the piano is being used. Are you finding broken Bass strings
occasionally? This would indicate that the piano is just being beaten to
death. If this is the case, they need amplification for the piano. No
amount of treatment of the pins is going to solve that problem.

If there are strings which slip down a half step between tunings, then I
would say that there is a tuning pin (pinblock) problem. If there are just
a few pins which respond radically like this, then the CA glue may be a
solution for this case.

We need more information about how the piano is going out of tune.

Jim Coleman, Sr.

On Thu, 19 Aug 1999, K Anderson wrote:

> Hi, List,   
> I am looking for some input on a small problem;  if it's addressed in the
> archives I apologize for boring you - I don't have Internet.  The problem
> concerns a Story & Clark #413683, one of the ones "Built for churches";
> it is a church's sanctuary piano & their main worship instrument.  It
> just will not stay in tune longer than about 6 weeks.  After two months
> it's distinctly out of tune and after 2  1/2 months they call for another
> tuning. I don't mind tuning a piano often, but I feel badly for the
> church music budget. 
> 	There's a sticker just under the lid where the previous tunuer
> kept records; they shopw the piano was usually tuned at least three times
> a year, and those were not touch-ups; some hefty cent's deviations are
> recorded.
> 	Its last few tunings were in December, Feb. 16,  and June 1st. 
> In February I installed a Hyrdo-Dry bar, hoping that would at least help
> to lengthen time between tunings a little. Didn't help much - maybe added
> two weeks.  I'd prefer a Damp-Chaser unit but they can be spendy & I'm
> trying to help the church save a little, so I tried the Hydro-Dry first
> just to see.
> 	The piano is not in ther best location: treble end  is mere
> inches from a heating vent (forced air heat),  and a door to the outdoors
> about 6 feet nehind the piano.  Not a main door, but a door anyway.  The
> building has no air conditioning.I have suggested that it be moved, if
> possible, to the other end of the stage, where there is no heat vent and
> no exterior door.
> 	I see the piano again on Saturday;  am thinking about doping the
> block.  Any input? Thanks in advance -
>  Kris Anderson, RPT
> Hibbing , MN
> 
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