Keydip: METHOD(long)

[Lance Lafargue]

Ed and Rigerio,

A hole drilled in an American Lincoln head penny gives the right aftertouch
in most situations (for all but the most precise work). I carry one for
quick work and I find after getting used to it, you can be pretty accurate.

Lance Lafargue, RPT
Mandeville, LA
New Orleans Chapter


-----Original Message-----
From: owner-pianotech@ptg.org [mailto:owner-pianotech@ptg.org]On Behalf
Of A440A@AOL.COM
Sent: Monday, August 23, 1999 6:01 AM
To: pianotech@ptg.org
Subject: Keydip: METHOD(long)


 rogerio writes:
>What is the method "key deep by aftertouch priority method"?

Greetings,
     This is a method of setting keydip by aftertouch.  It allows the
physical distance the key actually moves to vary slightly, but produces the
same amount of aftertouch on each.
    For all but the most "picky of the picky", here is how I determine the
key dip.
After the let-off and the hammer blow are determined and set,  I place a
cardboard punching of the desired thickness* over the front felt punching.
(I
usually use new front felt punchings on full regulations).  Then I adjust
the
key dip until the jack will just barely escape from under the knuckle with
the key pressed** all the way down.  Removing the punching then allows that
distance to be felt as "aftertouch".

   * .050 is usually the maximum, but different customers, and different
actions can cause this to vary between .030" to .060".  I can't give a
specific measurment here because  if there is a short ratio in the key,
(giving a lot of leverage to the key, but little travel at the capstan),  I
will use less aftertouch to keep the keydip to a minimum, which on some of
the sixties era Steinways will still approach .400" and sometimes more.
      If there is a long ratio,  with all the effort is done in a shorter
space, and I will allow more aftertouch to keep the keydip from being too
shallow, but excessive aftertouch on these "long" actions seems to be felt
by
pianists as vagueness, and I get comments like "I don't really know where
the
bottom is", so I will usually allow the keydip to be shallower on them.
The
demands of either of these extreme key ratios can be ameliorated by
hammerblow changes, but you can only go so far down before hitting the rest
felts, and if you go up too far, you will risk catastropic repetition
failure.
   Different pianists like different amounts of aftertouch, but they all
seem
to like it consistant.
     I can't take credit for the above procedure, Chris Robinson
demonstrated
it at the New Orleans convention some years ago, and when I took it home and
redid a few actions for my "critique" customers, they raved about a new
sense
of consistancy.

     (obsessive/compulsives will appreciate the following!)
If I am regulating for the
"absolute-ever-and-ever-closest-in-the-world-amen"
target, I start with as close of a measured keydip as possible,(key level
must also be as perfect as possible), then adjust dip as above.  However,  I
will have put a blue paper punching under all the front felts before I
start,
and if I need to take more than this out to get the aftertouch even,  I will
slightly raise the hammer instead.  Conversely, if I need to add more than
the blue to my already linearly measured keydip, I will lower the hammer
until the jack skips out.  This splits the differences between the two
parameters, and even though the hammer line will look slightly ragged, the
feel of the evenness is improved. (This is a lot more work for something
that
very few will be able to detect, but it does, imho, give the ultimate in
feel).
   **What this procedure depends on is the ability to press the keys with
the
same amount of force while watching for escapement. (eye-balling the
jack?(:)}}).  So, the final decision is determined by the sense of touch,
and
it is amazing how close the sense can be honed with a little practise. After
all, that is the way the pianist is going to measure your results.
     If you desire, a thicker punching with heavier pressure will yield more
consistant results than a thin one with very light pressure,  but that is a
decision that the individual technician will have to arrive at for their own
work.  I usually determine what punching to use by just blindly regulating a
keydip from the playing position, and then finding what thickness gives me
that aftertouch when I get down to eyelevel for the rest of them.
    It does take a little practise, but if it was easy, everybody would be
doing it!
Regards,
Ed Foote
Precision Piano Works
Nashville, Tn.