Bass bridge bearing question

[Ron Nossaman]

>I am trying to determing the optimum bearing for the bass bridge of a
>Monarch studio upright.   It has an apron.  The bridge is detached from the
>apron and the apron is detached from the "shoe"(?) or strip of wood on the
>SB that the apron is glued to.   If I do not shim I will have a tiny bit of
>bearing, less than 1/16" (.06") or 1.5 mm.     This is from the plane of the
>string wo the bridge.  So the bridge might only push up on the string 1.5 mm
>or less.   The entire piano has the tension let down.
>
>    Is 1.5 mm enough or should I go for more?   Is there "theory" or idea
>that bridges with aprons need less bearing?  ---ric


This should be enough. Did you check the bearing on the tenor bridge while
the strings were still at pitch? If so, you can check it now and see how
far you can expect the soundboard to deflect when you pull it back up. That
will tell you something about what will happen in the bass under load.
Better yet, pull the rest of the piano to pitch and measure again before
permanently attaching the bass bridge. If you have any bearing at all,
you're probably fine.

Just curious, why is the tension down in the rest of the piano?

Ron N