Strip Muting/unisons

[Roger C Hayden]

Graeme,

I use three strips.  The newest felt  in the temperment area.  Stuffed
between every unison.    !!! felt !!! felt !!! felt !!!  etc . (BTW if
you're having trouble setting temperment, try a new felt.),  the second
newest in the high treble above the break, making neat short loops and
sliding them behind the dampers, (tough in some pianos).  And the third
most worn strip in the bass, (closer strings, thinner felt). Then I set
temperment, and octaves chromatically into the treble, tuning all middle
strings.  Next to the bass, tuning chromatically whatever single string
is singing.  (You'll catch on to the pattern in the tuning pins of
singing stings quickly.)  

Then I pull out all the felts, yes, all the felts!!  And stuff the mid
section felts back in, this time between every other unison.  For example
  !!! felt  !!!  !!! felt !!!  !!! felt  !!!   etc.  This is where I use
whole steps, in tuning the unisons, and where it seems to go very
quickly.  You'll notice that the available pins/strings needing tuning
are in a straight line.  I do the top set of pins in whole steps to the
top.  Then the bottom set.

Then I go to the bass, and tune down, using whole steps again, and again
you'll notice the pins needing tuning are often in a straight line.  Then
I 'turn the corner' and tune the rest of the bass strings coming back up.

Next, I pull out the temperment strips and tune the other available
strings in whole steps, also in a straight line.  

I have had only to use rubber mutes three times, at the breaks and on the
top C.  (And of course for checking and tweaking.)

I tried pulling out the felts and tuning one side of each unison, and
lost time because it was extra motion, plus it has to be done
chromatically.

I found by taking the time to stuff the felts back in again at every
other unison I save a lot of motion.

I originally had learned to tune by moving the rubber mutes around, and
found the tedium driving me crazy.  With the felts and this method I can
leave my hands at their work, not reaching for mutes or felts, just tune,
tune, tune.

I once did a quite satisfactory fine tuning in 17 minutes.  (A very
friendly Baldwin spinet, but I don't think it would have passed the
exam...)  My fine tunings average 35 to 55 minutes,  for which I charge
$65.00.  I used this tuning sequence method for my RPT tuning exam and
scored very high.  (two points short of CTE score, and some 100's)

My pitch raises, including putting in the felts, average 13 to 15
minutes. (For which I charge $35.00)
  
(BTW, felting grands can be done just once with four felts, and going
into every other unison alternating your felts.  Tune all middle strings
and singles, pull out one set of felts, tune a set of unisons, pull out
the other set of felts, and finish the unisons.)

Roger Hayden, RPT

On Thu, 27 Jan 2000 22:18:43 +1300 "Graeme Harvey"
<gharvey@netsource.co.nz> writes:
> Roger,
> I've just come in on this thread, somehow missed the start.
> How do you strip mute the treble section? Do you slip the action 
> forward or
> what? I strip up to about C5 (52) at which point I run out of space 
> above
> the hammerline. I'm just curious. I was taught by two tuners in the 
> workshop
> I spent my early years in, one used single mute and the other strip 
> muted
> the temperament only.
> These days I strip mute down to last bichord.
> 
> Of course there isn't any reason why using your method you could fit 
> both
> strips simultaneously, (below the hammer / damper line above say A4 
> ) tune
> the centre strings, then simply pull out one strip leaving the other 
> in
> place covering every other outside string. This makes sense only if 
> you are
> removing the action to mute in the first place.
> 
> Graeme Harvey
> New Plymouth NZ
> 
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Roger C Hayden <rchayden2@juno.com>
> To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
> Sent: Thursday, January 27, 2000 7:37 PM
> Subject: Re: Strip Muting/unisons
> 
> 
> > I like strip muting and whole step tuning, too.  I discovered it 
> while
> > doing time/motion studies on the fastest method of tuning (for 
> me).  The
> > stop watch told me what was quicker.
> > Strip muting the whole piano, leaving the middle string singing, 
> and then
> > tuning all them I found quick.
> >
> > Then strip muting again every other unison, leaving the middle 
> string and
> > one outside (out of tune) string singing let me set these strings 
> in
> > next, doing them by whole steps, because getting to the end of 
> several
> > short trips seems psychologically so much easier than one long 
> tedious
> > trip.
> >
> > Then I pull the strip out and tune the other set of outside 
> strings,
> > again working in whole steps.  I found this much faster, because I 
> can
> > strip mute a whole piano in under two minutes, which doesn't 
> compare with
> > handling a rubber mute upwards of 200 times.
> >
> > And I agree that whole steps seem to keep the ear fresher, and 
> when in
> > the treble undampered strings, a note that continues to sustain a 
> whole
> > step away from where you are now tuning doesn't seem to interfere 
> as
> > much.
> >
> > The psychological element of whole step tuning is critical.  I, 
> too
> > average five tunings a day, have done seven tunings many times, 
> and a
> > couple of days, ten.  Chromatic scales are very intense to listen 
> to.  Ed
> > Pettingill, who taught me much twenty years ago, found tuning to 
> be very
> > nerve racking.  I do not.  Ed used rubber mutes and chromatic 
> sequencing.
> > (Of course he's also a violist.)
> >
> > Roger Hayden, RPT
> >
>