S&S Hammers

[David C. Stanwood]

Michael Jorgensen Wrote:

                                                      > ...As I work on
>individual hammers, brightening them to the tone I want, I invariably end
>up treating individual hammers differently.  Herein lies the problem,
>though I have no trouble getting concert tone from them, they always end
>up different from one another.  Typically, neighboring hammers have
>received slightly different amounts of filing, radically different
>amounts of hardeners, radically different amounts of needling, and
>somewhat differing shapes, sizes, and weights.  One must now make them
>even, which is an equally daunting challenge now that they are so
>permanently altered from one another.  

Dear Michael and List,

As to weight variations and the effect on note to note consistency of tone....
Measuring the strike weight and smoothing out the bumps has been found to
save a lot time needling and/or individual hardening.  This has been my
experience as well as that of many fine concert techs I know who work with
component balancing techniques.  The consensus is that smoothing strike
weight and is a voicing foundation.

David C. Stanwood