Steam Caution

[Roger Jolly]

Hi Greg,
             Whilst it has been obvious that I disagree with Yamaha on the
question of steam voicing hammers.  Many of their problems with the
technique, has been caused by inappropriate use of steam.
In fairness, they have replaced 10's of thousands of dollars worth of
hammers under warranty, that have been grossly over voiced. No wonder it
leaves a sour taste in their mouth.
At a recent regional convention, Leroy Edwards sat in on one of my voicing
classes where steam voicing was demonstrated.  Out of courteousy to Leroy
and the Yamaha Corp. I asked if he would share with us the company position.
He reiterated the company position which is well known, and explained some
of the horror stories.  Then he made a statement that the method of using a
damp cloth and voicing iron was controlled, and  was entirely different
than the  wide variety of steam generating devices that are causing them so
many problems. He was very gracious, and I respect his point of view.
For those who think I may be a focused on steam as the way to voice, you
are wrong. It is only one tool that I use. For a Betsy Ross spinet it is a
fast and cheap way to get some musically into the beast, On a quality
instrument it can soften the tone down quickly, but traditional methods are
used to do the refined work.
Richard has outlined his position, and have I had the same experience.
Correctly used steam is a great asset, but aggresive steam generators is
not the place to start, Unless you are prepared to pay for replacing a set
of ruined hammers.
I have been fortunate enough to have recieved some training in Japan and
I'm very at home using their methods.  
Please be careful and don't over do a good thing.
Regards roger 



>List,
>    Recently I found a steamer that I really like a lot. I don't
>remember this name coming up before but if so just hit the delete key.
>It's made by Eureka and it's called the "Hot Shot". It has a multitude
>of attachments and a really nice built in nozzle on a swivel so you can
>direct the steam very well. I've used it a couple times now to remove
>key bushings and other hide glue attached felts. It really does work
>nicely. The steam comes out in a rather powerful jet. I haven't used it
>to voice hammers with yet but I'm waiting until I get something in the
>shop here to try it on. I really don't want another thing to carry
>around in my van. Needles still work very well for the traveling tech,
>thank you very much. Anyway , thought you'd like to know.
>
>Greg Newell
> 
Roger Jolly
Saskatoon, Canada.
306-665-0213
Fax 652-0505