Recrowning the soundboard

[Ron Nossaman]

>Forgive me for all capping, I think that the soundboard is important.

No problem. I do too, which is why I'm trying to find out what the shouting
is about.



>Unless someone has driven a truck through the old soundboard, I would not
>replace an old one with a new one.  The exception is flood damage where it
>sat wet long enough to get major reverse crown.  Then I would keep the old
>board only if I could get it out of the piano and get all the ribs off
>without major damage.

Yes, you've made all that quite clear.



>If you allow me this observation.  You would never consider restoring a 280
>year old Stradivarius violin by tossing out the soundboard and replacing it,
>would you?  But we would with a piano much younger?

First, a violin is not remotely a piano, in spite of the apparent
relentlessness with which folks insist on comparing them. The soundboards
are worlds apart in both form and function. Second, we aren't talking for
the most part about Stradivarius quality and market pianos. If I was
rebuilding pianos worth hundreds of thousands, to millions of dollars, with
the sound they're producing what makes them worth the price, no, I
wouldn't. Would you recrown that same old Stradivarius top as a matter of
course, expecting to improve it? 



>Recrowning the soundboard is not a procedure that can be written in an
>email. 

Why not? Does it require pictures?


>I have been writing on a booklet for some time that details such
>work.  I may have it available on my soon-to-be-put-up website in a few
>months.  It involves putting the soundboard back under the pressure it had
>on it when new.  If you think of the top and bottom surfaces of the
>soundboard as two parallel lines starting and ending at the same points, you
>will realize that if the top line is made longer it pulls the bottom line
>into an arc.  the ends stay together and do not move.  This is the whole
>principal.  Art Reblitz does the same procedure that I do.  Perhaps he will
>also write a book about it.  It makes the difference between an old piano
>sounding like an old piano after restringing and that same piano sounding
>like a new one but with an extra roundness or darkness of tone.  It also
>prevents soundboard shims opening up from cracking down one side a few years
>later.
>
>D.L. Bullock

So it looks like we'll have to wait for the web page unless someone who
knows Art can ask him. Thanks for the reply. Those of us who are interested
will be looking forward to further clarification.

Ron N