Setting them pins!

[Benny L. Tucker]

Hi folks,
    I would appreciate some feedback on pin setting technique. In the past,
I would always set the pin pretty hard.
    During my short career in piano technology, I've had a chance to
re-visit several customers for 6-month/yearly tunings. My findings on return
trips were kinda disappointing.
    I'm always trying to improve my technique, and I just got to wondering
if I was setting the pin "too hard" leaving a little too much twist in it.
    Now I'm pretty confident that my string settling is pretty good, simply
because I pound pretty heavy during tuning, and my tunings seem stable
enough when I'm finished. "I can't knock it out of tune" after I'm finished.
But, I've heard some pianos that I've tuned and they sounded pretty bad just
a couple of weeks later. Others last for months on end, not sounding great,
but not too bad either.
    To cut to the chase, I'm currently not setting the pin hard at all, just
a counter-clockwise push until the "beginning" of resistance is felt. Now
I'm sure there is no excess twist in the pin, but for some reason I can't
get confidence in this technique. It just don't "feel right" If I don't push
hard down-pitch.
    So, my question this time, "How hard to you guys and gals set the pins"?
And do you feel confident with it's holding power?

Thanks for your input!

Benny L. Tucker
Precision Piano Tuning & Repair
Thomaston, Ga.