---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment Hi Dave Very well stated. I learned these tricks from Norman Neblett in 1979 & was blown away. It adds such a dimension of finesse to the sound. Simply lifting up on the wire at the agraffe allows the traveling wave to flow thru so much more efficiently that the sustain increases as the fundamental become more powerful. To prove it to oneself listen carefully to 2 adjacent bass monochords. Then pull up on one & straighten the bend ,then quickly listen to the 2 notes again. The tone is suddenly fuller & fatter in the altered note & it's so simple. I've got to get one of those level thing- a -ma-jigs from Goss Welcome back to the state. Dale Erwin > Most techs I know are not really aware of all the treasures we may find > when we delve into this subject. (lifting the strings) Hi everyone------this is perhaps the single easiest way to become a hero to your serious clients: lift, level, and seat the strings. Here's my method: 1. Start from the back---press down and stretch the backscale string length---I use a piece of brass with a groove notched in it. Use a moderate amount of pressure; you should see and feel a nice deflection of the little string length. 2. Tap the strings LIGHTLY down to the bridge pins, using brass or a hammer shank; tap in the direction the strings go around the pin. Be a hero; reach in thru those damn bass strings and tap every single one of the low tenor strings. A hassle, but so worth it. 3. Put a string hook on the string a couple of inches in front of the agraffe or capo bar and pull up, with good pressure. Do this to every string on the piano. Take breaks; this can be fatiguing and straining to your lower back; treat yourself well. Now the strings are seated and lifted. Here comes the magic. 4. Level the strings. I use, now, a little brass bubble gauge that Joe Goss of Mother Goose tools sells---it's the total bomb, dudes. As Ric Baldassin says, it has exponentially improved my ability to level the strings on a piano quickly and relatively easily---and so satisfying, for somebody with ADD such as myself, to line that little bubble up inside those little lines...oooooh. And.....voila. The tone gets deeper, bigger, more sustain, more body, more "sing," more creamy.....a big, big improvement. I've done that to many pianos, raised the pitch, tuned it, and had the player sit and listen, then play. They sometimes look at me with slight fear, like I'm some kind of wizard....how did I make it that much better in that short of a time? And your legend grows........ The sad reality is that hardly any piano technicians are doing these simple-ass things that make a piano really come alive; doing the above string protocol and spending an hour getting true resilience into the hammers through the right kind of acupunctural needling is so relatively simple, and it's almost NEVER done; I've been following supposedly fabulous tuners for years, and have seen some of the most egregious and sloppy work in the realm of tone and action maintenance that you can imagine. Richard Davenport's work is flawless, and uniformly excellent----the gold standard, or one of them. There's a handful more in LA, but it's a big town. I'd love another talented, gifted, disciplined, passionate musician/music lover as an apprentice. But I'm a harsh, harsh critic. But loving and respectful. Most of the time. As Roger Jolly says, there's gold lying right on the street for pianotechs who can operate at a high level of what Virgil Smith calls "complete piano service." Now, back off the soapbox. <g> Be well----- David Andersen Malibu, CA ---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: https://www.moypiano.com/ptg/pianotech.php/attachments/c9/da/95/63/attachment.htm ---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment--
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