Ah.... the best way to harden up is a real can of worms. Lots of different stuffs are used... dissolved keytops, diverse kinds of laquers and resins.... and some will have it that its very important to use the right hardner on the right kind of hammer. I always kind of prefered Shellack myself. Doesnt turn into this plasticized goop, breaks down rather nicely as hammers wear, and is easy to needle if needed. It also cures very quickly and is very easy to <<wash>> down with nothing more volitile then your average 60 % technical spirits... alcohol. But those days are behind me now. The thing is that hardening... just about no matter how you go about doing it, works to the detriment of felts natural resiliancy. David Stanwood has done some interesting research into that aspect of this whole subject matter and has a very interesting lecture with some very illustrative high magnification photos. You will harden up the hammers with laquer... and depending on what is used on what you can impart a different kind of <<resiliancy>> from the new combined felt/laquer material that results. But it will impart a different kind of sound quality then natural felt resiliency will, which you may or may not find pleasing. Voicing is a hugely subjective... one of the most subjective things in our buisness. Again... try out different approaches and find what you personally like best. We all in the end impart some of our own creativity to the instruments we work on, and thats good.... yeilds variety which in turn insures there is something for everyone out there. As for me... I'll put up a fine traditional voiced hammer against anything else out there with 100% clear confidence. jason kanter wrote: >So what's the current best practice for brightening hammers? What I learned >30+ years ago from Sheldon Smith was: applying judicious amounts of a 1/8 >solution of lacquer to the shoulders, followed immediately by a shot of pure >thinner right on the crown. > >For those who use lacquer, what brand? And what other hardeners are also in >use, and which should be avoided? > >Jason > > > >>btw... Whats Delwins take on hammers and laquer ? Seem to remember he >>went further then we do over here for the natural hammer resiliancy >>side. No... this is one of those typical <<opinions vary>> >>questions....and so it should be :) >> >> >> > > >_______________________________________________ >pianotech list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives > > >
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