Lightening touch by changing damper timing redux

[Ric Brekne]

Hi guys

I'm going to take a slightly different take on this thread. Right off I 
am going to advise against this idea. Not just because of what Ed and 
Dave point out, but because it requires a few other regulation moments 
to be changed as well... all of which ends up equalizing a substantially 
non standard regulation. One which any critical pianist is going to 
react against on one level or another from the get go.  One example is 
what happens to damper travel and hence where you need to set the damper 
stop rail.  Setting damper lift to let-off means at roughly 8/10s key 
blow... which means you are going to be just barely lifting the dampers 
off the strings. If you dont drop the stop rail to match then on hard 
blows you are going to feel this really nasty after bump as the dampers 
hop up to their maximum height and drop. Nobody likes that feel. If you 
DO regulate the stop rail down then you have to inhibit pedal travel as 
well... quite a bit actually.  You are setting up some pretty hefty non 
standard operating parameters and leaving yourself open to all kinds of 
criticism... both from discerning pianists and from other techs who 
follow you up.

And, because your primary motivation for this is to lighten up touch.... 
you really are choosing the wrong tool for the job.  There are several 
of ways of making quick adjustments to touch weight if you want.... some 
of them much quicker and too the point.  Some of them are quite 
reversable as well.  Touchweight <<weight>> both in dynamic and static 
senses is not about damper timing IMHO.  Damper timing is a subject 
matter off its own and should be kept within usual operating parameters.

Heres a good quick and dirty trick for lightening up the touch. 
Sometimes it can give rather dramatic results.  Take a few strips of 
gumpaper (for shimming flanges). Place one strip thick behind all the 
balance rail pins (touching them) under the cloth and paper punchings.  
0.2-0.3 mm thick will do ya.  This effectivly lowers the ratio of the 
action... particularilly at the beginning of the key stroke where its 
most valuable in getting things started.  It doesnt really change the 
overall distance ratio noticably as by the time the key is 3/4 the way 
through its fulcrum has moved forward again to the front half of the key 
pins diameter as usual.

IMHO touchweight is per'se a ratio/weight issue.  Standard action 
regulation parameters and reasonable friction levels are givens and 
should not be tampered with... not very much in any case.

One final point. I dont need to repeat, but I will... always start touch 
weight reduction efforts with addressing friction issues.

Cheers
RicB