Broken Plate

[Leslie Bartlett]

As a corollary- are all pitch raises of major degree (150 cents) problematic
for plate problems???????/
les bartlett

  _____  

From: pianotech-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf
Of Robert Payne
Sent: Friday, October 05, 2007 4:05 PM
To: pianotech at ptg.org
Subject: Broken Plate


Greetings to all,
I am a 30 year veteran of our craft but a newbie to the tech list. I need
your help. I have seen broken plates that were already broken when I got
there, but for the first time one broke during a tuning, ( following a large
pitch raise ). The piano was a 20+ year old Currier Studio that appeared to
be in near perfect condition. The customer said that it hadn't been tuned
since it was new. It was around 150 cents flat (maybe as much as 200 in
spots). First I pulled it to 440 with no overpull. After that it was about
50 to 60 cents low. Next I did a normal pitch raise using the appropriate
overpull. After fixing a few strays I was ready to tune. Just as I was
setting the A4 to 440 I heard this tremendous BAMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM ! ! ! I
ABOUT HAD A HEART ATTACK. The entire middle section went completely dead.Of
course broken plate was the first thing that came to mind, but what I found
was really strange to me. The plate appeared to be laminated steel. I have
never seen or heard of such a thing. One of the laminates had separated and
was pushing out on the strings. What can anyone tell me about these
laminated plates ? Was this catastrophe entirely my fault or was there a way
to avoid this ? Is it possible or feasible to attempt a repair ? For future
reference, what other manufacturers have used this kind of plate ?
The customer was extremely gracious and insisted that it wasn't my fault,
but I can't help but feel responsible for not recognizing the potential
danger in attempting such a large pitch raise on this particular instrument.
( I have successfully raised pitch by that much many many times during my
career.) Anyway, thanks for your input. I'm looking forward to the verdict.
 
Robert Payne, Rpt.   Dallas Chapter


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