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[Kendall Ross Bean]

Charles~
 
(I sent this out yesterday with some pics but it was over the 400kb
pianotech limit and didn't go through. I'll try again.)

  _____  

From: Kendall Ross Bean [mailto:kenbean at pacbell.net] 
Sent: Monday, July 21, 2008 12:54 AM
To: 'Pianotech List'
Subject: RE: chickering quarter grand damper configuration


Charles~
 
(You didn't say what scale/model # your 1/4 grand was, but here goes...)
 
If it's anything like the scale 121 I did, it certainly seems the "previous
tech" who did your piano was just slavishly duplicating what the factory
originally put there. (Which is what I also did, slavishly trying to
duplicate the original; not yet feeling up to re-engineering the damper
configuration or questioning the competence of the original scale designers.
-I will leave that up to our esteemed,  illustrious, and eminently qualified
colleague, Dr. Nossaman, or one of his peers on this listserve...).
 
The scale 121 Chickering quarter grand I rebuilt was pretty much all
original parts (including damper felts). It was a circa 1904 serial #
104426. Approx 5' 6" or 5' 7",  25 bass.
What I wrote down in my notebook for original damper configuration was:
 
Bass (below break): wedges (single, bichord and trichord) in front, pads
(flat felts) in the rear. (Yep, that's right, pads in back.)
 
Treble(above break): Pads (flat felts) both front and back, all the way up
in treble. (I double-checked; weird, but that's what it was.)
 
Yes, strange, isn't it? Perhaps they wanted the piano to have a little more
"reverb?"
 
The point being, at least on my Scale 121, they weren't averse to using pads
on the wound (bass) strings (although they subsequently changed this
configuration on later pianos, see below re: Scale 133.) However, note that
the wound strings below the break on Scale 121 still had wedges in the
front, it was just above the break that there were pads on both front and
rear. 
 
This scale 121, however, had no wound strings above the break. (There were
63 plain wire unisons above the break.) Sounds like maybe your 1/4 grand
isn't a Scale 121...?
 
The string sizes were written in pencil on the plate, and were identical to
what I measured with the micrometer when I removed the (original) strings.
Also checked them with Travis' Restringing Guide. Tuning pins, curiously
were tapered: 2 3/8" x .268 at the foot of the thread to .282 at the top.
Blued pins.
 
I also rebuilt/have notes on, a Scale 133 Chickering quarter grand, circa
1915 serial #125794 approx. 5' 8".  25 bass hammers. Again, pretty much all
original (strings, tuning pins, damper felts, etc.)
 
It also had 63 plain unisons (but different string sizes than the scale
121.) There were no wound strings above the break on this one either. The
bass string configuration was similar to what was on the "Scale 121": 9
single strings, 10 bichords, 6 trichords.
 
This one (Scale 133) had the standard single and bichord wedges on both
front and rear of the damper heads in the bass.
 
But in the treble there were wedges in the front for the 1st 14 dampers up
from the break, wedges in the rear for the first 12 up from the break, and
the rest were pads (flat felts). 
 
Tuning pins on Scale 133 were parallel sided, rather than tapered, # 2/0.
Still blued.
 
Trust Chickering to do something different each time.
 
What is the scale # on your quarter grand plate?
 
Enclosed are some photos of the Scale 121, sorry about the picture quality,
it was back before I got my digital camera...In one of the photos hopefully
you can see a close up of the damper felts from the rear...all pads/flat
felts, even in the bass....
 
If you need, I will see if I can dig up some photos of the Scale 133...
 
~Kendall Ross Bean
 
PianoFinders
www.pianofinders.com <http://www.pianofinders.com/> 
e-mail: kenbean at pianofinders.com
 
Connecting Pianos and People
 
 

  _____  

From: CHARLES BECKER [mailto:cbeckercpt at verizon.net] 
Sent: Sunday, July 20, 2008 6:46 AM
To: Pianotech List
Subject: chickering quarter grand


While the minds are on the chickering quarter grand,  what is the correct
damper felt configuration for the wound tri-cords below and above the break.
This particular piano had the damper felts replaced but the tech used flat
felts front and back on the wound tri-cords.  This can't be correct.
Needless to say, this one is a bleeder.  any help would be appreciated.
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