Whether or not Crescendo punchings are the perfect choice, I've discovered that the front rail punchings do exert a very significant influence on the feel of the piano. The original punchings in this piano were simply too soft. Who knows -- I might have been just as pleased if I'd substituted in used punchings from that 90 year old Doherty whose plate went "snap" on me as I tuned it a few months back . . . Floyd David Love said: FWIW I've had very mixed reactions to the Crescendo punchings. In terms of regulation they provide a nice crisp sense of the regulation however, some pianists have complained that they're just too damned hard and their fingers end up getting sore. I've changed a few sets out (or back) to the softer more traditional style. Others haven't noticed. Admittedly, no one has really said "Wow, those punchings are really great!". For me personally, I find them too hard. I do sometimes wonder if their perceived benefits aren't more for technicians who are more concerned with achieving exact regulation standards than for pianists who actually have to play on them. I have found another use for them, however. Glue them to a leather trapwork disk and drill an 3/8" hole through the punching down to the leather and when glued to the bottom of the damper tray and top of the damper trapwork lever opposite they make very good female receptors for the modified 3/8" wooden pitman when you are opening up the hole through the keybed on a Steinway so you can get rid of those noisy brass ones that squeak and squawk against those keybed bushings (follow that?). David Love www.davidlovepianos.com Hi David, I meant that the change in the front punchings alone made a huge difference to the feel of the piano. I installed the Crescendo straights, which is what Jurgen Goering recommended to me for an upright piano. The first work I did, other than some very preliminary hammer shaping, was on the keyboard -- reconditioning, lubricating and regulating key height, level and dip. It was not until I got to setting the dip that I began substituting in the new front rail punchings, so I was able to get a very clear "before and after" evaluation as I worked my way up the keyboard. Mark Cramer has suggested to me that a crisp escapement and a firm landing work together to give a precise sense of aftertouch. This project has given me some insight into what that means under the fingers, even though the postential for a feel of crisp escapement in this instrument is somewhat limited. Floyd David said: Floyd, your mention of the Crescendo punchings used on an upright is interesting - I've wondered myself if it would make much difference; the mentions on here seem to have been in relation only to grands. When you said "what a difference!" did you mean specifically from the Crescendo punchings, or from all the other bits too that you mentioned?
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