Israel, would you respond directly to the idea that since it takes no more time, why not align beckets? I do see a pretty even parallel to beckets lined up and notches in keys being square and even. Both aesthetic. Would you not be disappointed in a keytop job that wasn't filed square? Couldn't the argument be made that I just don't care to fuss over that detail, so don't be condescending to me. In fact, that even adds time to the job, and Mary has a mortgage to pay.. ;-) William R. Monroe On Oct 5, 2009, at 12:39 PM, Israel Stein <custos3 at comcast.net> wrote: > > ---- > Sent: Monday, October 5, 2009 6:36:13 AM GMT -08:00 US/Canada Pacific > Gerald Groot wrote: > > > >On the PTG exam's, looks counts too. Too much glue, to little. > Hammers lined up? > > >Hammers the right height in relation to the others around it? > Proper size key bushings > > >used? Proper height and depth of felt? To much or to little glue > used? To many coils > > >around the tuning pins? Not enough? Splicing done correctly? > Extra wire not touching > > >nearby strings? Etc…. > > > > Sorry, Ger. These are all aspects of functionality. Not one item > mentioned above is strictly cosmetic. They have to do with evenness > of touch, tone (due to strike point placement), strength of joint, > stability of tuning, action noise and true sloppy workmanship - like > dripping glue all over the place, which truly indicates lack of care/ > skill. Please tell us, Ger, does the PTG exam require that beckets > be lined up? I know the answer (having administered over 100 of > them) - but do you? > > > > Actually, the workmanship that I've seen where the beckets are not > lined up, coils not tight, tuning pins not level etc., also become a > sign that hammers are not properly lined up, spaced, mated or voiced > and neither is regulation always done as it should be. Like I said > before, it's a cop out in my opinion. > > > > Here we go again. Coils not tight may cause tuning instability. > Tuning pins unlevel may cause great variations in torque - and > difficulties in tuning. Personally I never notice any difference in > tuning difficulty between beckets that are lined up and aren't - not > a significant detail. It may just be one of those self-fulfilling > profecies for those who do pay attention. Or not - who knows, people > are different from each other... > > > > Where I come from (and where I live now) I have seen every possible > variation, Ger. Meticulously rebuilt instruments where the beckets > aren't lined up (but nice coils and tuning pins level). Instruments > that are as beautiful to behold as they are to play with every > little detail perfectly in place. And beautifully lined up beckets > on real dogs - and I am talking Steinways, not Esteys... So let's > cut the generalizations. This is one of those little details that > Shakespeare's words apply to in spades - lots of sound and fury > signifying nothing. Well, maybe signifying very little. I refer you > to recent posts from Ron Nossaman and David Love - who don't make > your leap of "logic" to "anything with unlined up beckets is crap" > while not discounting the value of lined up beckets either. > > > > Israel Stein -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://ptg.org/pipermail/pianotech.php/attachments/20091005/019e51cd/attachment.htm>
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