I guess you're not a technician--yet? But, since you mentioned that it's a Yamaha grand, the first thing I'd check for is key friction--front & balance rail bushings and balance hole. If a key is sluggish, it takes a while for it (and the rest of the action parts) to return fully--that's why the note plays once and doesn't repeat, but will play again later. Sluggish action centers can do the same thing. If the piano hasn't been regulated since it was new, it's time! If the piano is new, it's probably just a tight key--I've run into it a number of times on new Yamahas. I'm not sure what to say about your observation of the jack height--could be that the parts weren't fully returned (because of friction)...or the repetition lever needs adjusting....or..... Barbara Richmond, RPT near Peoria, Illinois ----- Original Message ----- From: rsfinley at charter.net To: pianotech at ptg.org Sent: Saturday, February 13, 2010 12:58:02 PM GMT -06:00 US/Canada Central Subject: [pianotech] Advice about intermittent note on Yamaha grand I have been having a problem with one of the keys, C6, on my Yamaha baby grand piano. The note sometmes sounds and sometimes doesn't. If I play the note repeatedly, quickly, it sometimes stops sounding. If I give it a rest and then play it, it usually sounds again. When it stops sounding, the hammer is not propelled as far as the string. I took the action out to inspect it and to compare it with the action of the surrounding keys. It seems that when the note is played, the tip of the jack doesn't protrude through the slot in the repetition lever as much as for the other keys. I guess the tip of the jack has to stick through the slot a certain amount to engage the hammer knuckle, in order to thrust the hammer towards the string, and it is just on the point of not being far through enough. Please could you suggest what the solution might be? If I turn the Letoff regulating screw so that the letoff button is lower, I think it might cause the tip of the jack to stick through the slot in the repetition a a little further because the jack toe will engage the letoff button punching across a shorter distance than before, making it more certain that the note will sound. Would this be the correct thing to adjust or is there another alternative? (I didn't examine the knuckle to see if it is worn or if there is a deep groove in it. It seemed to be OK) Thank you very much for your help. Robert Finley -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://ptg.org/pipermail/pianotech.php/attachments/20100213/972ef20a/attachment.htm>
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