[pianotech] Won't Stay in Tune

[Noah Frere]

Stephen and Kent - that may be it, embarrassing though it be. I checked the
beckets and they were tight according to my parallel pliers - BUT in both
cases the string is not coming out the other end of the hole...(which i
hadn't noticed until you mentioned it) Oh dear...now in the case of the
F#6, i originally thought it was  a loose tuning pin, so yesterday I had
already removed the pin, shimmed it with sandpaper, and replaced it.
However, while replacing, the dang string broke at the becket, at which
point i straightened the string (mostly) and worked it back in the becket
hole, and put 1 less coil on it. However, the string didn't make it all the
way through (or rather, it pulled back out a little while tuning it up.) I
can't fix it now, has to wait til tomorrow, but I will let you know
tomorrow how that goes. However, if it does happen to hold its pitch
tomorrow after pulling it up a half-step sharp now, then maybe it will have
equalized despite the bad becket. Probably better to just replace the
string though anyway.

Thanks for the idea! Also, the distance from coil to plate was a little
more than 1/4", which i have just corrected. It is now 3/8".


On Wed, Dec 5, 2012 at 4:23 PM, Kent Swafford <kswafford at gmail.com> wrote:

> Are you certain the becket it holding?
>
> On Dec 5, 2012, at 3:15 PM, Noah Frere <noahfrere at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > I just restrung a 1908 Whitney 3/4 plate tall Upright, with new bridge
> pins epoxied in using a syringe, ad 4/0 tuning pins. The pins are tight. I
> repeat, the middle string on F#6 has a TIGHT tuning pin, tight bridge pins,
> and a tight hitch pin. The string wraps around and comes up the right side
> as the right string.
> >
> > Sounds good, right? No - that note (and the center string of A#7) will
> not stay in tune for even 4 seconds! You can just hear it drop as you
> strike the string, like a miracle (or the opposite thereof.) The other
> notes, including the outside strings of F#6 and A#7 are fine.
> >
> > The only anomaly I am aware of is a split in the v-bar, which is, it
> turns out, made of wood. (There is a brass rod over the wood for the string
> termination.) AND the split is under the note. However, the split is long
> and deeply angled, as can be seen in the photo, and is not centered
> precisely under the offending string. Not that it needs to be.
> >
> > My best guess is that the split is continuing to spread under the strain
> of the string tension, and that the exact point of spread is under the
> center string of F#6. However, this doesn't explain the same problem on A#7.
> >
> > I was aware of the split before restringing, however it was so perfect
> looking, I thought it had to be part of the design. Besides, it seems to me
> that the split should eventually stop spreading (if that is what is
> happening) and settle on a place. But I have pulled up F#6 to pitch half a
> dozen times and it keeps dropping. 2 times ago it was at 33 cents below F6,
> but the last time it was right at F6. Somehow it is not effecting the right
> string.
> >
> > Any ideas? The photo is from slightly below, so you can see the overhang
> of the split. The split looks a little wider than it really is because of
> the overhang. I am keeping a careful eye on it to see if it widens. By the
> way, you can't see in the photo but the split continues down at that angle
> to the other side of the v-bar on the left. The center of the split is
> between the left string of F#6 and the right string of F6. Also, there are
> 2 more splits of the same type further on down the bass side of the v-bar,
> which strengthens my opinion that it is designed thus. There is no sign
> that the splits were glued together at any point. It's just that the v-bar
> is so long that it necessitated 3 sections during its construction.
> >
> > Another idea is that the string is flawed, but then I would think it
> would turn up in the right side of the unison as well.
> >
> > I am pulling it much sharper than F#6 now to see how that effects it.
> Maybe it will break and a new one will solve the problem.
> > <F#6.jpg>
>
>
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