Pianotech

  • 1.  hammer boring angles needed for Bos 200 from 1972

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 06-29-2019 08:41

    List,

    I need to hang a set of hammers on a 47 year old Bosendorfer model 200. The hammers currently on this piano were not hung by the factory. It is a sloppy enough job that measuring angles off the current hammers is not a reliable way of determining the correct hammer boring angles for this piano.

    I have consulted with Bosendorfer, but they do not have the information. I have also reached out two of our most esteemed techs with extensive Bosendorfer experience. They provided boring angle schedules that are similar to each other, but not identical (varying as much as a degree or two). Unfortunately, neither of these techs could verify that the information they had was applicable to a model 200 made in 1975.

    So, after all of that set-up, my ask is this:

    Does anyone out there have hammer boring angle data for a 1972 Bosendorfer model 200?

    Thanks,

    Alan

     



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    Alan Eder, RPT
    Herb Alpert School of Music
    California Institute of the Arts
    Valencia, CA
    661.904.6483
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  • 2.  RE: hammer boring angles needed for Bos 200 from 1972

    Posted 06-30-2019 08:35
    Hi Alan,
    The piano has the information you need.
    Bore distance is string ht minus hammer center pin ht.
    Bore angle is string angle, to the limit that the hammers clear one another.
    Say about 8*.
    i hope that is helpful


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    Fenton Murray, RPT
    Royal Oaks CA

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  • 3.  RE: hammer boring angles needed for Bos 200 from 1972

    Posted 06-30-2019 12:19
    That's my approach, hammers parallel to the strings as far as angles allow. I do this for tonal reasons, looking to simplify the strike event as much as possible.However some manufacturer's...maybe most, purposely angle the hammers relative to the string angle, particularly Europeans. I think they are looking for noise in the attack.

    Alan, as far boring schedules that vary 1 or 2 degrees from  your measurements, I would challenge how much of a perceptible effect this would have on the attack. Even when taking the angle off of existing factory hammers, reading the angle is a rather fuzzy interpretive game. Even if you got the original angles correct, somehow, they still graduate in a way that reflects the limits of the boring equipment and time spent on the task, rather than graduate in a perfect series.   

    I personally would not fuss over 1 or 2 deg discrepancies.

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    Jim Ialeggio
    grandpianosolutions.com
    Shirley, MA
    978 425-9026
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  • 4.  RE: hammer boring angles needed for Bos 200 from 1972

    Posted 06-30-2019 14:36
    The string grooves will tell you the boring angles.
    [The attached image is not uploading. I will try to post it in a second message.]
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    Ed Sutton
    ed440@me.com
    (980) 254-7413
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  • 5.  RE: hammer boring angles needed for Bos 200 from 1972

    Posted 06-30-2019 14:41


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    Ed Sutton
    ed440@me.com
    (980) 254-7413
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  • 6.  RE: hammer boring angles needed for Bos 200 from 1972

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 07-01-2019 12:59
    Fenton, Jim & Ed,

    Thanks for your input.

    I will reprint my reply to Jon Page when he made a the same point that all y'all have just reiterated.

    Yes... matching the string angles as closely as possible is the goal. But where hammers are more severely angled and larger as well, in the bass and lower tenor, there are clearance issues to contend with [I would add, particularly where boring angles are severe and/or where angles change]. Rather than sort that out entirely on my own from scratch, I was hoping to save some time by mining the data and experience of others.

    Alan

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    Alan Eder, RPT
    Herb Alpert School of Music
    California Institute of the Arts
    Valencia, CA
    661.904.6483
    ------------------------------