I have the opportunity to obsess on the action that sits on my workbench. It is from a 1925 Gerhar Heintzman grand piano. I have reset the action spread, moved the capstan line, custom bored new hammers, installed new shanks, finessed the touch weight, shimmed the balance rail (sharps only) with veneer, and ended up with ratios that work.
I'm working through the cycles of regulation, and enjoying the journey. On the current cycle, I have fine tuned repetition lever height, key height and dip, letoff and drop for the first 15 notes in the bass. Using a cardboard punching, I've set the aftertouch to .045" (300 gram weight on the front of the key, light tap to achieve letoff.)
It is no longer ever a surprise that the hammer line does not come out perfectly. I have attached a photo. There are always some inconsistencies somewhere in the execution of the design. For what it's worth, the highest hammers are sitting at 1 3/4 inches
Here's my question: Where are your preferred places to fudge, and in what direction. I'm taking it as a given that key height is sacrosanct. I have read various people arguing that dip, after touch, let off and hammer line are untouchable. But we all know that something has to give.
My inclination is to fudge the aftertouch, raising the capstans for the hammers that are sitting low to achieve a consistent hammer blow of 1 3/4 inches. But I'm most interested in your responses.
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Floyd Gadd
Regina SK
306-502-9103
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