CAUT

​​When we bend a string at the agraff to level it, (as part of the voicing process), how long does that bend last?

I ask this question because when we do a raise pitch, there has been some discussion that one of the reasons a piano is not stable very long is because the bends on the string around the pressure points like the bridge and agraff, straighten out.  

So when we bend a string to level it, does it eventually straighten out and we have to level it again later?  Or do the bends stay?


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Willem "Wim" Blees, RPT
Mililani, HI 96789
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I think the bends stay. When you put a bend or a kink in the wire you are using an application of force which goes beyond the elastic limits of the wire with respect to deformation. In order for that bend to be undone you would have to apply a force which also extends beyond those same limits. The tension in the string doesn't approach that which is why the string doesn't continue to elongate over time or why a kink that you put in the middle of the wire doesn't straighten out on its own over time.

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David Love RPT
www.davidlovepianos.com
davidlovepianos@comcast.net
415 407 8320
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-18-2020 20:16
From: Willem Blees
Subject: string leveling bends

​​When we bend a string at the agraff to level it, (as part of the voicing process), how long does that bend last?

I ask this question because when we do a raise pitch, there has been some discussion that one of the reasons a piano is not stable very long is because the bends on the string around the pressure points like the bridge and agraff, straighten out.

So when we bend a string to level it, does it eventually straighten out and we have to level it again later?  Or do the bends stay?


------------------------------
Willem "Wim" Blees, RPT
Mililani, HI 96789
------------------------------

Original Message------

I think the bends stay. When you put a bend or a kink in the wire you are using an application of force which goes beyond the elastic limits of the wire with respect to deformation. In order for that bend to be undone you would have to apply a force which also extends beyond those same limits. The tension in the string doesn't approach that which is why the string doesn't continue to elongate over time or why a kink that you put in the middle of the wire doesn't straighten out on its own over time.

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David Love RPT
www.davidlovepianos.com
davidlovepianos@comcast.net
415 407 8320
------------------------------

When leveling strings I have come to think of it as a process, not a one-shot deal. When I pull up on a wire that’s lower I know its pitch will fall. Simple enough. But when that same wire is then brought back to pitch, its level relative to the neighboring strings of the note will change slightly due to the increase of tension - requiring a repeat of the procedure. I level, tune, and re-level multiple times (pulling up or pushing down on the wire as the situation requires) until an acceptable degree of stability is achieved. 
After hammer travel and alignment is completed, and voicing inconsistencies are noted, I can then look to leveling the hammer crown or juicing first before messing around again with string leveling. This methodology results a much less confusing process for voicing and tone building.
Developing well thought out procedures for the impossibly complex tasks we engage in is a very satisfying endeavor, and will result in superior work.

Paul Rattigan
rattigan@fas.harvard.edu

Sent from my iPhone


Sent from my iPhone

Original Message------

​​When we bend a string at the agraff to level it, (as part of the voicing process), how long does that bend last?

I ask this question because when we do a raise pitch, there has been some discussion that one of the reasons a piano is not stable very long is because the bends on the string around the pressure points like the bridge and agraff, straighten out.  

So when we bend a string to level it, does it eventually straighten out and we have to level it again later?  Or do the bends stay?


------------------------------
Willem "Wim" Blees, RPT
Mililani, HI 96789
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Considering the fact that if you remove a decades old string from a piano it retains the original curvature it took on from when it was originally coiled up on its roll, I would guess that any bend you put in that wire later would also remain. If, however, you level that string before tuning, the subsequent tuning could move that bend to a place where it is no longer providing the results originally intended. But the bend would still be there.

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Geoff Sykes, RPT
Los Angeles CA
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-18-2020 20:16
From: Willem Blees
Subject: string leveling bends

​​When we bend a string at the agraff to level it, (as part of the voicing process), how long does that bend last?

I ask this question because when we do a raise pitch, there has been some discussion that one of the reasons a piano is not stable very long is because the bends on the string around the pressure points like the bridge and agraff, straighten out.

So when we bend a string to level it, does it eventually straighten out and we have to level it again later?  Or do the bends stay?


------------------------------
Willem "Wim" Blees, RPT
Mililani, HI 96789
------------------------------