Pianotech

  • 1.  String Gauge Discrepancy

    Member
    Posted 2 hours ago

    Greetings All,

    Restringing a 1904 Steinway Model I upright with what appear to be original strings. The strings all measure half gauge smaller than the gauge sizes stamped on the plate. The first gauge stamp is 13, but the strings measure 12.5, etc. Is it correct for me to replicate the string sizes that are in the piano, not the gauge sizes printed on the plate? Finally, why the mismatch? Did they use metric gauge wire?

    Thanks everyone!



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    Tony Spradlin
    Ithaca NY
    (917) 727-4802
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  • 2.  RE: String Gauge Discrepancy

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 2 hours ago

    Use of metric wire is one possible explanation. Might this per chance be a Hamburg Steinway?

    Are you certain the piano has not been restrung previously?

    Also, where you find the wire gauge numbers, are you interpreting them to apply in the  correct direction, left or right, of where they appear?

    Best, 

    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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  • 3.  RE: String Gauge Discrepancy

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted an hour ago
    Hello,

    We always have John redo the scaling, so a nice template of the layout would suffice to get a really optimized result. 


    Good luck !

    Allan Sutton, m.mus. RPT, TEC
    www.pianotechniquemontreal.com



    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: String Gauge Discrepancy

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 2 hours ago

    Hey Tony, I just checked the steinway book and if it's a Model I with a serial number between 91702 and 216280 then the smallest treble size is 13. Some earlier uprights used 12 and 12.5 but those were 85 note. 

    But you're right that there are different measurements depending on what country the wire is from. My recommendation would be to just go off micrometer measurements or rescale the instrument based on whatever wire you're going to use. 



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    Morgan T. Cowell, RPT
    Great Plains Piano Company
    www.greatplainspiano.com
    Regional Vice President
    2023 PTG Institute Director
    402-239-7876
    morgan@greatplainspiano.com
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  • 5.  RE: String Gauge Discrepancy

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 40 minutes ago

    Tony,

    What is your impression of how the piano sounded before destringing (assuming it is destrung)?

    Possible dumb question #1: Have you checked and possibly rechecked your mic or dial caliper to make sure that where you're reading is in fact accurate? (I have a dial caliper that reads .001" different at the tip vs the inner jaws. I always double check this and compensate accordingly when I use this one. 

    Dumb question #2: You've checked the entire section for consistency? I've seen some of these (though marked) with 12.5 on the last two notes. And...You've checked each of the progressive gauge sections and they're all consistently .001" "off"?

    Not trying to insult your intelligence. Just trying not to assume anything.

    Peter Grey Piano Doctor 



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    Peter Grey
    Stratham NH
    (603) 686-2395
    pianodoctor57@gmail.com
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    Original Message