Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Tuner-Technicians Forum The Levitan C-shaped "Professional" tuning lever

May I suggest that the C lever seeming to allow the pin to move more easily in the pin block is, in fact, real. I would expect that flag poling would increase the friction of pin to wood, making the pin harder to turn, and increasing the twisting of the pin at the point where it actually starts to move in the wood. So, since the C lever does not induce flag poling, I would expect the pin would move more easily.

I think perhaps the length of the tool is a large factor in the control. The only reason our hammers are the length they are...is getting them into a toolkit! That's one of the reasons that I often reach for the extension hammer (the 'ol Rosewood Hale) on many pianos, and especially new ones with tight blocks. An extra inch of two of length seems to provide a comfy amount of extra leverage quite often.

So..I toggle between my Faulk and the 'ol Rosewood extension.

What is the length of that arm on the C-Levitan?

Inquiring,
I am,
Tuning left-handed for 30+ years,

13-3/4" measure from the center of the tip, to the center of the part of the handle one grips. Not so much different from the Fujan I think.

The lever arm is measured from tip to point where the force is applied, not just perpendicular to the tip...but rather a hypotenuse. So on a standard lever, you would measure at the angle formed from center of tip along an angled line drawn to the point you actually grip the lever.

Another factor in ease of use, and this is a huge factor for me, is that the C Lever allows you to apply force from a position of mechanical advantage, rather than having to reach into the piano (grand)and turn the lever from a position of significant mechanical disadvantage.

Jim Ialeggio

Greetings,
I agree wholeheartedly, Jim.

I purchased the C-lever about a year ago to see if would allow me to continue tuning and learning to tune during recovery. I had to stop tuning due to a couple of catastrophic injuries that took me out of circulation for far too long. I can definitely empathize with Loren and other that struggle with repetitive motion strains, associated consistent incorrect postural positioning, and the associated compensatory pains that go with them.

The C-lever has only been used to tune grands - no uprights for me yet. It does not seem like the right design for uprights anyway.

I started learning to tune and pin-setting using a compact Schaff lever with Rosewood handle, then, at Bill Bremmer's suggestion after my first injury , I tried Joe Goss' ball hammer with great success.

The C-lever's allowed me to tune with a minimum of pain to the AC joint. Most of the work is done by moving my torso side to side with fine further movements coming from my arm, which is to my side. I can use either hand for rendering the lever and key striking, (although pin-setting is still easier with my dominant arm).

From the moment I tried the C-lever, I noticed there was virtually no flag-poling and I felt as though I was turning the pin squarely around its center. In fact, it seems the lever when used as it sits on the pin and the handle is grabbed towards the bottom as recommended, flag-poling seems non-existent to me. The pin just seems to turn - it provides its own feel and feedback, which is different from the feel and feedback that comes from the Schaff lever. Flag-poling as a technique in itself anyway is something my mentor suggested I use very sparingly, if at all.

The longer length of the C-lever makes it easier to turn stubborn pins, but one has to be careful to not get over confident and enthusiastic. Fine adjustments are easier with continued use. Pin setting for me with the C-lever is a bit different, since feedback feel is dissimilar to the trusty Schaff lever. I find I use less corrections with the C-lever - the pin seems to settle more quickly (if that's the right term for it).

Just like all tuning and muting techniques for temperaments and octaves vary from person to person (each has their comfortable favorites) with great results, so it is with being comfortable with lever techniques. Each person finds their comfort zone and a lever that works for their particular situation and preference.

The C-lever is helping me get back into the game.
Glen

Popping this thread back up because I just received my Levitan Pro (C-lever).

May be the best grand lever I have now. Time will tell, I've only done one piano (mine), but just this afternoon it gave me superior results quickly, and particularly on a few unisons that have always given me trouble. Didn't feel like I had to "practice" with it, just felt very natural.

My first impression is that it separates the acts of turning and flagpoling. I tune with my Fujan with the lever to the right, perpendicular to the strings, so I can feel how the bearing points respond to flagpoling. But it's a tricky balance because the turning and flagpoling are happening at the same time with a traditional lever. It seems these concerns are separated with the Levitan lever, and I can feel and think about them one at a time, but in rapid succession. I don't know if it's actually doing what it claims, and was skeptical enough to post about it some time ago, but however it's doing it, it seems very effective. I feel like I'm in more control. I don't think it's all just because of the longer lever length.

How big a difference is this? Possibly as big a set of advantages for me as when I switched (for uprights) from a traditional lever to my upright Cyberhammer. That was big for ergonomics, but it took a lot of practice (months) to get back to the level of tuning quality I was used to. (And with the grand Cyberhammer, I spent a year working at it but finally gave up, sold it to buy this new one.) But so far, for me, this is very promising. Fast adaptation, better tuning quality, better ergonomics. A smaller win is that I always disliked having break stride in the high treble on grands, swap to a tip extender, dance around the prop stick, etc., and the Levitan seems to avoid that for at least many pianos. We'll see after I get more experience with it, but after one tuning I have no qualms about breaking it out right away for my customers :-)

So now I'm smooth pull on grands, and Cyberhammer impacting on verticals. And I have the Fujan as a backup, so yes, I'm carrying three levers.

(I don't think I have any conflicts of interest in this, I don't know Dan Levitan other than from his writings. But I'm grateful he has invested the time and energy designing this.)

I had a very brief try of the C Lever when Dan Levitan gave an education day at Steinway in London in October 2012. I was intrigued by the feel of it and I think whenever I'm feeling rich, I may well buy one!