Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum Is this touch weight ok for practice?

Fang, it sounds like you've been similarly enchanted by the Steinway sound! It's a blessing and a curse, but do be sure to keep your options open, just the same.

In August we took the Tsawasssen Ferry to Nanaimo and drove up to Comox to spend a couple days with some friends. It was our first time on the Island. We had a terrific time and can't wait to go back!

I second Larry Buck's suggestion to contact either (pianosupply) Jurgen Goering, or Rod Verhnjak for a professional opinion. If there were no front leads in the keys, (which is almost certain not to be the case), and the touchweight was as you described, it would be easy to make the touch lighter.

The most likely thing is the hammers are too heavy for the leverage.

Ed,
Thanks for correcting the names for me. I was at O'Hare waiting for my next flight to Tulsa and could remember either ...

One thing to keep in mind is that "this" piano, no matter which it is, will often not be your last. Many of us have moved up the ladder of pianos. Another option for you is to go for a good C3 - which, after all, is a great piano, just not a S&S. Then, in years to come, maybe your finances might be more able to do so - then your dream piano. I had a U3 equivalent (a UX) till I was 56, and since then have gone to a 6' grand for a few years, and now to my 7'4" grand - which, likely will be my last. Maybe.

Sorry if I was misinformed.
Got it from this (ancient) thread:

https://www.pianoworld.com/forum/ubb...2/topic/015035/Number/2/site_id/1#import

got more information about the touch weight on this piano.

Currently, it is about 75 - 65, distributed in 2 sections. The technician said, still staying within Steinway guidelines, he can bring the weights down 10 - 15 grams, e.g. 65 to 60 or even 60 to 55, distributed evenly in 6 sections as new steinway does. Anything lighter than that, he needs go back to check the piano again.

I am thinking to make the trip again sometime to spend more time on the piano.

By reading all the posts I can find in the forum and some referenced link, I think for the future piano, a little bit heavier than standard key with good action will be the way to go for everyday practise, and also will benefit a lot to practise on different pianos whenever possible.

What about the friction? If the difference between down weight and up weight is normal (around 30g according to the Pianofinders article), then the friction is normal. If the difference is too great, it means that there is too much friction: a serious problem that a tech should evaluate.

If you go with the lightened but still heavy (65 - 55) Steinway, it's absolutely critical that they get regular practice time on other lighter actions.

Fang, looks like you had already made your mind up before posting. I've been there and sometimes the excitement has clouded my judgement. There has been some solid advice from qualified restorers on this site that you really should take to heart. If it was me I would get the piano to where it should be (at year of manufacture) and be done with it. Could be as little as re-hanging the hammers with the proper felt and weight for that period ( see Ronsen Hammers)- Would also take another tech or restorer for a second opinion.

Very young kids will not normally get or want to get extra practice time on lighter actions outside their home environment. In most cases, you'd be lucky if they do 1/2 hour/day of practicing at home Even if they did get outside practice, probably 95% of their practice would be at home. Nor will they be performing regularly if at all.

IMO the touch should be appropriate for their home practicing and this should be the case before purchase. It is NOT a good idea to practice on pianos where the action is inappropriately heavy or inappropriately light. And for young students it might discourage them to discontinue lessons very quickly. If the touch is lightened somewhat before purchase but is still outside a reasonable range, that should not be good enough.

It's fine for the OP to love the sound or even make sound more important that touch, but if the piano plays like a truck what good is the great sound? Similarly, if the touch of a piano is great but the sound stinks why would one even consider such a piano?

The piano you're considering doesn't seem to be "a little bit heavier than standard". It's completely wrong to think practicing on a piano with what seems to be an outrageously heavy action is a good idea for any reason. It certainly will not make playing other pianos easier. Unless your young children are performing regularly, why would ease of playing on other pianos even be a consideration? How on earth do you expect your young children to get practice for any significant amount of time on other pianos?

If the technician says he can lower the touch weight a lot, he should be willing to do that before you purchase the piano with no commitment on your part to buy the piano. After that you an a good tech can try and judge if the piano is playable. If he says the piano is already "perfectly regulated" and it has the touch weight you mentioned, I would walk away in an instant.

I think you are right. I am lean to buy this piano at the beginning, reliable history, beautiful sound, price is still reachable. The technician sounds very reliable, 40+ years experience, tuner for UBC, won competition, trained at Steinway back to 30 years ago.

And I don't have many chances to look around.

But as everyone suggested, I will not make decision right way. I will look around a little bit more. This is all learning experience.

$69 dollars for the car and driver from Nanaimo to Tswassen. Yikes. Another $35 or so if all the kids go. Double yikes! That's one way only. The same again to return. Triple yikes!

Seattle, Vancouver and Victoria was my honeymoon 30 years ago at the end of August.

Speaking of Seattle, are they ever gonna git that diggin' machine thing out of the ground or finish that tunnel?

Kurt

Downweight too high and it won't be fun for your kids. Did you ask the tech how much will he charge to give a more decent "balance" to the action? Ask before a bad surprise.

You may be able to get just a few notes adjusted to see what difference it would make. A few years ago, I played a piano which liked, but I didn't like the action weight - their technician said he'd adjust an octave of notes to be lighter so I could see what was possible. Amazing difference. I didn't end up buying the piano, but I did play it a little while later when back in the same showroom, and I noticed that he'd adjusted the entire piano the same way.

My Grotrian has a heavier weight action than my previous YAMAHA Upright (I gave to my daughter 5 yrs ago). I was there yesterday, and played it. I noticed the lightness immediately, and, for some reason found it harder to control after a piano with heavier action.

Exactly. I had the same thing happen after a week out of town playing a different piano.

Greetings,
In my experience, pianos that players find difficult to control are just as likely to be very bright. This Steinway is being compared to a lot of Asian uprights, it seems, and they are often very bright. I have often voiced an overly bright piano down to produce a malleable tone, i.e., one that is mellow at pp and brassy at FFF, and the customers' initial impression was that I had made the piano "heavier". This was a change of impression that had nothing to do with the weight, which was unchanged, but rather, originated from the customer's impression of the response. By the same token, hardening hammers, while not changing weight, always makes the piano feel "lighter".

It would be instructive to know what the strike-weight on a few of the Steinway's hammers might be, as it is common for replacement hammers to be a 1 or 1.5 grams heavier than what was on there to start. This translates into 5-7 grams additional down weight. (There is also the question of down weight being taken with or without dampers engaged, which makes a fundamental difference in the resulting "weight". )

I have, in the last year, found two Steinways that had had the hammers and shanks replaced with pre-hung factory parts. Neither of them had had the hammers shaped and were both around 60 grams at middle C. Played like mud. After carving about a gram and a half off the hammers on the way to getting them shaped, they were both brighter because of the lighter hammer and lighter because of the reduction in weight. Customer, (well-known professional), was very pleased and records on both of them.

When the factory sends out a set of hammers, they are NOT ready to use. Many techs simply install the parts and pass it off as genuine because they don't understand that by the time you have a factory set of hammers properly shaped, there will be piles of felt on the bench and floor.
Regards,