Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Tuner-Technicians Forum Releasing string tension before restringing question.

Hello everybody, I am new to this forum and have been a piano tuner and tech since 1998. I have tuned and repaired a lot of pianos and grands but I still have to learn more.

There are three grands which have to be completely restrung. All of them Bluthner concert grands. What I am interested in is how to properly release the tension of the strings before putting the new strings on. I want to ensure myself against cracking the iron plate. I have a rough idea of how to proceed with unstringing, but any opinions will be appreciated greatly.

Thanks everyone.

I just loosen a row of tuning pins at a time, starting at one end of the piano and going to the other. On a Bluthner, I would start with the aliquot strings, then probably the tuning pins closest to the keyboard, then the next row, etc. On a piano where the strings are not individually tied, I usually do the row closest to the keyboard, then farthest, etc.

I use a bit brace with a tuning pin bit in it.

Hi, remove the dampers first. Just as I tune, I start in the middle at C and work up to the treble and then from the middle to the bass. I loosen each by about a quarter turn, then go through it again and loosen by over a half turn. The strings are easily loose enough to cut. I then remove the pins (still with the short bit of wire left on) with an electic reversable drill and proper bit
http://www.fletcher-newman.co.uk/catalogue/restring_tools/629.html

When I've left the coil on the tuning pin, I end up scratching the plate when I remove the tuning pin, so I use a small screwdriver to lever the end of the wire out of the tuning pin, and a stringing hook to pull the coil off the pin. I also use an electric drill for removing the pins. I just use the brace for removing the tension.

I also remove the dampers. I stick the wires in a piece of corrugated cardboard, from a box, to keep them in order when I'm not working on them.

Thank you guys for your replies. I appreciate your explanations. But I still have a question - about the drill. If I use that drill for removing the tuning pins, wouldn't it be harmful for the pinblock? The drill works at high speeds and I'm afraid the pins would heat the holes and apparently that could burn the pinblock. When I have removed pins even with a tuning lever sometinmes the pins go very hot. What do you think about that? Isn't it dangerous to use a drill to remove pins?

If you aren't replacing the pinblock, then yes, it can be dangerous to use a drill. I use a 1/2" drill with a maximum speed of less than 500 rpm. But the most important thing to avoid is pushing the tuning pin in when screwing it out. You need a gentle touch to make sure the pin is coming out. But as you say, even removing a tuning pin by hand generates heat. You need a steady touch to get it out quickly and smoothly, so the heat won't build up to the point where it burns.

Using a drill has its own technique, a quick half second on/off and pulling up.

Point is, if the pins are so loose that they need replacing then they come out easy. I've tested numerous times and felt the pin as it comes out - barely warm.

I remove the coils from the pins using a coil tightener. After lowering the sting tension and cutting the wires in half (treb, not bass), position the coil tightener at a slight angle on the tuning pin with the lowest side directly on top of the becket. (the becket is the bend in the piano wire made as it enters the tuning pin). A sharp tap with a hammer on the coil tightener breaks the becket, and the coil can be lifted off the pin.

I use a low speed high torque Milwaukee drill with variable speed for pin removal. I know guys that use a brace and bit. The key is low speed.

P. S. You indicated these are Bluthner concert grands - I'm a bit concerned because your first re-stringing job should be a junker piano that you won't lose much if you screw it up - and there's a lot that can go wrong.

Thanks for the replies and for the concern - I do appreciate them.

Actually, it's not my very first restringing job, I have done this job on a Steinway D Model in the concert hall of the Union of Bulgarian Copmosers but not the entire set of strings. Only the high treble section from A flat 72 to C 88. I had to replace all the strings there because someone before me had put in much thicker strings. Instead of the correct sizes (which are written on the plate next to the tuning pins) from 13 1/2 to 15 1/2, he had used `universal` size 16 for the entire section!!! I was asolutely shocked!!! One size for the entire section - can you believe it? Then of course I measured all the other sections to see if I could find other `universal` sizes Thank God everytihg was OK with the other sections. So I lowered the tension of the treble section beginning from C88 downwards. Then I removed the strings and replaced them with new ones - the correct sizes and then pulled them up to pitch. 10 days later after the relaxing of the new strings I tuned again and everything was perfect - new strings with neat three coils on each tuning pin.

Brian, thanks for the email! I will send the application when I am ready with it.

Thanks again to all of you.

Ivo Genoff

Try to get a copy of the book called a Guide to Restringing. There is a section in there about removing strings for a restring job. You need to proceed with EXTREME CAUTION and take SAFETY PRECAUTIONs. The average string tension is 169 pounds with overall tension 18-20 tons +. Eye goggles, moving blankets over the strings to prevent whip etc. You also should have an up to date tetanus shot. The full title of the book is A Guide to restringing by John W. TravisISBN 0-9600394-5-7 second edition June 1982

This is not a job for hobbyists or people who are working on a junker and want to put some shiny strings in. Restringing work is very detailed, time consuming and DANGEROUS.

Huh?

If you drop string tension where is the danger???

or, playing a piano is more dangerous as the 20 tons of tension is just waiting there to attack the next unsuspecting pianist. :p

Direct quote from the book- "You should be continuously aware , for your physical well-being and protection, that this tremendous pull is an explosive amount of potential energy. You must know how to let this tension down safely when removing the strings. .... You must also know how to handle music wire, for it is stiff, sharp ended and may cut you severely. It is a good idea to have protective clothing and eyewear on while working with music wire, especially if it is not properly contained or controlled."

Even after the tension is taken out you still have the potential of getting whipped by lengths of wire after they have been cut or detached from the tuning pin. The other end of the equation is when new wire is strung and tension is being added.

Getting cut by piano wire is not fun. Ask me how I know. Taking off the wires on a rusty piano can be very risky. Just putting a hammer on the pin of a rusty wire may be enough to have it break sending a piece of steel flying wildly. The wire doesn't even have to rusty for that matter. I don't know about you but I don' want to be on the receiving end. By the way there are dangers in other things like cutting
wood on a tablesaw. Kickback can send pieces of wood back at you in milliseconds and with tremendous impact. I have seen wood get kicked back and embed itself in drywall. You need to practice safety constantly or you will be sorry.

I do consider myself safety concious, just that your post read as some unimaginable dangerous activity that I had not previously encountered since I began in 1977.

The more you know about something, the less you are adversly affected by it.

Actualy,it can be dangereous (I've earned some marks on my hands ).But I think You get use to it (or learn to be cautious in the end ).
By the way,if somebody can give me a tip how to get the book on stringing,I will be very grateful.