Making Home Made Tempermant Strips and Wedge mutes

Anyone out there have any ideas on how to make tempermant strips at home? I have been brainstorming a few Ideas but I dont think any will work. My biggest problem is finding the right kind of materials.

Also I would like to find a way to make some type of wedge mute.

-KG

It would cost me more money in time than they cost to buy.

I use high quality felt used in automobile manufacturing. I think it is rated as a F1 but I can't remember. I then cut it into 36" strips and wash it in the washing machine with water and about 2 cups of rubbing alcohol. The felt is originally very tight and firm. The wasing produces a more fuzzy surface that mutes better.

The thickness is perfect for all pianos. The comercially available mute strips that I have bought in the past are way over priced and are too thick; they tend to move the strings sideways on the V-bar, and are way too wide for some bass strings. I had to force with too much pressure in my opinion, to get the felt in between those strings.

These are the felts I supply to all the students who take my beginner basic tuning course.

I supply standard rubber mutes for the course. Those are really inexpensive and work well so I don't bother.

Hmm... Well I gusse I sould focus on what most techs have laying around their shop. I have some bellows cloth and gasket leather laying around from some work I did on a player piano. I was thinking make strips of leather back them with cloth then mayben add some felt on top of the leather or just use the leather alone.

-KG

Schaff has standard, thin, and extra thin temperament strips for a few dollars each. Why would someone not buy them?

Where I am in Canada, we only have one supplier. They only have one style of mute strip and they cost about $10 each.

....ahem....
Last I checked, British Columbia is still in Canada....
For almost ten years, Piano Forte Supply has established an international reputation as the go-to place for professionals looking for quality piano tools and felts.
Temperament strips are here.

Sorry, Jurgen. I am in Quebec. I have never purchased tools from you. Pianophile is right here in Brossard. I am very happy with the strips I make and I get to resell them at a modest profit, yet still for a good price. I will check out your site. Thanks.

I went to your site. Very nice. Can you send me a price list? I gave a course in Vancouver last summer and it would be nice to be able to buy tools there instead of carting them on the plane.

Thanks.

I get mine from PianoSupplies.com (2 thicknesses) for $6.95.

Kees

Here's why I didn't: I was advised by Bill Bremmer not to buy Schaff's temperament strip. He said that they are not very durable. Instead, he suggested I buy some medium action cloth (item 317G). In terms of price, all of them are around $4.

I'm quite happy with the action cloth - it's certainly durable enough. It's rated at 2.8 mm, but because of its tight weave, it's a bit thick for closely-spaced unisons, especially if I want to use it in the bass. I might buy a strip of thin action cloth (317-1/2G) on my next order. That one is specced at 1.8 mm.

There is J.D. Grandt piano supplies in Toronto. John Schienke also manufactures bass strings. Ari Isaac is another Canadian supplier of piano parts.

Well I decided to suck it up and just buy some temperament strips. I also bought a new tuning hammer. Needed to upgrade from my old goose neck one. But in the meantime I will keep trying to make some economical homemade mute.

Thanks everyone

-KG

...Because it is *cloth*, not felt... Meaning, woven cloth is more durable than pressed felt. (That's a Schaff item number, right Mark?) It's great for muting the three-strings. It works on some bi-chord wound bass stings, too, but I agree, Mark, that thinner might do for some wound bass gaps. I've been having better luck just using rubber wedges on the bi-chords...

Here are some pictures of Bill using the cloth on the wires:







And speaking of wedges,



I was thinking about doubling up some plumber's gasket, but wedges are so darned cheap to buy, why not just buy them? Even the ones with handles are cheap!!!

I use the same action cloth, but I cut it down the middle length-wise for the treble, easier to work with up in the high treble, easier to get under and out from under the dampers.

I also have about 12" of the really thin action cloth for bi-chords that are close, which is plenty since there usually aren't too many of those. The thinner white cloth works for me in the rest of the bass and tenor too.

Jim, I also cut the action cloth in half. I combine Medium and thin strips together for a better fit in the tenor sections. Combining a used with an new works best. I have my ex-mom-in-law sew them together; or it's easy enough to hold the two together when installing.

What works really well, and costs nothing, are strips cut on the radius from a car/truck inner tube!Obviously you can cut them any width you wish. I should think any tyre refiiter should have a damaged tyre to give you. I found mine along side the road when out for a walk.

My mentors where mostly using a strip of thick leather moistened and hammered to thin the ends. Makes a supple wedge, easy to use and efficient. I don t recall if the leather have to be oiled a tad but I guess no.

I think I have a few old tires laying around here. Do you pick up? Maybe there is some money to be made for you... you know, selling tuning strips from old inner tubes?

This would get you started.

As Alfred E. Neuman used to say - "Cheap"

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Piano-Tuning-Mut...=item1c302a7eab

the black rubber is not always ideal as some of them will mark on the dampers . Felt is nice but a little thick for verticals.