Official Luthiers Forum!

My good friend, Darin Spayd was kind enough to send me some hammers from a piano from which he was scrounging wood. I wanted to try these as a more consistent method for tapping plates. Piano hammers are shaped like a small hammer with a thin (1/8") wooden shaft and a thick piece of dense felt as the hammer part that strikes the strings (or plates).

I tried this last night for the first time and was amazed at the consistency and repeatability that it provided. It allowed me to compare and contrast far better than just finger or knuckle tapping ...I was quite surprised. The hammer gets a predictable "bounce back" depending on how hard it strikes and doesn't have any dampening on the plate.

Has anyone ever used this? I would highly recommend trying the hammers...I think you'll be pleased with the results.

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JJ
Napa, CA
http://www.DonohueGuitars.com

Great idea! I've noticed a need for something like this.

Some trivia - voicing a piano is done with the hammer's shape, weight and density/flexibility of the pad, IIRC.

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now known around here as Pat Foster
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http://www.patfosterguitars.com

Roger Simonoff sells a custom designed tap tuning hammer that's very similar to a piano hammer.

CrowDuck

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Chris Nielsen
Soquel, CA.

I was able to get a couple of hammers from a local piano dealership that had a repair staff. They were kind enough to root around in the basement for about 30 minutes to find some and then only charge me $5.00. I was really pleased. They fit in a razor saw handle very nicely. Now, if I only knew what I was doing with them...

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Jim Howell
Charlotte, NC

I think I may have one or two of piano hammers lying around

The bass hammers are a great deal heavier than the treble .Pat's trivia is correct . Hammer voicing is quite an art . The technician inserts needles in and out of the felt to break down the fibre giving it more cushioning . The affect is that the hammer ( now softer ) , stays on the string a milli second longer . Another more temporary way of voicing the hammers in a concert situation ,is to just scratch the surface of the felt , teasing it up a little . This has a similar result , but is reversable . This type of voicing is to take the harshness out of the played note . The reverse can also apply , where a note is not bright enough . The hammer is then made harder so it will stay on the string for a shorter amount of time ( killing less overtones ) . This can be achieved a few ways . One way is to iron the felt . Another more permanent way is to apply laquer or a very blonde shellac to the felt to firm it up .
Sorry to be so long winded on a trivia thing. Tuned WAY too many pianos

Cheers Craig

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CRAIG LAWRENCE of AUSTRALIA
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Simonoff has also written a couple of books on the subject of tap tuning, his latest includes a DVD.

CrowDuck

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Chris Nielsen
Soquel, CA.

Hey JJ!

Got a spare hammer? Oh, I forgot. Pianos only have 88 keys, therefore no spares.   

I use a very light weight brass hammer whith a piece of thick felt bumper(self sticking stuff from Home Depot that is used to pad furniture legs)on the striking face. I get a much better and more consistent ring than I can from using my fingers.

                  Paul

Hmmm,Very interesting.I must give this a try ,Thanks JJ and all.

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Anderson Guitars
Clearwater,Fl. 33755