I’ve finally started on the restringing/revoicing of an anonymous modern instrument (Zuckerman kit, own design?). It’s a single manual instrument with 2 x 8’ + 1 x 4’. When I started to remove the 8’ strings, after a while some strings started to snap spontaneously. When I measured the thickness of these strings they were way thicker that the new stringing schedule I made for this instrument.
Did anyone have the same experience? Should I be worried for some design fault?
HI Chris,
**> “**When I started to remove the 8’ strings, after a while some strings started to snap spontaneously. When I measured the thickness of these strings they were way thicker that the new stringing schedule I made for this instrument.”
Were you removing the lower strings first? If the tension of the lower strings had been causing the harpsichord to flex along its length, releasing their tension could be too much for the higher strings which would then start to ping one after another, as the bottom board of the instrument unflexes itself when the bottom strings are removed. That has happened to me once (but the strings were no loss).
If this is the case, then a lighter stringing schedule sounds to me like a very good idea for the instrument, which will bend less under less tension. Or use two instead of three strings per note. If it does flex, maybe bring it extra gradually up to pitch in all strings? I really am no expert on this though so should keep my mouth shut.
It is wise when removing strings to back the tension off a half turn on every other string in one rank, similarly the other ranks, then go back through reducing tension on the missed strings.
When you remove all tensioned strings in sequence you are putting an unnatural stress on the case.
By the way if you did that with a grand piano you would get to hear the plate crack or worse…
Thanks for the replies. I started to remove the strings in bass. The fact that other strings started to break was not really a problem as they had to be removed anyway. The scale is too long for using Rose or P-wire but the so-called “Westfälisches Eisen” from Vogel should do the trick.