Pro Tip 28: Hammer shaping

As a skilled piano technician, I understand the importance of maintaining a piano's optimal performance and tonal quality. One crucial aspect of piano maintenance involves shaping worn-out hammers. By carefully reshaping these hammers, I can restore their original form, ensure they strike the strings accurately, and produce the desired sound.
In this video, I will show some examples of poorly shaped hammers and demonstrate my shaping techniques. I delicately sculpt the hammers to refine their contours and restore their resilience. This process involves removing excess felt material and reshaping the striking surface to achieve optimal contact with the strings. By doing so, I enhance the hammers' responsiveness, allowing them to produce a clear and well-rounded tone.
Furthermore, shaping piano hammers improves their durability and longevity. As hammers wear down over time, they can become misshapen and lose their effectiveness. By skillfully reshaping them, I restore their integrity and prevent further degradation, ensuring consistent performance and extending their lifespan.
By employing my expertise and using specialized tools, I meticulously shape each hammer to achieve a harmonious balance between weight, shape, and density. This ensures that the hammers strike the strings precisely, producing the desired dynamics and tonal character for each key.
You can learn the process of shaping worn-out piano hammers is an integral part of the role of a piano technician.

[@the_daily_ping]

Great video. Those example photos are hilarious. Cleaning up after a bad job isn’t fun be it can make for some good comedy. Thanks for sharing.

[@johnbianchi3877]

I never gang file hammers. I pay attention to what I'm doing and to what I have done, and my hamers look like new factory installed hammers. Frank Hanson from the NEC taught me this. Especially in very worn hammers, you need to treat each hammer individually because they have not worn equally

[@trevdog7945]

I have thoroughly enjoyed your videos! All of these are a wealth of knowledge and I have used many ideas and incorporated them into my daily routine! Thanks again for producing these and keep em' coming!

[@jbuzz8853]

Thank you! Lots more to come!

[@georgebartlett2933]

Great video. Shows great skill & knowledge

[@francisanosissi1]

Simple direct and understandable..thank you.

[@unequally-tempered]

Brilliant and very helpful in refining technique

[@NelsonYum]

Thank you very much for the great video. I love watching your videos all the time. May I have one question, you mentioned to remove 1/3 of the string mark, do you mean the string mark in length or in depth?

[@jbuzz8853]

Hi Nelson. Length. Shape both sides and remove 1/3 on one side and 1/3 on the other, leaving the middle third. That middle 1/3 will also be not as deep, so I guess you could say both length and depth.

[@NelsonYum]

@@jbuzz8853 I see, thank you very much!!! you videos are great!!!

[@Snipely]

I had the same question...thanks for the clarification. You're taking off 1/3 of the cuts along the profile of the hammer first in back and then in front, but ultimately removing the entire depth of the cuts. A diagram would be helpful!

[@lawrencejuanlin9113]

I replaced all the hammers on my grand, but sadly the technician shaved the tail, so much… way too much, so that the tail is super thin now, like a piece of thin paper wood… even can’t be easily voiced because it can be easily broken. What should I do? The hammers just be replaced a month ago 😢😢

[@the_daily_ping]

That’s unfortunate. There’s not much you can do. Laminating the tails with something like wood veneer could strengthen them but will also add a bit of weight to the hammer which would possibly alter the touch weight. It would be better than broken tails though.

[@W-HealthPianoExercises]

Why did he shave the tails so much ?

[@Snipely]

For an upright, do you remove the hammer rail and lay the shafts horizonal?