southwest inspired

Thomas has been working on this Bosendorfer, the only non-Steinway in the shop at the moment, and I was inspired by how pretty is was. The plates on Bosendorfers are much more orange than Steinway gold plates. And the bridge work and felt just inspired me to take a photograph. Perhaps is is because I am thinking of an upcoming trip to Taos.


The question of the week that was asked by a customer, who is having a complete restoration of her 1923 Steinway O, is what makes her Steinway a Steinway when so many of the old parts are being replaced. And it is true that in an extreme (and expensive) restoration everything may be replaced leaving only the case, the plate, and the key frame. Soundboards wear out, especially if pianos have lived on the east coast, and there is a soundboard maker in Arizona we use. We send him the old board to match dimensions. The same may be true for keysets. We send off the key frame (to Oregon), which is re-used (again because of fit), and an entire new keyset will be made. It may have plastic tops, or what is "legal" ivory. I have been told by my workmates that new keysets actually do feel better. Personally I would want an old set of ivory keys.Sometimes you find a piano that may have been made in 1904 and still has almost perfect ivory. And then you run across an 1899 piano that has the ugliest, worst job, of replacement plastic tops I have ever seen. And yet the piano, which is only having action work and new bass strings, when it was first played I looked up from my bench and stopped working to just listen, it sounded so good.
Part of our answer was things wear out and were meant to be replaced. Felt gets stiff looses its spring.. Metal and wood pieces fatigue. We try to find the current parts that will most replicate the original sound. And I tried to impart my feelings that every piano we work on has a soul. In the end they all have a unique sound. And Steinways have a sound that is Steinway, Mason Hamlins sound like Masons. Bosendorfers, well are Bosenfdorfers.
In fact the 1923 O is keeping it's soundboard and keyset. The ivory keys are in reasonable condition and I personally rebushed the keys, steel wooled the ebony sharps to give them a more pleasing appearance. But all the hammers, wippens, underlevers, strings, and numerous felt pieces are being replaced. And the case is being refinished and the original nickel plated pieces are being re-plated. It will be coddled into fine regulation, evenness of action, and melodic voicing. And it will have its soul.

trip tams

Finally wove in the ends and am in the process of blocking the latest streamside tams. You will notice the Paw Prints on the table behind my tams. I traded a tam for the collections of "paws".

I always color coordinate my Fiestaware when blocking.

the neighborhood update

Yes, it's back-to-school doggie! We (my workmates and I) figure next month will be Halloween doggie, and then we will have pilgrim doggie, followed by Santa doggie. I do wonder what the people think when I stop and take a picture.

I found 38 cents on Tuesday walking home from work, and this morning I saw a man carrying cat food followed by two black and white cats following him down the road to the boat ramp. He looked a bit like the pied piper. I've seen them stalking gophers on the high school lawn before (the cats that is, not their caretaker). And coming home from work they (the cats) seemed to be snuggled in the sun in some abandoned raised garden beds next to the school buildings.
I do enjoy the walk, driving and even bicycling you seem to miss the details of life.

Artemis, and rtemis are back in the water, giving us much viewing interruptions at the shop. We track whether they get towed out, and how and if they sail into Seaplane Lagoon. Not much gets by our collective shop eyes.

the blogger has returned

Eleven nights out, two campgrounds, one motel, one country hotel, and a final night at friends fine accommodations we made it home with large quantities of laundry. Here we are setting up camp in Page Springs Campground at Steens Mountain.
We overcame finding the ugliest campground in California, changing direction, encountering the smokiest campground in California, and backtracking to Alturas (the county seat of Modoc county) on our third night. Here we found a AAA approved Super 8 Motel (with a pretty reasonable continental breakfast) and a very amusing Italian restaurant with a decently priced bottle of drinkable red. The portions were so large, even on my small plate option, that we got a second night's dinner out of it too. We took a deep breath, and long showers and watched the final night of the democratic convention.
With a good early start on Day 4 we drove off to Lakeview Oregon. Lakeview appeared prosperous, and green after Alturas. Mike obtained his Oregon fishing license and we headed for Burns. After a stop at the forest service office in Hines, Oregon and a gas station (where remember in Oregon they pump your gas), we found a local fly shop and armed with information, and even more maps, Steens Mountain here we come. A quick run into Safeway in Burns, where they have block ice, a product not easy to come by these days we were set for six nights of camping. A later post and I will go into my cooler management system.

Above is the view from Kiger Pass. It is almost 10,000 feet and you climb up from the campground at 4,500 feet so gradually that you step out of the truck and are awestruck by the view and the expansiveness. This photo is made up of multiple exposures that Mike took, I sort of gave up trying to capture the landscape. Here is one of mine of the dogs guarding the sheep herd we saw on the way up.

I am told they may look friendly but don't get too close. We have yet to determine their exact breed, but evidently they are raised with the sheep and are there for protection, not herding.

The fishing was good, this a redband rainbow, a species that seems to survive well in the climate and the water temperature of the Donner and Blitzen River. We are trying to gather up our fishing friends for a return visit. By the next trip we will have sealed up the back of the truck, so as to not gather 6 inches of dust (or so it seemed), replaced the leaky air mattresses, fixed the Coleman lantern, replaced my chair seat, and gotten Mike a new pair of waders. The campground population varied from gigantic motor homes, to people with small backpacking tents, but they were some of the most friendly people I have ever camped with. Other than the "Grossbeaks". But that's another blog.

1948 international

Mike and Tom are sealing their deal with a handshake as this 1948 Norton International has been loaded into a van for transport from one garage to another.

After many years the 610 Taylor garage will again have the smell of oil and grease. Gris-gris doesn't seem to mind.

 

He seems to be enjoying some quiet moments in a Louie free zone.