M-170

Technical Specifications

Rim

Made from between 14 – 18 laminations of solid hard rock maple with a mahogany stabilizing layer; continuous bent, both inner & outer form one single rim giving unequalled strength & stability.

Braces

Solid spruce; Spruce provides tensile strength with less weight. Maple dowels fasten braces to rim producing a homogenous foundation upon which is built the entire tonal component. In concert grand, a cast iron treble bell, fixed to rim’s underside at treble bend, holds plate firmly in position by means of a steel bolt.

Pinblock

Hexagrip patented design; 7 laminations of quarter-sawn hardrock maple, beech and mahogany. Wood grain distributed at angles of 45°, employing grain direction uniformly around the circumference of the tuning pin to provide the ultimate in pin grippage. As a result of this exclusive design, the tuning pin has smoother movement under torque and a piano which will hold its tuning longer.

Soundboard

Created like the soundboard of violins to give a free and even response throughout the entire scale, it is so constructed as to be 8 mm thick in the centre and tapered to 5 mm as it approaches the rim. This design permits complete freedom of movement, while acting as a homogenous unit to displace a greater amount of air, thereby creating a richer and more lasting tonal response. Close-grained, quarter-sawn Sitka spruce, a wood having unusual stability and vibrance under stress and vibration, is used exclusively for the soundboard.

Ribs

Made from durable, resinous pine to assure strong and constant support of string down-bearing on the soundboard. Ribs are hand-fitted into their mounting surfaces carved into the inner rim of the piano, locking in the important soundboard crown.

Bridge

Continuous bent bridge with hard rock maple vertically laminated and capped with solid hard rock maple; planed to prescribed height, graphite coated, drilled, and notched by hand for precise individual string bearing. Design defies splitting and aids in sound travel right across the soundboard. Maple doweled, glued, and screwed to soundboard.

Scale

Overstrung; combination agraffe; Front and rear duplex. Tension: 20,418 kg

Plate

Sand cast grey iron; filled, hand-milled, and sealed; bronzed and lacquered.

Tuning Pins

Premium blued steel with rust-resistant, nickeled heads.

Strings

TREBLE: Twelve whole & one-half sizes from high-tensile Swedish steel.
BASS: Swedish steel core wire wound with pure copper.

Hammers

Premium wool top felt over premium wool under felt; treated to resist insects and moisture. Compression-wired to retain permanent shape. Hard birch mouldings. Shanks from select resilient maple.

Dampers

Horizontal-cut premium wool for effective dampening. Maple heads for endurance.

Action

White, quarter-sawn maple parts, bushed with specially treated wool action cloth for freedom from friction. Parts are anchored in hard maple dowels housed in rosette-shaped brass tubing to assure precise & stable regulation. Exclusive single, combination phosphor bronze repetition and fly spring provides constant crisp touch response. Specially designed to respond 14% faster fortissimo & 6% faster pianissimo by using an exclusive combination of half-round balance rail bearings and strategically placed key leads.

Keys

Bavarian spruce, individually weighed-off. Chip-proof, stain-resistant coverings for naturals; slip-proof, delicately abraded ebonized sharps. Tough, durable Linden wood buttons reinforce keys over balance rail permitting maximum tonal power with every strike.

Keybed

Made from planks of stable, quarter-sawn spruce. Horizontal planks are freely mortised together, while their ends are permanently mortised into vertical planks, presenting a vented system for humidity escapement while allowing for necessary expansion and contraction. Design intensifies key movement and prevents “slapping” during heavy playing. Large maple dowel ends provide a solid mount for adjustable brass touch-regulating screws.

Pedals

Solid brass. Soft, sustaining, and full sostenuto.