Home › Forums › Harps and Accessories › Replacing 1st octave D is going to be the end of me
- This topic has 8 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 12 years, 2 months ago by
emma-graham.
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January 31, 2013 at 9:17 pm #76208
maren-williams
ParticipantI have gone through more strings than I’d like to admit in the past couple weeks trying to get this string replaced. I’ve watched the how-to on Sylvia Wood’s site, I’ve tried to vary how much slack I give it before wrapping the string around the tuning pin, all to no avail! Sometimes I’ll be able to get it on, be able to practice, and it’ll stay on, but the next day I’ll sit down, tune it along with my other strings, and within 5 minutes of beginning my practice, it will break.
Any ideas on WHAT I could even try differently? The room’s temperature is consistent, as well as humidity. None of my other strings are breaking or having issues. This is on a 47 string concert grand Salvi.
Gaaahhh!
January 31, 2013 at 9:27 pm #76209kimberly-rowe
KeymasterMaren: Is the string breaking, or is the knot just not holding? I’m not sure any harp techs will endorse this, but sometimes I’ll do a double wrap on the higher first octave strings, if I just can’t get the knot to hold. I do the knot like normal, but just give it an extra loop or wrap around the anchor. It usually does the trick. The other thing to check is if there’s something rubbing the string at the bottom or top that would be causing it to actually break in the same place each time.
January 31, 2013 at 10:34 pm #76210ParticipantThanks Kimberly. The string itself is breaking. No problems with the knot here. :-/
I have a lesson next week and can talk to my excellent teacher about it, but until then.. I can’t figure this out for the life of me!
January 31, 2013 at 11:26 pm #76211ParticipantI just replaced the string (again) and I added an extra loop and voila! LOL! We’re back in business!
It’s odd because when the string would break, the “back end” of the string would come out and the knot would always be just fine on the anchor.. I would have never thought. Anyway, 10 points to you Kimberly! 🙂 Thank you!!
February 1, 2013 at 12:12 am #76212KeymasterFabulous! Hope it works….
February 1, 2013 at 7:47 pm #76213ParticipantUgh. It happened again! It breaks right in the middle of the string. So strange!
February 1, 2013 at 7:56 pm #76214Tacye
ParticipantI would try putting a 1st E on instead. It won’t harm the harp, and it might stay put.
Have you changed anything about your string storage?
February 6, 2013 at 3:15 am #76215ParticipantI haven’t changed anything with my string storage..
I will try an E if this latest D doesn’t stay. I think the issue for me was giving the string slack. I understood the higher octaves don’t stretch as much as the lower strings, and, since it kept breaking I watched some YouTubes talking about how to replace strings in the higher octaves. A few discussed leaving an inch to an inch and a half of slack on the string before winding it on the tuning pin, which I kept trying at different lengths.
This last go with the D, I disregarded the idea of leaving some slack. I didn’t pull it extremely taught but I didn’t leave any excess, and so far it’s holding! Perhaps the slack is more applicable to nylon strings? I’m not sure. But a few I watched didn’t mention anything about leaving some slack, and I think that’s been my problem.. … well, I HOPE that has been my problem. 🙂 We will see!
February 6, 2013 at 11:19 pm #76216emma-graham
ParticipantHow horribly frustrating. My few thoughts, for what they are worth!
Are you using a gut string? I thought Salvi Concert Grands were strung with nylon in the top octave? Have you used the same string when you replace it? i.e. the leftover string. I know you can get several strings out of one packet length in the top octave but if the string is somehow faulty it might be worth trying a completely new one if you haven’t already. -
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