Ok, I was told that before you put the cotton on the string that the string
should be one cigarette papers diameter from the wheel... Does that mean that
the string shouldn't touch the wheel at all before you cotton but be as close
as a cig papers lenth from it... I'm trying to get my Orca sounding its
best... Any Ideas.. I added a picture I drew showing the problem I'm trying
to solve to see if it will fix my vibrating problem on the lower A key and the
problem with the A and B key jumping an octave......
click on the picture when you pull it up to blow it up..
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y59/texasbagpiper/gurdystring.jpg
Thanks, Seth
Here's what it looked like before I shimmed the bridge..The string was
pressing super hard on the wheel... and the other string is not being used and
it's not touching the wheel as the picture may seem to show..
http://s3.photobucket.com/albums/y59/texasbagpiper/?action=view¤t=DSCI0001.jpg
Ulrich Joosten <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} .shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
Dear folks on the Hurdy-gurdy list,
Im a newbie to the list and I follow this interesting discussion. Since Im
from Europe (Cologne) I am not familiar with the so called orca I guess
its a nickname for a specific gurdy-type. Maybe one of you could send me some
information on this instrument. A link probably where I could see some photos?
Myself I am playing hurdy-gurdy since 1984. I play a lute-shaped Auvergnat by
Jean-Noel Grandchamp and since 2 years I revived my interest in the instrument
(after putting it for some years on a lower practising level) by getting a
Weichselbaumer Alto.
Im looking forward to follow some interesting dicussions on the list.
Thank you for letting me participate.
Best wishes,
Ulrich
---------------------------------
Von: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Im Auftrag von Chris Nogy
Gesendet: Mittwoch, 9. Mai 2007 18:02
An: [email protected]
Betreff: Re[2]: [HG] Bizarre Orca problem/
Remember, an instrument set up perfectly from the factory will not remain
perfectly set up for long without maintenance and adjustment.
Shimming, cottoning, adjusting, these are part of life for almost every
instrument (mostly acoustic, but even solid body). Learning to make the
necessary adjustments on an instrument, especially a hurdy gurdy, is part of
owning one, and without that knowledge the experience will be less than stellar.
Roy will, I am sure, be able to teach you the whys and hows of adjusting
strings, shimming, tirant tension, wheel surface and rosin, etc. Doesn't
matter how good your hands are at cranking and pressing, without being able to
make the instrument perform mechanically correctly in a wide range of
environmental situations, the art is not very impressive.
I would suggest simply trying some shimming to get the contact area between
the wheel and string more even and consistent. A pack of Tops cigarette papers
is cheap, but you don't even need that - I have good luck with Trident gum
wrapper paper (the thin stuff around each piece, not the foil stuff). And you
get to chew the gum.
You are not going to mess up the instrument with a little bit of shimming,
just be careful to put in small shims that cover the entire notch in the bridge
or nut.
Chris
*********** REPLY SEPARATOR ***********
On 5/9/2007 at 7:58 AM Seth Hamon wrote:
Sorry to hear about the Orca.. I just got an Orca made early this year
and I'm not sure if it's the humidity change or weather or something but mine
won't play the lowest A "last key on bottom" very well. If I turn the wheel
very slowly and play the A it sounds ok.. If I turn the wheel at a normal speed
it jumps the octave and sometimes makes a vibrating sound throughout the
instrument... It only seems to happen on the A note.. Its very discouraging and
I really haven't had a chance to get it right since I got it.. I don't know
what I should do. Just about every song I try to play has that note in it and
it makes me not even want to play at all with the awful sound I get on that
lower A. I do have a local guy nearby "Roy" and I'm going to see if he can help
me get it squared away. It may just be a climate issue. Only thing I noticed is
where the string touches the wheel it seems to press more on the inside of the
wheel (side closer to the keys) than on the outside.
Roy told me something about using cigarette papers and adjusting the string
height but I don't want to change it from the factory setting. Seth...
P.S. Does your Orca have a wooden wheel or synthetic.. Mine is
synthetic.....
Here's a link on how humidity affects instruments..
http://www.fredsmusic.com/humidity.html
"Gary F. Plazyk" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Hi, Michael!
I had what sounds like a similar problem with my Volksgurdy - a hairline crack
down the middle of the back seam.
What's your environment like? Here in the Chicago area it gets really dry in
the winter, which I think caused my problem.
I've started keeping two guitar-sized Dampit humidifier sticks in the case with
my hurdy-gurdy (one at each end), and try to keep the humidity up to at least
55%. Hint: I found the blue-to-pink indicator that comes with the Dampit stick
to be useless; I got a humidity indicator at a pet store (for use in reptile
cages ~ $4) and stuck it to the Dampit plastic guitar soundhole cover, which I
keep in my case.
Very best regards,
-Gary P.
Gary Plazyk
Fuzzy Bear Farm
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://profiles.yahoo.com/g_plazyk
http://www.BearCreekMusic.us
http://www.RavenswoodMorris.org
"Music is too important to leave to the professionals." -Robert Shaw
