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Old Hickory - Posted - 09/27/2011: 18:16:24
I cut down a ruler to 10 inches tonight (though it looks like 10-3/8 would have reached all the way to the tension hoop).
Anyway, I can slide a quarter into the gap -- but I think it's pushing up the stick just a little. The note sounds more like a B than an A. This head is the AMB that I thought I stretched out a few months back. Thought I'd put it back on and actually measure the deflection for any change rather than trying to trust my ear. I have had more difficulty hearing a note from this head than with the Ludwigs that I used almost forever.
If the head holds at this deflection instead loosening (as I thought it was doing when I first installed it a while back) I may just keep it there. I'm liking the sound. Or I mightmanually loosen it back to a B-flat or A. Won't go any lower than that. I don't like G# on my banjo.
steve davis - Posted - 09/27/2011: 20:33:50
I'm liking A a lot better as I settle into my favorite current tension.
More effortless power.
All my info is from using standard weight Remo heads,so any measurements of
other brands,different thicknesses,tensions or construction will be interesting to compare.
Good work,Ken.
Old Hickory - Posted - 09/27/2011: 20:53:34
quote:
Originally posted by steve davis
All my info is from using standard weight Remo heads,so any measurements of other brands,different thicknesses,tensions or construction will be interesting to compare.
For a little more accuracy, then, let's say I have this head tightened so that if I just lightly tap or nudge the quarter with my finger, it doesn't want to go under the stick. If I push the quarter under, I think it pushes up on the stick by as little as the thickness of a cash register receipt. I have the stick perpendicular to the bridge right at the foot of the first string side. Measuring the gap in the area in front of the bridge. To me, the note sounds like B.
steve davis - Posted - 09/27/2011: 23:29:27
B sounds right for the tighter quarter.
Maybe a dime or penny will fit better for future reference.
Old Hickory - Posted - 09/28/2011: 06:42:15
At .061" thickness (according to Wikipedia) a penny does in fact slide under the stick with room to spare. So that narrows down my head's current deflection to within a few thousandths -- more than .061, less than .069. Time to get out the feeler gauges!
My primary goal with this experiment is not to identify the deflection that correlates to any particular head note (which I'm having trouble hearing with this AMB head), but to confirm whether or not this head is stretching all the way back to G overnight as I thought it was when I first installed it earlier this year. Since, after 2 full days, a quarter doesn't quite fit under the stick, I'm thinking the head is not loosening (or not loosening to that degree) and whatever I thought I was hearing months ago was not really happening.
That's good news. Because I really like the sound of the AMB.
Might cut another stick -- one that sits on the tone ring at either end -- to get a more accurate reading.
steve davis - Posted - 09/28/2011: 06:51:06
The deflection measure gives the same quick answers as the head note.
Either way lets you know if the tension of the head has changed since you last set the tightness to the tone you like to hear.
Old Hickory - Posted - 09/28/2011: 07:27:10
This morning, the quarter slides a bit more freely under the ruler and the head note is clearly a B-flat.
Maybe a little movement? I'll check again around 4 or 5 pm.
steve davis - Posted - 09/28/2011: 07:33:29
That's very common(head loosening a bit) from a new highest tension.
Just keep tweaking it back to the same coin performance.
With the coin way or the note way,you never have to overtighten and wait for the head to settle down.
You can simply keep it right "on the pipe" all the time.
steve davis - Posted - 09/28/2011: 20:04:52
Don't ever "change",Hoyt.
Old Hickory - Posted - 09/30/2011: 10:46:49
Two days later and a quarter still cannot slide the stick with only gravity to help it; head note still B-flat.
I think this confirms that I did not destroy this AMB head by over-tightening it a few months back. So I think I'll leave it on for the next few jams and practices and my gig on October 15 to see for sure how I like it.
steve davis - Posted - 10/12/2011: 13:35:27
quote:
Originally posted by steve davis
The amount of head deflection caused by the bridge pressure can be a good indicator of the head tension.
It can be measured with a straight edge and a coin as shown below.A quarter is about .065 thick and just fits under the 10" straightedge,near the bridge, without touching the stick with the head tuned to A..
If the head were tighter,the quarter would bind between the straightedge and head.This can be a good way to keep you from overtightening the head and tearing it.
This is an old Remo head and I've never torn a head that was to tuned to A or below.
This straightedge is 10" long to fit inside the hoop(and slightly off center).
I just taped a piece of sandpaper to a flat surface and sanded the edges of the stick.I backlit the edges with a flashlight while holding them on the flat surface.This told me when to stop sanding.
You can just buy a cheap plastic ruler and cut 2" off it for a 10" straightedge.
Old Hickory - Posted - 10/12/2011: 14:28:32
quote:
Originally posted by steve davis
This straightedge is 10" long to fit inside the hoop(and slightly off center).
You can just buy a cheap plastic ruler and cut 2" off it for a 10" straightedge.
Wish I had measured before I cut. I cut a cheap wooden ruler down to 10 inches. But it seems that 10-3/8 or thereabouts would have been a length that reaches the tension hoop at both ends while passing the right distance from the bridge. At that length, each end of the rule would be resting on top of the tone ring, making the measure of deflection that much more accurate.
Anyway, the head is holding at B-flat.
steve davis - Posted - 10/12/2011: 14:30:14
Once you settle on a stick,always use the same one.
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