Improvements in Pianos.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 27th Dec., 1892-Accepted, 25th Feb., 1893
CUMI LEIN DIECIFICATION.
Improvements in Pianos.
I, WILLIAM HARRISON FARGO of No. 151 Worcester Street Boston, County
of Suffolk, State of Massachusetts, United States of America, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed to
be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention relates to pianos, and has for its object to improve the construction
of the wrest pins, and means for supporting and adjusting them.
In accordance with this invention the shanks of the wrest pins are made to
present two oppositely tapering or conical portions, which are seated in split or two
part holders or blocks, one of the tapering portions engaging or being engaged by
each part, and adjusting screws are provided by means of which the parts of the
split or two part holders are moved one with relation to the other, so that pressure
may be brought to bear upon the tapering portions of the shanks to thereby hold
the pins frictionally with sufficient pressure to resist the tendency of the strings to
turn them.
The holders for the wrest pins are pivoted, or adapted to bear against suitable
fulcrums, and an adjusting screw passes down through a slot or hole in the outer
end of each fulcrum holder or block, and into the wrest plank or frame, and by
turning said screw in one or the other direction the said outer end of the holder or
block will be raised or lowered.
The string is wound around the wrest pin while the latter is allowed to turn
freely in its socket in its holder, and when the string has been drawn as taut as
required, the adjusting screw by which the said wrest pin is tightened in its socket
is turned, after which the adjusting screw, by means of which the fulcrum holder or
block is moved, is turned to tune the string.
All the parts are preferably made of aluminium to provide for equal expansion.
Figure 1 shows in plan view a sufficient portion of the wrest plank or frame
of a piano to show two series of wrest pins, their supports and adjusting devices,
and
Figure 2, a sectional detail of the wrest plank, showing in side elevation the
wrest pins, supports and adjusting devices for three strings, which are employed to
produce a single tone.
The wrest plank a, made of any usual or suitable shape, and preferably made of
aluminium has formed integral with or secured to its upper side three ribs b,
arranged in parallelism or substantially so, and cut away or recessed at one side to
serve as fulcrums.
The shanks of the wrest pins d are formed to present two oppositely tapering or
conical portions dd, and said shanks are seated in holes or sockets made in holders
or blocks c, one end of each of which bear against the fulcrums b.
The fulcrumed holders or blocks are split lengthwise in substantially a horizontal
plane as at 2, so that the tapering portion d' will rest in a tapering or conical
recess in the upper part of the block, and the tapering portion will rest in a
tapering or conical recess in the lower part of the block.
To place the wrest pin of this construction in its socket in the holder, I prefer to
form the tapering or conical portion d' on a cylindrical shank, and after placing it
in its socket to form the tapering portion by upsetting it.
An adjusting screw f passes down through the outer end of the upper part of
each block, next the wrest pin, bearing against the top of the lower part of the
block, so that the said parts may be slightly separated one from the other, or
allowed to approach each other according to the direction in which the screw f, is
turned.

page_text: This movement of the parts toward and from each other is but slight, and hence
there is sufficient spring to the metal to accommodate such movement.
Another adjusting screw e passes down through a slot or hole in the outer end of
the lower part of each block, the screw threaded shank of said screw entering an
internally screwed threaded socket in the wrest plank or frame so that by turning
the said screw in one or the other direction the fulcrum block or wrest pin holder
will be correspondingly moved.
This adjusting screw e has on it a flange which bears upon the top side of the block
or holder, and the latter is drawn up against this flange by the tightly drawn string.
To provide for sufficient spring action of the parts of the fulcrum blocks, for
the purpose of tightening the pins in their sockets, and also furnish good and
sufficient supports for the wrest pins, I have formed a boss on each block through
which the wrest pins pass, and said bosses are formed nearer to or farther from the
fulcrums to enable the wrest pins to be placed nearer to, or farther from the
fulcrum, to provide for the usual differences between whole and half tones,
the wrest pins of the half tone string being placed nearer to the fulcrums.
I have provided three ribs b, as fulcrums, and as usual three wrest pins for each
tone or half tone, said pins being supported in blocks or holders arranged in line
with each other, yet the pins and their holders are independently adjustable.
In operating my invention, a string is wound around one of the wrest pins, while
the latter is free to turn in its socket, and when the string bas been drawn sufficiently
taut, and while the wrest pin is held stationary by a suitable wrest, the adjusting
screw is turned to separate the parts of the block or holder, and thereby tighten
the hold upon the shank of the pin.
The adjusting screw e is then turned to raise or lower the outer end of the
fulcrum block, and thereby vary the tension of the string to provide for any slight
variation which may be required.
་་
Thus it will be seen that the wrest pins may be turned and then tightened in
their sockets for ordinary or rough tuning, after which an exceedingly fine
adjustment may be made by means of the adjusting screw e for finished work.
All the parts will preferably be made of aluminium to thereby permit of equal
expansion of the parts, yet iron or steel or other metal may be employed.
By the wrest pins, their supports, and adjusting devices, constructed as herein
shown, or in any equivalent way, it will be seen that the wrest pins cannot become
loosened in their sockets as is now the case where the sockets are made in wooden
wrest planks, thereby enabling the piano when once tuned to remain in tune for a
much greater length of time, and they also enable the piano to be tuned with much
greater precision owing to the fine yet accurate adjusting devices, and furthermore
by supporting the wrest pins in fulcrumed holders or blocks the vibrating power is
enhanced.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. In a piano, the wrest plank, wrest pins, supports and adjusting devices therefor,
all made of aluminium, substantially as described.
2. In a piano, the wrest plank having ribs b, as fulcrums, combined with wrest
pins, and fulcrumed holders in which said wrest pins are seated, substantially as
described.
3. In a piano, the wrest plank having ribs b, as fulcrums, combined with wrest
pins having their shanks formed with two tapering portions d¹ and fulcrumed
holders for said wrest pins divided lengthwise horizontally, substantially as
described.
4. In a piano, the wrest plank having ribs b, as fulcrums, combined with wrest
pins having their shanks formed with two tapering portions d' d' and fulcrumed
holders for said wrest pins divided in a horizontal line, and adjusting screws f to
loosen or tighten the wrest pins in their sockets, substantially as described.

page_text: 5. In a piano the wrest plank and ribs 6 thereon as fulcrums, combined with
wrest pins and fulcrumed holders therefor, and adjusting screws as e for said
fulcrumed holders, substantially as described.
6. In a piano, the wrest plank and ribs thereon as fulcrums, combined with
wrest pins having their shanks formed with two oppositely tapering portions, and
fulcrum blocks or holders for said wrest pins divided horizontally, and adjusting
screws for loosening or tightening said wrest pins in their sockets, and adjusting
screws for said fulcrumed holders, substantially as described.
7. In a piano the wrest plank, and a series of ribs b, thereon as fulcrums,
combined with a series of fulcrum blocks or holders for each rib, and wrest pins
seated in said blocks nearer to, or farther from the fulcrums for the half and whole
tones respectively, substantially as described.
8. In a piano a wrest pin, combined with an adjustable fulcrumed block or
holder for it, substantially as described.
9. In a piano, a wrest pin, combined with an adjustable fulcrumed block or
holder having a socket in which said pin is placed, and a tightening device for
tightening the pin in its socket, substantially as described.
Dated this 27th day of December 1892
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.