Bass strings breaking.....this has never happened before!

I don't know how long you have been doing this job, but given the premises you mentioned regarding the mechanics and the humidity the instrument has taken on, what happened is to be expected. Perhaps even the crown of the soundboard is off, and the soundboard itself no longer has elasticity due to moisture absorption for a long time. It is clear that 442 [Hz] puts too much strain on the soundboard load and the string tension. Everything is a bit out of whack. The leveling bends that form on the bridge and at the nut are weak points and, if there is rust, they become critical points, even if we are far from the breaking load! Some or all of these problems could be the causes of the failure. The important thing is that the client realizes the state of the instrument.

Very often, some people think that just calling a tuner to resolve all the problems with a single tuning is enough. We know that's not the case! Sometimes a "forgotten" piano can reach a condition where it is not advisable to intervene, at least with a simple tuning.

Now you are in the thick of it and I advise you to proceed only if the client is aware of the risks. Now it is not advisable to tune down, because you would shift the "leveling bend" itself.

Suggestion: wait to order bass strings until, in these cases, the tuning is finished.

Good luck with the work... let's hope for the best

Thank you Paolo. Like you, I am Roman; I initially studied at S. Cecilia but then graduated in L'Aquila.

I have been following you since 2012.

I have been tuning and making adjustments for more than 10 years, after attending several courses in France and Germany, and then many private lessons with a tuning technician from Asti who taught me many things, which I then punctually rediscovered in all your videos, which are always extremely interesting and very clear.

What I wrote had never happened to me before and it truly caught me off guard, which is why I wanted to share it on the forum !!

I will follow your advice even if, as you write—evidently from lived experience—the problem is the client who, in my case, did not understand and attributes the responsibility for what happened to me.

To tell you, he even complains that the two new strings I installed have dropped a bit after one week !!!

Now the only thing that matters to me is to close [the matter] somehow, since with all these strings changed they are already in repair, and then ban him.

Thank you again and compliments on everything.

I also graduated at L'Aquila back in 1982. It is appropriate to bring new strings UP ONLY ONCE by half a tone and settle them near the frame pins and the bridge. When you encounter these cases, you must refuse. Then, if the owner insists, they must be aware of the great risks they are taking.

Lucca is a city I like very much; I have been there many times. I find it beautiful.

Let me know if you manage to get out of the nightmare. You will surely succeed. But try to explain everything we said to the owner and make them understand that the technician cannot perform miracles.

Another thing: try putting a drop of Svitol on the bass tuning pin and also a little bit, very little, on the string winding at the agraffe. Make sure the strings also slide on the bridges; otherwise, a little lubricant there too. Ensure nothing drips. Dry it if necessary. If you have dry Teflon spray, even better. You can also find it at "le Roy Merlyn"

Graduated in 1982 ??? Then we must have seen each other for sure, me too that same year, the one of the World Cup !

is it possible that we have seen each other...

A truly complicated situation! Reading you all, a doubt arises in my mind: with such high humidity, isn't it possible that even the soul of the board has suffered? I started playing again as an adult and am preferring digital pianos precisely to avoid these technical dramas, especially if I want to study some romantic piece without any worries.

Excessive relative humidity is certainly the enemy of the piano. Swelling of the soundboard, jamming of the action pins, delamination, and absorption by the hammers. Strings get damaged and oxidize. Obviously, this does not mean one should always prefer digital. Even the latter can be damaged in the presence of excessive and constant relative humidity.

Good morning... reading your comments, I wonder if humidity could have also affected the stability of the tuning pins, in addition to the strings.

I hope the situation is resolved soon without too much tension with the owner... it's always a shame when the complexity of the instrument is not understood :)