I have not made any keys for a while, other
projects have taken up my time and I have to admit the interest has waned a
little, I still had some brass and a few odds and ends left from previous
projects so I decided to make two more keys, they will be to my 80 series
design but with long key crush bar adjusters, The first is now
complete above, and in my opinion it is a very fine key indeed, an
exceptional action, light and effortless to use very similar to the Amplidan,
and the crush bar gap adjustment with its tommy bar tightener makes for very
easy adjustment, the knob it a new innovation, it can be turned round and
tightened into two positions one way it is low and flat for fingertip
operation the other it is a standard upright key knob, the bearing
tighteners are also quite long, experience has taught me that these small
bearings need only a a small amount of grip by the holder to keep them in
place or they bind, and these long arms mean they can be adjusted for a very
light grip very easily.
The whole key is finely balanced, the exact weight of the rear arm against
the long hard spring close in to the heavy block pivot point, with just the
right amount of leverage against the nose contacts and adjusters, a little
sliding weight for that final bit of balance correction, the only problem
with this key is it takes a terrible photograph! some keys are very
photogenic this one isn't, maybe its all the tall verticals that my camera
doesn't like, I thought it might improve with being Nickel plated not sure,
and at 800g and 225mm long it is a big key, anyway there it is.
Really for me this one is as good as it gets, I've
tried them all, hundreds of keys from the very best to the worst, and I'd
back this keys performance against them all. :() |