>Hi Andrew,

>Not too shallow and not too deep. Goldilocks and the Three Bears! Seriously, don’t drill through the bottom of the bridge, and don’t make them too shallow or the pins won’t have a firm purchase.

>Others will be certain to disagree, since everything in harpsichord making is subject to controversy, but I can tell you >that more important than millimeter specification of pin hole depths is that you should hammer the pins in right to the >bottom of the hole you have drilled. Although there is not a shred of scientific evidence for it, I am convinced that if there >is ‘air’ beneath the pin in the hole on the bridge that the sound is less than optimal. In fact, you can often make a subtle >improvement to the sound of an instrument by taking your hammer and firmly seating all the bridge pins properly (where >possible). Admittedly this is subtle, but I claim you can hear it. One of those little things that all add up.

>Andrew

 I remember a maker doing this hammering in of bridge pins on a Hubbard Baker Harris spinet, after the deed was done I noticed a crack in the treble end of the bridge (cross grain). I don't care how far the pins go in and whether there is any air below the pins also hammering pins in further beyond the bottom of the hole ie into solid wood may cause splits to form. If I catch anyone hammering in bridge pins on one of my instruments or even bending pins ,watch out!

Richard

P.S. there was also a theory kicking around that hammering in a pin exposed a new surface on the pin in contact with the string which allegedly improved the tone.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Note:  opinions  expressed on HPSCHD-L are those of the  individual con-
tributors and not necessarily  those of the list owners  nor of the Uni-
versity of Iowa.  For a brief  summary of list  commands, send mail to
[log in to unmask]  saying  HELP .
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::