Or, you could simply use the closest approximation we have to the historical tuning pins, with those imperfections that encourage good behavior, namely, make the pins from standard commercial (usually Chinese-made) bright-common nails. I use 16d bright commons for my “standard” 8’ tuning pins, and 10d bright commons for the trebles of 4’s. They have mild striations, and they have mild bits of out-of-roundness, and, once degreased, if tossed in a “bath” of pure talc, then rubbed clean, retain microscopic amounts of talc in the porous surface. They turn like clockwork without a lot of modifying.

I have used them for years, and if you design the length so that a good proportion of the total length is down in the wrest-plank, to give cantilevered leverage (also needing a not-horrifically tight hole to work right) you get marvelous service. 

If you like something absurdly huge like 3/16”, you can use the monster 20d bright commons, which I have used for the wound strings in the bass of big Saxon clavichords a couple of times.

I don’t know if the same brands I get here in the western U.S. are available in Australia, but I’d bet they are. I buy mine here at ordinary hardware stores in 5lb boxes.

Though there might be some minor variations, the “standard” diameters of these nails are:

10d bright commons:  .148” (3.8mm)
16d 	ditto  .165”  (4.2mm)
20d  ditto  .203” (5.2mm).

Other styles (like box) will have different diameters for the same penny sizes.
“Bright” means un-treated, uncoated steel. Fairly soft, certainly no harder than historical wire that would have been used for tuning pins.

It’s a nuisance making them, but not horribly time-consuming, and I get pins that behave exactly as I wish, and of a length I can decide upon the spur of the moment. I have ways of making the heads very nice indeed. Besides, I like the pounding part ...


owen


> 
> Date:    Wed, 26 Oct 2016 23:36:55 -0500
> From:    Richard Schaumloffel <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: Re: Tuning Pin Sensitivity
> 
> One thing which I think is just as important as diameter is the nature of the surface of the part of the pin in the wrest plank. Old pins were generally made from drawn wire which was often not quite round and had grooves because of the imperfect draw plates, modern zither pins are threaded. I think the advantage of pins with a 'distressed' surface is that they tend to turn more smoothly without jumping. I have used pins of diam. 1/8", 5/32". 4.5mm ,3/16" mostly made from hard bright mild steel in wrest planks of hard English beech. The all work more or less my preference is actually 3/16" although this is a bit bigger than  authentic . The only way I could get any pin to turn smoothly was to use graphite ( 6B pencil). In the future I plan to use a softer steel and modify the surface by filing as in the English tradition or squashing the pin slightly off round and of course a softer wrest plank such as red oak.
> 
> Richard
> 

____________________________________


Owen Daly Early Keyboard Instruments
557 Statesman St. NE
Salem, OR 97301
http://www.dalyharpsichords.com
(503)-362-9396

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