Rosewood Piano Tuning Lever from Schaff Review 2025
This piano tuning hammer was the very first I ever owned. Which, now that I think of it really wasn't a great tuning lever to start out with.
Today, I use it as a stringing tool at best, and would never tune with it unless it was the only tuning lever I had in my possession.
The various qualities contained within each lever are important, which is why some levers (like this one) aren't all that great to own as a piano technician.
Features
Rosewood handle
Flexible lever
Interchangeable tip
Simplistic design
This basic lever was produced during a time when there was no such thing as a high-tech/high-performing tuning lever.
The materials and design matched the era in which it was produced, which was quite rudimentary.
Though, Rosewood in its hey-day was evidently most appealing during the time it was produced.
Buy the Rosewood lever from Schaff if...
You'd like to give it a try
You love Rosewood
You'd like a flexible lever
In all seriousness, it's difficult to come up with reasons why someone should purchase this lever.
Other than its Rosewood beauty and inexpensive cost, I would advise that technicians choose against this tuning lever. It's best to opt for tuning levers with better features.
Don’t buy the Rosewood lever from Schaff if…
You need rigidity
You'd like a State-of-the-Art beautiful lever
You have money to spend on a lever and need to use it wisely
After my work experience with this lever, I use it nothing more than an extra lever to string pianos with. This tuning lever does not deserve to be the primary tuning lever for any technician.
Pros
Extra lever to use for tougher, less sophisticated jobs
You can beat it up without concern
Reasonable price
The lever is indestructible. Throw it around for a few years and it will continue to respond the same, along with its Rosewood beauty.
Cons
No rigidity
Bare bones functionality
Outdated Aesthetics
Economical to a fault
There's no reason that I would use this lever other than that it's indestructible, or that it's a spare tuning lever that I can use for taxing jobs.
Price
$229.99
The price is reasonable for the caliber of piano tuning hammer that this lever represents.
This lever now represents an old past-time of how tuners used to have it in the old days. Now, there's not much of a practical use for it.
Is the Rosewood lever worth it?
No, unfortunately. There may have been a time when this lever provided a new dynamic for piano technicians at some point in time.
As far as my own experience, this lever did not prove to be useful as time went on. I recommend against purchasing this particular piano tuning hammer for a technician interested in purchasing a new tuning lever.
While I don't view this lever to be valuable, it may be useful if you are looking for a tuning lever that has extra flexibility.
Flexibility is a feature that costs too much time when working with the tuning of a piano. This particular quality causes inefficiencies that is undesirable in a piano tuning hammer.
It's indestructible nature may appeal to those who'd like to have a tuning lever that they need to have on hand in case of emergencies. It also may be beneficial as a spare for tougher jobs.
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