Bell attributes: Difference between revisions

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Historic founders would adjust the curves of their patterns as they cast and tested their products. Many would claim to have perfectly tuned bells emerge from the molds.

Bell founders in the 15th century made great progress in creating musical bells and carillon instruments. They guarded their techniques to the point that for four centuries creating good sounding bells was a lost art. During World War II, the [https://legionmagazine.com/en/2018/11/the-seizing-of-europes-bells Nazis went through Europe collecting bells] to be melted down into cannon and other armaments (another common use for bell bronze). After the war, research was done in the camp where these bells were stored to determine which ones sounded best and why.

Bell founders in the 15th century made great progress in creating musical bells and carillon instruments. They guarded their techniques to the point that for four centuries creating good sounding bells was a lost art. During World War II, the [https://web.archive.org/web/20210418065512/https://legionmagazine.com/en/2018/11/the-seizing-of-europes-bells/ Nazis went through Europe collecting bells] to be melted down into cannon and other armaments (another common use for bell bronze). After the war, research was done in the camp where these bells were stored to determine which ones sounded best and why.

=== Scaling ===

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== Tuning ==

While the profile of the bell can be adjusted to provide bells that ~~are very good sounding~~, bells that ring together, especially bells intended to be members of a chime or carillon instrument, are machine tuned after casting.

While the profile of the bell can be adjusted to provide bells that have a pleasant sound, bells that ring together, especially bells intended to be members of a chime or carillon instrument, are machine tuned after casting.

The tuning process generally involves a lathe. Horizontal shop lathes can be used for small bells, but large vertical engine lathes are used for large bells. This process always involves the removal of material and so it is an irreversible process. The risk of re-tuning valuable bells often does not justify the perceived benefits. Tuning individual partials of a bell is not as simple as tuning individual strings on a guitar for example. When one removes material from one area of the bell's profile, it may raise some partials while it lowers others. The tuner must be familiar with how each partial will react to the locations of cuts for the profile of a given bell.

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 Historic founders would adjust the curves of their patterns as they cast and tested their products. Many would claim to have perfectly tuned bells emerge from the molds.
-Bell founders in the 15th century made great progress in creating musical bells and carillon instruments. They guarded their techniques to the point that for four centuries creating good sounding bells was a lost art. During World War II, the [https://legionmagazine.com/en/2018/11/the-seizing-of-europes-bells Nazis went through Europe collecting bells] to be melted down into cannon  and other armaments (another common use for bell bronze). After the war, research was done in the camp where these bells were stored to determine which ones sounded best and why.
+Bell founders in the 15th century made great progress in creating musical bells and carillon instruments. They guarded their techniques to the point that for four centuries creating good sounding bells was a lost art. During World War II, the [https://web.archive.org/web/20210418065512/https://legionmagazine.com/en/2018/11/the-seizing-of-europes-bells/ Nazis went through Europe collecting bells] to be melted down into cannon  and other armaments (another common use for bell bronze). After the war, research was done in the camp where these bells were stored to determine which ones sounded best and why.
 === Scaling ===
@@ Line 21: / Line 21: @@
 == Tuning ==
-While the profile of the bell can be adjusted to provide bells that are very good sounding, bells that ring together, especially bells intended to be members of a chime or carillon instrument, are machine tuned after casting.
+While the profile of the bell can be adjusted to provide bells that have a pleasant sound, bells that ring together, especially bells intended to be members of a chime or carillon instrument, are machine tuned after casting.
 The tuning process generally involves a lathe. Horizontal shop lathes can be used for small bells, but large vertical engine lathes are used for large bells. This process always involves the removal of material and so it is an irreversible process. The risk of re-tuning valuable bells often does not justify the perceived benefits. Tuning individual partials of a bell is not as simple as tuning individual strings on a guitar for example. When one removes material from one area of the bell's profile, it may raise some partials while it lowers others. The tuner must be familiar with how each partial will react to the locations of cuts for the profile of a given bell.