Did Dr. Hickman and/or Wayne Stahnke comment on where, during the
motion of the hammer, the velocity was measured?  Presumably it was
very near the end of the hammer blow distance, which Hickman could
have measured directly with the spark chronometer.

But I thought you once mentioned that Stahnke's velocity trap was
more-or-less mid-stroke (optical ?); did he extrapolate to the impact
velocity?  The dynamic range wouldn't be affected by the measurement
point in any case, but the energy calculation would be.

I'm interested in this because, given the hammer velocity at impact and
the mass-moments for the components, I can calculate the force needed
from the finger for a triple-forte note.

John Rhodes

 [ Hickman doesn't say in his J.A.S.A article, but I believe that
 [ the velocity measuring trap was after letoff and before the hammer
 [ struck the strings.  -- Robbie