Polyester Finish- Yamaha

[TunerJeff@aol.com]

Dear List,
     Having just attended that "Sales-Seminar" at the Yo'mama dealership, I
can heave a little more info into the fray re; Polyester Finishes.

1. In the 'ol dim days- Pianos used varnish. This lasts for a while... then
cracks. (Checking on old uprights...I mean take a look at the checking on old
uprights!)

2. In the nearly dim days- Lacquer was introduced to pianos... and remains a
good finish.
BUT...

3. In the recently dim days- Polyester came onto the scene. (Move over boys!)

     WOW! Super finish! Long wearing! Color throughout the finish, so
scratches can be buffed! Ultra-stable! Withstands ultra-violet! Seals the
piano from humidity fluctuations!
Doesn't disintegrate when alcohol or fingernail polish removers are spilled!
Watch me set a match to this puddle of alcohol! (yah... cigarettes don't melt
this stuff neither.)

     Sound nifty? It's certainly tough & durable... but initial use of
polyester finishs did not take into account the rigidity of the finish. Early
uses of polyester DID crack under stress.
The wood continued to expand and contract (...more due to temperature than
humidity) and these finishes DID indeed fail, developing l-o-o-o-n-n-g
cracks. Also, polyester does not bond well to wood surfaces.

     Yamaha did not want to give up on such a durable trouble-free finish,
and developed the first "Resin Sheet Foundation" to give the finish/wood
interface some space for fluctuations (copied by Young Chang and others). The
foundation coating bonds well to wood (and seals the piano from humidity) and
the polyester bonds superbly to the resin coat underlay.
     A bonus was that this also gives the polyester finish a perfectly flat
surface to bond to, the finest sanding DOESN"T make a perfectly flat
surface... but the resin foundation IS.
That's how they can manage the "mirror-sheen" these pianos have, too.

Why bother to go to this (expensive) trouble?
    Because polyester finishes are the most durable known to science. Because
it's 10 times thicker and 7 times harder than lacquer. Because it's the best
way to protect the owners investment. Because because because BECAUSE (...add
small people in brightly colored clothing dancing around a puddle of Witch)
Because of the wonderful things it does!
    Seriously, Yamaha has spent a bundle on developing the use of these
finishes to protect the piano from everything from ultra-violet to humidity
as part of their commitment to producing the best piano they can. (Says so,
right here in the brochure...uh-huh.) If you think using polyester is a cheap
finish.. you're wrong. Getting this stuff to bond and STAY there took
research (ie;.....money), and involves many extra steps to produce
(ie;money).

    Folks do like the hand-rubbed wood veneer piano, too. And they won't
disappear from  dealership floors. Yamaha continues to build lacquer-finished
pianos & won't be ending production on 'em. Hand-rubbed, too. But they use
polyester because it's BETTER than lacquer at protecting the piano. (And the
wood beneath that coating IS hardwood!)

Whew!

Jeffrey T.Hickey RPT
Oregon Coast Piano Services
TunerJeff @ aol.com

ps-
Attending that sales meeting may have permanently warped my judgement! I
think I'd better spend some time with S & S, Kawai, or other good piano folks
just to even my perceptions on piano builders. Whenever I leave the Yo'mama
dealership... I'm convinced that they've got the best piano on the planet.
Somebody save me! (...nah... it might be true.)

jef