string covers

[Greg & Mary Ellen Newell]

Hello List,
	Lately my wife and I are tying to put together an offer to a local
music school to install string covers on their grands. I have seen
some of the products available and while some are very good, they are
quite expensive. Others I have seen I would not use at all as they
seem to have caused rust. My question to this distinguished panel of
judges, <G>, is what would you consider the best material to use?
	It seems to me that a string cover has at least 3 functions.
		1. to protect the belly of the piano from foreign objects
		2. to keep it clean
		3. to NOT trap moisture within
It is this last function that I'm most concerned with as any cloth
will accomplish the first two items. I feel that synthetic fabrics
are inheirantly unsuitable as they will all, to the best of my
knowledge, repel or trap moisture to varying degrees once any
moisture/humdity gets under it. Cotton seems to be unsuitable as well
because it would actually wick the moisture out of the air ... I
think. My own personal opinion is that I should look for 100% wool
felt as it breathes better than any other fabric. Will it be strong
enough? The customer may want to shake the dust out at some point and
it would be embarassing to have it fall apart from something like
that.
	This may lead to much more than 1 music school so your comments,
observances, food for thought will be much appreciated and anxiously
awaited. Did I leave out anything? Thanks
				Greg
Greg & Mary Ellen Newell
gnewell@en.com
dt945@cleveland.freenet.edu
gnewell@juno.com