wrong?

[Les Smith]

One old-time approach to trying to break up the corrosion in a dying
bass string, and hence improve its tone (hopefully), is to lower the
tension on it enough that you can remove it from its hitch-pin. Next,
put a tight loop in the string, about six-eight inches in diameter,
and then run the loop up and down the string, from one end to the other
about half a dozen times or so. When re-attaching the string to it's
hitch pin, try to add a few more twists than you found there original-
ly, (in the direction of the winding, of course!). In some cases this
proceedure actually works! It's at least worth a try. Most supply houses
sell a special spring-loaded tool for twisting bass strings that really
works quite well, and can save your fingers, too!

Les Smith
lessmith@buffnet.net

On Sun, 6 Apr 1997, Al Jeschke wrote:

>
> The main reason for loss of tone in iron wound strings is because of
> corrosion between the iron winding.  The same holds true for copper wound
> strings, except, copper is less quickly to take on corrosion.  If the
> winding corrosion is broken up, you will regain most, or at least a good
> portion of the lost tone.  There is always some loss of tone as the result
> of the increased stiffness and the loss of elasticity of the aging core wire
> under tension.
>
> Al Jeschke
> Calgary, Alberta, Canada
> jeschkea@cadvision.com
> >
> >----------
> >> From: Newton Hunt <nhunt@jagat.com>
> >> To: pianotech@byu.edu
> >> Subject: Re: wrong?
> >> Date: Sunday, April 06, 1997 7:20 PM
> >>
> >> >Dear list,
> >> >	Have I been wrong all these years thinking that the winding was iron?
> >> >Let me know please
> >> >James Grebe from St. Louis
> >> >pianoman@inlink.com
> >> >
> >>
> >> Soft iron.  It is less dense than copper so a larger winding can be use
> >as
> >> opposed to a too thin copper winding.  Often gives a sweet mellow sound.
> >> Iron strings do loose tone faster than copper.  Aluminum is and has been
> >> used when copper is just too thin to wind..
> >>
> >>         Newton
> >>         nhunt@jagat.com
> >> Dear list,
> >I have been vindicated.  My further query is why would iron, not steel,
> >wound strings sound very good at first but change to losing their tone.  Is
> >it because of tarnish that would settle in on soft iron very quickly or
> >some other reason?
> >thanks,
> >James Grebe from St. Louis
> >pianoman@inlink.com
> >
> >
>
>
>
>