wierdly wound strings

[Tvak@aol.com]

List

Today I tuned a new Baldwin console with the tenor wound strings having a 
triangular core which extended about an inch into the windings. From that 
point on the core was round.  This was true on the two wound strings on the 
treble break side and about the first 4 or 5 on the  bass side, and then the 
rest were normal.  (Round)  Some new innovation?  It seemingly made those 
unisons more difficult to tune.  If that was their intention, I label it a 
success.

This reminded me of something I had been meaning to ask about.  I have 
noticed on some spinet pianos that this same tenor and high bass area has 
wound strings that are kind of "bumpy" for the last inch or so before the 
winding stops.  I can't find the words to quite describe this, but I'm sure 
some of you have seen this because I've seen it on numerous pianos.  It looks 
as if it were kind of braided, or something.  It's not the swedge of the 
steel core.   They're not double-wound strings.  It's just  uneven and the 
uneveness seems to spiral around the string.  It seems to be there by design, 
because there will be several of them in a row, all looking the  same, 
but....just different than the strings on every other piano.  

Any ideas on what this is all about?  Or do I need new glasses?  

Tom Sivak