Replacing plain wire

[Ted Sambell]

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Dear Caut,

I am curious about the stainless steel wire advertized in the Journal. =
Has anyone used it? Or intending to? I was taught that the main =
objection to it was that its breaking strain was not high enough, but =
wonder if the metallergy has improved for this particular make of wire. =
If so it would be a true breakthrough. If one thinks about it, the =
modern piano could not exist without high tensile wire; back in the =
heyday of the piano, wire makers competed fiercely to increase the =
strength of their product. Pohlmann wire, made in Germany, seemed to be =
the most popular. American wire was made in two hardnesses, for treble =
and bass respectively. As I made bass strings, and had acquired an old =
factory foot operated looper, I tried at one time to loop treble wire, =
but it shattered every time. Incidentally, the time for making a loop is =
about eight seconds. I also sent six different brands of wire to the =
Ontario Research Lab. and found there was little to choose between them =
where breaking strength was concerned. Unfortunately they were unable to =
supply the elastic limits, which are generally considered to be about =
two thirds of the breaking strain. Klaus Fenner contests this and claims =
it to be 90%, and even if this is correct I would still prefer scales to =
be calculated within the two thirds as every bend in a string stretches =
the crystalline structure on the outside and compresses it on the =
inside, thus causing significant weakening.=20
In a grand piano, rusting can occur more on the underside of the =
strings; one can sometimes observe this in institutions where the string =
marks on the hammers are reddish brown; the proof is that this is not so =
for the bass. Yet the top surfaces are relatively rust free. I believe =
this is because condensation collects on the underside of the wire. This =
is important when voicing, as part of the routine should be to clean the =
underside of the strings with fine steel wool or polita, (obtainable =
from supply houses, an eraser impregnated with a fine abrasive). One can =
only reach the strike areas of course.(Remember to raise the dampers!). =
It does not make much sense to nicely file the hammers then allow them =
to collect rust deposits to affect the voicing. I have never seen this =
mentioned before; it is analogous to taking a shower then putting on =
dirty underwear.=20
Now, as for knowing when to re-string, there has already been excellent =
advice. When breakage starts to become frequent is a good indicator. If =
re-stringing is delayed, one can literally be doing it anyway, one =
string at a time, which is wasteful, time consuming and causes =
aggravation for all concerned.

Regards to all, Ted Sambell


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