Polyester On Steinway

[Paul McCloud]

Sy:
	I know a place in Southern California that I think does the poly
finish.  Their name is Esquire Piano.  They will sell you anything you
might need to repair poly finishes.  I spoke to them some time ago, and
they had just done a Steinway in Peach!  I also spoke to the finish
engineer some years ago when he stopped in our store here in San Diego. 
I asked him why they (Steinway) don't use these new urethanes or
polyester.  He said that the lacquer is translucent, while polyester is
opaque.  The lacquer finish has a kind of glow due to the penetration of
light into and out of the finish.  He said that they were not going to
change what has worked for so many years.  
	Having said that, I'll tell you all something that floored me regarding
Steinway finishes.  We've been having problems with the new Steinway
finishes in that they have all kinds of packing marks, and other
blemishes, shrinking of the lacquer, spots, and other problems.  I spoke
to Mike Mohr about it, and he said that due to the EPA regulations in
New York, that they can't use thinners in their application of the
lacquer.  He said that they use some heating method (don't ask me what
that might be.  Maybe somebody knows) to apply it.  And he said that it
can "move around" for up to a year before it finally settles down.  I've
had to fill in large dips in the edge of the case where the rubber
bumpers have dug into the soft finish.  I will spare you all some gory
details, unless you want to know more.
	IMHO, I think Steinway will have to do some rethinking of their finish
philosophy, move their finishing operation out of state, or get their
act together somehow, since what is being done at present is not cutting
it.

	Paul McCloud, RPT
	San Diego, CA