Help with Steinway Model/tail-plate embossing

[Mark Dierauf]

I'm not sure whether or not they skipped any letters, but I know that
they don't correspond directly to the year of manufacture. I just tuned
a model O # 192xxx, which according to Steinways numbers dates to 1918.
However, the plate casting designation is "J", which is the 10th letter
of the alphabet which would date the plate at 1920 according to the
formula being discussed in this thread. I've checked this on many pianos
and found that starting as soon as letter "C" pianos the letters are out
of sync with the years. My guess has been that they changed letters
after a run of so many plates, or else that they produced plates at a
much faster rate than they produced pianos. I also assume that the one
to four digit number just below the casting date represents the nth
numbers plate within that letter code

- Mark

-----Original Message-----
From: Conrad Hoffsommer [mailto:hoffsoco@martin.luther.edu] 
Sent: Tuesday, November 18, 2003 7:00 AM
To: Pianotech
Subject: Re: Help with Steinway Model/tail-plate embossing

Michael G,

At 11:34 11/18/2003 +0000, you wrote:
>Hello list and Robin Hufford


>   I think, in
>1910, the company must have become concerned with people being able to
>read these so they substituted a letter where the year would have
>been.   One must count alphabetically the number the letter represents,
>beginning with the letter A and add to this ten.  This then represents
>the year of the dating.


I've known about this practice for some time but never knew the starting

year.  For a while, I tried to remember to record the work letter/number

for each S$S I tuned and relate them to the year 
manufactured.  Unfortunately, I do not have a vast collection of serial 
numbers, but I _have_ come to the suspicion that they didn't/don't use
all 
the letters of the alphabet in this practice.

Can anyone confirm or deny my suspicions?



Conrad Hoffsommer - Music Technician
Luther College, 700 College Dr., Decorah, Iowa 52101-1045
Vox-(563)-387-1204 // Fax (563)-387-1076

- Education is what you get from reading the small print. Experience is 
what you get from not reading it.