[CAUT] S&S Hammers and lacquer

[Douglas Wood]

I keep hearing contradictory things about the nearly-mythical '20's  
Steinway piano hammers, particularly regarding the use of lacquer.  
Many independent technicians are convinced that they do not contain  
lacquer, or at least very little. This does not seem to agree with my  
experience. And I have asked at least 6 different, very  
knowledgeable, senior technicians employed by Steinway about it, and  
they all have agreed that to their knowledge, every Model D Steinway  
ever issued from the factory (NY) has had lacquer (or its precursor)  
in all 88 hammers. This includes Joe Bisceglie, who probably had the  
earliest involvement with the company.

So, can any of you provide hard evidence of a factory hammer in a D  
without? I'd really like to know.

This relates to my earlier post about the hammers being, actually, a  
composite. And the suggestion that Steinway developed its hammer, and  
its tone, including lacquer (or its precursor) as an essential  
element. I'd guess that most of you don't hold particularly to the  
purist notion that a no-lacquer hammer is by its very nature superior  
to a lacquered one--that we somehow should apologize for needing to  
use such awful stuff, or whatever. But this myth that in the golden  
days of piano manufacture the hammers were so great that lacquer  
wasn't necessary does the industry a large disservice.

Doug Wood