Brass plated strings??

[Jim Coleman, Sr.]

Hi Bill:

There are two or three such piano manufacturers who utilized the expression:
"Golden toned strings". It probably was gold, but not enough to make it
very expensive. If you don't see any green around the coils or over the 
counterbearing area, it probably it gold plate. It probably wears off at
the capo bar area during many tunings.

Jim Coleman, Sr.


On Mon, 30 Aug 1999 BSimon999@AOL.COM wrote:

> Today I saw a wreck of a Schomacker (1935-Philadelphia) grand piano, with
> negative pin torque.   The strings were flat brass colored, like the finish
> on a plate.  I thought at first the strings had been painted with brass
> paint, bass strings included, but very close examination showed the wire
> around the tuning pins and over the bridges was dull brass colored, but there
> wasn't a molecule of brass paint on the bridges or tuning pins. It looks like
> the strings, wrapped bass strings included, were painted with brass paint and
> then the piano was strung. The coating was not easy to scrape off, being
> plated or painted with a very good paint.   I figured that if the strings
> were gold plated they would not be so flat and dull looking.
> 
> I would have loved to pull a bass string and bring it home for microscope
> examination, but that was not an option. I would bet money that the strings
> were not painted in place, it was simply too good of a job.
> 
> Can anyone enlighten me as to what I was looking at?
> 
> Bill Simon
> Phoenix
>