>Not just cast iron, but #50 cast iron is specified in >the AS&W transcriptions. These guys were no dopes! >They made some pretty astounding pianos around 1900, >as I'm sure you will admit. What was the year of this AS&W meeting? If it was mentioned, I seem to have missed it. And yes, I'll admit some pretty terrific pianos were built around 1900, but when were the first plates put in pianos? By 1900, they were refining what they had already long ago settled on. And no, I don't think these guys were dopes. >Strike steel and it rings. >Strike cast iron and it goes "thud". It depends on how it's put together and used, doesn't it? There are any number of steel objects around me that don't ring when struck, and I've seen more than one gray iron plate strut that "thrummed" along with the music. >Specific >resonances COULD be a problem on long members. You >could also talk to Bill Edgerton of (I think) Norwalk >Ct.. ( Also in Music Box Soiciety International ) He >made a bunch of reproduction Seeburg KT Special >Orchestrions in the 1970's with aluminum plates. He probably wouldn't have had much luck with ABS either. Was the aluminum chosen with anything particular in mind, or because it was castable like iron, and he had an affordable means of producing them? That's the point. The plate doesn't necessarily have to be cast. Has all the research that produced the marvelous modern vacuum casting techniques been conducted with the intention of finding the ideal plate building materials and methods from a performance standpoint, or finding a way to produce a better surface finish for a faster production cycle time from a cast plate? Ron N
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