I recently brought in a 1981 Kawai grand that had surface rust all over (from living a mile from the Atlantic for much of it's existence). Although the overall tone was not bad, I couldn't help but wonder if there would be any improvement by cleaning up as much of the rust as I could (it was slated for restringing anyway due to loose tuning pins).
I spent better than an hour polishing up the strings the best I could. Then a tuning (I had previously tuned it in its rough state just to get a fair idea of it's potential). In the process of this tuning a d subsequent playing, I felt that there was in fact a global improvement in the instrument as a result. The tone "seemed" cleaner and more focused. Whether it was a psychological response (because I wanted it) or whether it was in fact real...I cannot say for sure. It was not huge, but enough to appear noticeable. The piano is now getting readied for restringing so it's out of commission.
Another piano, a 1959 Steinway L was restrung and re-hammered 10 years ago, but has lived also on the seacoast (literally in this case), and when I came to it the wire was (is) totally brown with rust. I asked the owner if they had a tendency to open the doors and windows in good weather and he said: "All the time!" Needless to say that answered my question as to the rust. Otherwise the piano played and sounded fine...just plain ugly. And since the purpose of my visit was to assess for sale value, I had to downgrade it's potential significantly as a result of all the corrosion. Too bad.
Peter Grey Piano Doctor
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Peter Grey
Stratham NH
(603) 686-2395
pianodoctor57@gmail.com------------------------------
Original Message:
Sent: 05-08-2026 21:21
From: David Pinnegar
Subject: Are rusty strings really a problem?
In essence Wim is on the ball - lubricate at the friction points but that doesn't take into account fragility at the coils.
However rusty strings can hide old strings which are inharmonic and contain false beating partials. The fundamental isn't false but the 1st partial is. In this situation it's really difficult to get a pleasant unison.
The other day I had a dogs' dinner of an instrument. Strings were shiny - they'd been cleared up. Agraffes were shiny having been wire wooled. Four strings in the central section had been replaced. So string breakage had been a problem. One could see remnants of rust powder where it hadn't been possible to clean. I didn't have Protek with me and the strings were difficult to render and going down below middle C, a string broke on me. Luckily it was at the coil and I went home for tools and lubrication, and wrapped 1 1/2 turns from the neighbouring string to borrow for its neighbour . . . and all was well. But unisons plagued me because of false partials. Then I got down to below the bass break . . . and my tuning lever didn't fit! The bass strings were original with small european pins! Luckily the client had another instrument with small pins for which I'd brought a lever . . . Returning to the treble above C5 the partials plagued me more and come C6 the top two octaves were small pins again.
Why had the central octaves been restrung? What had caused tendency to the central section strings to have been vulnerable to breakage?
I conclude a 2nd rate instrument upon which 2nd rate economy work had been done . . . and the whole neglected enough to have had rusty strings.
Best wishes
David P
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David Pinnegar, B.Sc., A.R.C.S.
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+44 7868385643
Original Message:
Sent: 5/8/2026 8:29:00 PM
From: Wim Blees
Subject: RE: Are rusty strings really a problem?
Geoff
Rust on the strings is not the problem, except, as you said, they look bad. Where rust becomes a problem is at the contact points: The coil, the agraff/v-bar, bridge pins and hitch pins. You can't clean under the string where they make contact. As long as the strings render and don't break, you're good to go. It's when the rust creates rendering problems, or break, is when there is a problem.
Wim
Original Message:
Sent: 5/8/2026 8:14:00 PM
From: Geoff Sykes
Subject: Are rusty strings really a problem?
1958 Baldwin F. Really a very nice piano, with the exception that the strings and tuning pins are a bit rusty. Not bad rusty but all over surface rusty. I just did a 50¢ pitch raise on it, and a fine tuning, and everything came in clean without a hint of problems. So, are rusty strings really a problem, if the cause of the rusting has been removed? In other words, if the strings don't need replacement because of the rust, does cleaning them actually provide a solution to a potential problem or is cleaning them more of an aesthetic endeavor?
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Geoff Sykes, RPT
Los Angeles CA
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