Piccolo
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Piccolo
Hey! I have a P.J. Hardy Piccolo, it has a metal(silver plated I'm assuming) head peice and a black body. Does anyone kow if this body is wood or plastic? around the keys seems to be getting lighter, maybe a bit miscoloured? the bottom is glossy, almost waxy... I'm confused as weather it's wood with a wax coating or sometype of plastic.
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fluteguy18
- Posts: 2311
- Joined: Sun Jul 16, 2006 3:11 pm
Well, chances are, if it is really glossy, it is plastic. If it feels really waxy or slightly plasticky (I made it up) it is probably plastic. But, here are a few things you can do to tell. Hold it in sunlight, and if you can see grain, and multiple layers/variations in color, it is wood. Also, look at the opening at the end of the body by the d# key. If the very end is smooth, but you can see circles (like tree rings) it is most likely plastic. Also, hold the picc at an angle to look at the 'grain'. If it is wood, the grain will have gaps in places that to the untrained eye look a lot like cracks or places for future cracks. However, if you are pretty sure that the head is silver plated, it is probably plastic. Most makers would never put a plated head on a professional body.
I own a plastic picc, and a wood picc, and these are differences between the two. Plastic is usually glossy (very polished, and unnatural), and sometimes is 'brushed' to give it a wooden look. Wood piccs are usually dull in appearance (unless the player has very oily skin, and they have been playing it a long time, and then it only looks like it was hand rubbed with varnish) and the grain is not usually visible in normal light. you have to look at it in sunlight to see the fine, very close grain.
Also, do an internet search. Look for it online, or try to find the manufacturer to ask.
Hope this helped. But FYI, a good maker would never put a waxy coating on wood.
I own a plastic picc, and a wood picc, and these are differences between the two. Plastic is usually glossy (very polished, and unnatural), and sometimes is 'brushed' to give it a wooden look. Wood piccs are usually dull in appearance (unless the player has very oily skin, and they have been playing it a long time, and then it only looks like it was hand rubbed with varnish) and the grain is not usually visible in normal light. you have to look at it in sunlight to see the fine, very close grain.
Also, do an internet search. Look for it online, or try to find the manufacturer to ask.
Hope this helped. But FYI, a good maker would never put a waxy coating on wood.