[Bell Historians] Steel Bells

[David Bryant]

"LOVE, Dickon" wrote:

> Now what *would* be interesting is if someone produced some modern
> steel
> bells. They might have had something going for them for so many to be
> cast.

They were cheap, I suspect! Everyone likes to think they are getting a
bargain...

> Also, it would be interesting to monitor the deterioration of steel
> bells
> over time in terms of their sound.

Yes. Has anyone ever looked to see whether the better sounding steel
bells are the least corroded ones? It seems likely. I remember watching
one of the Bassaleg bells being sandblasted one bitterly cold day last
yeat. Some of the original surfact was left, but not much - I suspect
many steel bells have lost all of this surface. The rest of the bell was
not too corroded. I've got a photo somewhere of all six bells taken a
few hours after they were blasted - I'll try and find it and stick it on
the photos section. By the time the bells were loaded onto the lorry to
be taken to the museum in Sheffield, 3 or 4 days later, they were again
covered with a fine coating of rust.

David