Metal will put more preasure on an already weakened and deteriorating German old glute. My advice is nylon, fishing line, gut, or other low tension options. Speak to Mathias Rösel, he has one. I believe, these were originally stringed with metal strings. But though loosing some volume with nylon etc. I imagine a sweeter (?) sound would be reached? Any feedback from the cognoscenti? G. On Thu, Nov 30, 2017 at 7:57 PM, Tristan von Neumann <[1]tristanvonneum...@gmx.de> wrote: Hi there, I'm currently repairing my old German Lute (6x1, 62cm), previously decorative only. Some ribs have come apart. I managed one connection already. I noticed that it has very thin ribs (about 1-1.5mm), however the soundboard is quite thick judging at the rose (about 4-5mm). There is one leftover string attached on the 4th course, it seems contemporary and is wound metal. The lute has a one piece carved pegbox with ornamented back plate and flowerhead, and mechanical pegs. The fingerboard has metal frets with arches in between. The strings are attached with wooden pins into holes in the bridge. It seems about 100 years old. No maker's plate is visible inside the bowl. After having it in ok condition I plan to string it -- what would you suggest? Metal or nylon (in the latter case I'll use my fishing line)? Is there a way to tell if it was metal or gut strung? Personally I would prefer metal for more cittern-like sound, unless anyone advises strongly against it. Cheers Tristan
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