Piano wire

[1] Starting around 1800, the piano began to be built ever more ambitiously, with sturdier (eventually, iron) framing and greater string tension.

In 1834, the Webster & Horsfal firm of Birmingham, United Kingdom brought out a form of piano wire made from cast steel; according to Dolge it was "so superior to the iron wire that the English firm soon had a monopoly."

[2] The tensile strength of one popular brand of piano wire is listed as 2620–2930 MPa (380–425 ksi).

[3] [4] Piano wire is also used in the fabrication of springs, fishing lures, special effects in the movie industry,[5] scaffold cross-bracing, orthodontic and pharyngeal surgery, and for the cutting of cheese and soap.

It is also commonly used in hobby applications such as model railroading, both control line and radio-controlled aircraft, and knitting.