Piano Buying Tips
Finding that "Perfect" piano for you is a worthy project. This search should be approached with many considerations and information gathering that will end in pleasurable results.
As with every worthwhile project don't act hastily and always practice sound judgment for there are opportunist whether intentionally or not trying to turn a fast dollar at your expense.
One excellent source or reading material that is written in laymans terms that will give solid insight to this project is, "The Piano Book" by Larry Fine. You can locate this book at your public library or purchase one from a good book store for under twenty dollars and it is a bargain at that price. Another excellent resource book to help in dating the age and manufacturing information of your consideration would be "Pierce Piano Atlas".
A tactic to the unsuspecting "would be buyer" from individuals or storesales person is the line "all it needs is a good tuning". Many times a poor out of tune piano will mask many defects and costly needed repairs because you can't really hear anything due to the glaring intonation. A "tuning is not a "fix all" for all the other problems with an instrument. Always insist that prior to your purchasing the piano you want the instrument to be finely tuned to actually hear what that instrument at its current condition will sound like. Even two identical new pianos sitting side by side will have differences in tone, inharmonics, dynamics and touch.
The above picture is a 1941 Howard Studio retired from a local bar and now plays the praises to God in a local Methodist Bell Choir Room. Besides having to learn a few new songs this piano had its action reconditioned, new strings and a few keytops repaired. A Dampp-Chaser Humidity Control unit has been installed and its pitch it as "solid as a rock"! The original purchase was two hundred dollars.
"Making the Difference in Piano Service."
Arbeau Piano
PO Box 1053
Blue Springs, MO 64013
(816) 228-8806
arbeaupiano@comcast.net
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Take a flashlight and a couple of screw drivers with you to open the easily accessible parts of the cabinet to take a look around. Shine the light up and down the soundboard, strings, pins and pinblock and just about anywhere in the action area you can see. You'll be surprised how really smart you are when it comes to actually viewing something your not sure what it completely does but that "thing-a-ma-gig" looks like it's not right,or broke or missing!
Before you talk price...call one of "us type people" that have nothing to do about the transaction to get our point of view and slant on what is a fair price. I've seen to many "FREE" pianos that cost the new owners $200 to have hauled away after they had paid to have it hauled home. Worst than that is the "sorry Sam" that was talked into dumping several hundreds of dollars of repairs into this box that should have been given a proper burial.
See the following photos that are good indicators that something maybe wrong with this.
When examining a used piano a lot can be learned about the previous service or the lack there of. Think about it in the terms you would a used car.
Open the lid, search the bench and even look for signatures on the plate for dates and information recorded about the frequency and type of work that has previously been done on this piano. If the seller seems reluctant or dismissal about recent tunings and would rather talk about the exterior appearance of this instrument, that is general not a good sign!
Unless the instrument has been owned by a renowned famous person and has documentation as such, the thought of its antiquity is only as good as it is as a useful instrument.
What's wrong with this picture? See any rust on the strings? Hey..how about those hammers!
This was Granny's piano but she sure played with a HARD TOUCH!
Okay, when you close the piano the note still plays and you can't see it! This indicates something terrible is wrong with either the hammers or the condition of where the piano has previously been. Either way we're probably in for some surprises before long with this one.
Would you believe that this type of piano was sold from a "piano tuner" out of his garage? Probably needed to be paid in cash for this one! That was only so you were not charged "sales tax".
The nice thing about plastic parts...they don't swell or shrink with the humidity! But,.........
Many pianos made in the 50's and newer have various plastic parts that are beginning to break. Yes, we can fix/replace them but is the total value of this instrument going to justify the total amount of replacement cost? If you don't do the math on this question there are many "piano service individuals" making big money at your expense. What is the end value, lifetime expectancy and the total condition of the rest of the piano to justify this investment?
The next few pictures are to test your skills. See if you can spot some kind of "problem" that would indicate this piano may not be the best choice.
This picture is perhaps a little harder so here's a hint: "Look at the Tuning Pins". Some tuners mark suspect loose tuning pins with chalk or fingernail polish to locate them in the future.
Look at the redtabs with greenstraps, these are called bridle straps. See any missing?
Moths have been here.
Someone "restrung" this piano right over these bad bridges! Sometimes we can epoxy fill the gaps but would require an un-strung bridge where the repairs are to be made. It's so much easier to have this done the first time. Cheaper too!
For the ones you can't figure out please email us for the answer @ arbeaupiano@comcast.net
This little exercise is not meant to "scare you off". Hopefully you now have a little self-confidence that your probably smarter than you thought about recognizing something that isn't quite right. Now, with that confidence and a little effort, the aid of a flashlight and a few friends that play "Mary had a little Lamb" check out the "bargains". Don't forget to stop in the music stores and seriously look, listen and try out the expensive stuff. It is only when you have something good to compare something to that you can arrive to a fair conclusion when you really have found something!
Stay in touch, we'll explore this subject a bit more.
These two pictures show the introduction of plastic into piano parts. Good lumber is expensive and not easily available in some countries. Plastic was very economical for production and did not require the labor intensity of wood milling equipment with the use of plastic injection molds. With the savings in the industry the next step was to convince the consumer that this was in their best interest to add more and more plastic into the piano.
Today, there are a few piano manufacturers that resist the usage of plastic in their action parts and still insist on wooden parts. This is a considerable factor in cost difference between these two types of pianos. One good comparison today would be Steinway's Boston piano line that is manufactured in the Kawai Factories. Kawai has designed their high end grand pianos with use of many "non-wooden" parts in their actions but not so for the Boston line of pianos made in their factories for Steinway
You will find Larry Fine to write more on this subject in his book. I personally do not notice that the tone is affected by this difference, I do question the longevity of high end pianos made with the "non-wooden parts". I currently have rebuilt pianos made pre-1900s with very usable action parts needing replacement of leather, felt parts, brass flange pins and repetition cords and yet using the original wooden action parts
I use the term "non-wooden parts" because as you investigate manufacturers of new pianos they may avoid using the term "plastic" when describing or naming the substitute material they currently use.
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