Boardman & Gray

[Anne Beetem]

>Anne,
>It is not my intention to discourage discussion on this, or any other,
>topic.  Far from being bored, I would say that the decision to adjust,
>repair, rebuild, or junk is perhaps the most important one we're all
>faced with on a daily basis.


Was I referring to you?  No, not really.   I think I was just
caught in a rare overstressed mood.   Too busy with too many worries.
I admit I get frustrated with the pitch 'em disposable attitude about so
many things in our society, pianos to houses--buy new,  dump the old.


>
>I'm sure you're aware that the NY piano fire is a true story.

Yes,  but it was as much a marketing ploy.    There is always a lot of junk
being
produced too, as one can easily see by visiting the typical piano shop today.

  Eighty
>years later, many WW II spinets and seventy-year-old uprights would
>indeed be candidates for another fire.


Some of those seventy year old uprights become incredible pianos with a
little care,
even the lesser quality ones are often of far better construction and
design than
some of the new junk.  Some are outstanding.

In any age there is junk and there are gems.  The pocketbook of the owner
determines
whether they can drop $50,000 plus on a new Bosie (played some honeys over at
Steve Cunningham's in Leesburg Saturday--hi Steve!), or whether they have only
a few thousand $$s and four feet of wall space.


As always it depends upon the original quality and the environmental history of
the instrument.

 If you can afford to stay in  >business working on old instruments, more
power to you.
 How you determine which ones to work on and which to condemn are a part of
your
>work that I and others on this list might find interesting.
>
>Carl

Well Carl,  I have quite a waiting list, building and restoring
harpsichords, fortepianos,
and  "interesting" pianos which the others turn down.     I turn down a lot
of pianos after assessing
because  others can do most pianos,  and my shop space and time are
limited, and
sometimes because they are unwilling to have a proper job done.

The first rule of acceptance is I refuse to work on any pianos built after
WWI.  ; )

Making decisions to restore/repair is not something to rush, and of course,
it depends
upon the buyer's predilections and pocketbook.  First is research to
determine what the
instrument is, second is a thorough analysis of condition, structure,
materials, etc.

What more can one say?   Review construction, review of work to be done.
It's not
so different from what you all do, except for expanding the definitions,
and being
willing to work with unfamiliar designs, do some research,  and handcraft
replacement parts.
Oh yes,  and one needs a different definition of throughput.

Anne

So,  perhaps I would have spared myself some time by just posting my reply, hm?













Anne Beetem
Harpsichords & Historic Pianos
2070 Bingham Ct.
Reston, VA  20191
abeetem@wizard.net