Old uprights worth saving?

[Mark Dierauf]

  Virtually all of the old uprights that I run across up here (and there
are a lot of 'em) have boards which have collapsed in the area of the
mid-treble break where the bridge was almost always notched for
clearance for the plate strut. The sustain usually seems to drop way off
here, sometimes to the point where you'd almost suspect that the dampers
weren't even lifting. For this reason, I've come to the conclusion that
without a new board these aren't pianos that I'd feel comfortable
selling for real money and with a new board the price would be
prohibitive. 
  I used to wonder if it would be possible, or rather profitable, to pop
the sides and other case parts off these once wonderful instruments,
refinish them and glue them onto new backs, saving only the action
frames & rails, keybed/boards, plates, and hardware. The bellies could
be modernized in the process. While I might be persuaded that there is a
limited market for that kind of thing, I wouldn't want to try it outside
of a large metropolitan area. As a pianist, I'd sure rather have a
54"-56" upright in truly "new" condition than almost anything short of a
6' high quality grand.

- Mark

-----Original Message-----
From: gordon stelter [mailto:lclgcnp@yahoo.com] 
Sent: Sunday, July 11, 2004 4:36 PM
To: Pianotech
Subject: Re: Old uprights worth saving?

We have gotten $10,000-$12,000 for top-notch restored
uprights in the Atlanta market ( without new
soundboards ).  The thing to do is have the customer
compare them with a new piano of the same price. The
ornate case and resonant tone of the oldies usually
beats out the new stuff. But the newer pianos are
usualy LOT cleaner on the inside, unless great effort
is made to attend to this, which is why I have come up
with so many techniques to make old pianos odor-free
and sanitary. I don't want to face God and answer for
giving someone's 5 year old daughter, forced to
practice, a disease from the residues in an old piano.
     Thump


--- Farrell <mfarrel2@tampabay.rr.com> wrote:
> I strongly suspect that may depend quite a bit on
> how one defines
> "restored/remanufactured".
> 
> Terry Farrell
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Cy Shuster" <741662027@theshusters.org>
> To: "Pianotech" <pianotech@ptg.org>
> Sent: Saturday, July 10, 2004 5:07 PM
> Subject: Re: Old uprights worth saving?
> 
> 
> > In Minnesota, the store couldn't get more than
> $2,000 for one -- even a
> big
> > Bush & Lane.
> >
> > --Cy Shuster--
> > Bluefield, WV
> >
> > ----- Original Message ----- 
> > From: "Keith McGavern" <kam544@gbronline.com>
> > To: "Pianotech" <pianotech@ptg.org>
> > Sent: Friday, July 09, 2004 8:55 PM
> > Subject: Re: Old uprights worth saving?
> >
> >
> > > At 8:40 PM -0400 7/9/04, Clyde Hollinger wrote:
> > > >... Has anyone tried to see if there might
> actually be a market for
> > > >restored/remanufactured old uprights? ...
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > pianotech list info:
> https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives
> >
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> pianotech list info:
> https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives
> 



	
		
__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
New and Improved Yahoo! Mail - 100MB free storage!
http://promotions.yahoo.com/new_mail