[pianotech] Wury Console - Unusual Case Construction

[Terry Farrell]

I did some tuning, etc. on a 1959 (from serial number) Wurlitzer  
console today. First thing I noticed about it was the amateur back  
porch refinishing job on the case - I mean the brushed on quality type  
(and not using brushable clear finish!) - the finish was not old- 
looking - looked like it might be 20 or so years old - sure didn't  
look like a 51 year old finish. No big deal with that, of course. Open  
the lid - or try to - oh, okay, I finally got it - the lid was  
constructed a little bit unusual (strip of wood on the front bottom  
edge - like the music desk piece wasn't tall enough). Well, okay,  
Wurlies can be weird. Remove music desk and bottom board. Looks really  
strange inside - ah, there is no finish on any of the interior wood -  
zilch, nada. Lookin' at the "refinishing job" and it clearly appears  
that this is the original finish. There is absolutely no trace of  
original factory-type finish. And parts/surfaces/edges that always get  
factory-finished on all pianos have no finish at all. And there is  
absolutely zero trace of any stripping activity. And believe me, who  
ever did this amateur case finishing had no knowledge of how to remove  
a finish and leave no trace.

The case construction - the way the music desk is screwed in, the  
pedal box for the three foot pedals, the bottom board, the matching  
bench - everything is 1920s style - clearly not 1959. By 1920s style,  
I mean big wooden blocks used to hold things together. The bench legs  
have like no hardware - the bench sides a solid 2x2" hardwood, with a  
huge hardwood triangle in each corner with big screws holding things  
together - again, like you'd see on an old upright, not a 1959 Wurly  
console. Heck, I didn't remove the bench legs, but they probably had  
wooden threads! (Just kidding....)

The top lid is about a half-inch short of the length of the case - so  
on each end of the top, you can see the top edge of the case sides -  
the edge of the outer oak veneer and the inner hardwood core. There is  
no Wurlitzer decal on the fallboard (although the fallboard did have  
the typical Wurly slide mechanism!). The sides of the keybed - usually  
they are sculpted in some way on the front top corner - these are  
almost squared off (looks real strange - like the ends of a square  
grand keyboard).

IMHO, there is no way (zero chance) the finish on this case was  
applied in any factory in Decalb or any other Wurlitzer factory. And  
I'm 98% sure that the case was not built in any Wurlitzer factory. The  
only thing I can think of is that someone, maybe in the 1980s or 70s,  
got hold of an unused 1959 Wurly console strung back/board/plate  
assembly - and maybe a keybed - oh, and the fallboard mechanism that  
had been sitting around in some closet or lonely corner under a pile  
of whatever or up in the factory attic - somehow the assembly was  
built, but then it somehow fell off or was yanked from the normal  
production line (maybe an employee got drunk, swiped it off the line,  
hid it good somewhere in the factory, and then forgot the next day!).  
Anyway, someone - maybe an employee at the factory somehow got hold of  
this strung back assembly and finished it off 20 or 30 0r 40 years ago  
in his garage (or back porch).

That's all I can come up with. Anyone else have a theory? I will be  
returning to the piano in a few days - maybe late this week - anyone  
find this mystery interesting enough to want to see pictures????

Upon initial inspection of this thing I'm sure I stared at this beast  
for at least ten minutes uttering quiet little WTFs to myself........

Terry Farrell