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Tuned a 1910 ish s/strung piano today Wilson Nottingham or some such trade piano. It's 3/4 frame but the false bit of old iron round the wrest plank has their name cast in it. In those days was it usual to get that done to make it look as tho' you'd built it. Although there was a Trade Description A...

Surely the second hand Yamahas are a minefield of old/older grey imports of questionable antecedents.
A new Kawai K200 would knock spots off them, in my humble opinion

It's an old trade piano with a "modernised case done in the 1950s.
Probably straight strung and overdamper.
Unless you get a technician to look at it you may be wasting £40.

My problem with used Yamahas is that there is no way to determine their age or antecedents

Without seeing either of the pianos on offer,my first thought is that the Bluthner,whatever the work done on it is grossly overpriced. If it has had all the work recommended by Colin then it is now hardly a "Bluthner!" For a good Chappell of the age mentioned I would think £1500 would do n...

You'll get a brand new Kawai k300 for that price, with carbon fibre action. Complete with a stool and extras if you pick the right dealer

dodgy ground here. there are thousands of eminent musicians writing music out there; exquisitely melodic and harmonically correct that get nowhere. Music is an art that appeals to depths that we cannot begin to understand. Being very ignorant in this matter, I venture to suggest that some of the Bea...

Bear in mind most of the sound energy comes out of the back of the piano.Ergo, if you muffle that discretely with a quilt or any insulation(eg loft insulation-- the sort that comes in sealed silver bags . Wickes/B&Q.) Don't make it too permanent as I am confident that as you get back into playin...

what is a " good piano to flip?"

Can't see enough-not even the pedals.
Please remove the front and then the dog can see the rabbit.

Colin
You must be barmy to even get involved with a turkey like that.
Nobody will end up happy.
Swan Vesta job

why do we get involved with these old pianos. We're nearly finishing an old Bech upright that we have dabbled with for over a year. Unfortunately, a previous owner seems to have tried fitting a pedal board as the whole undercarriage is riddled with holes with large chunks of the cheeks gnawed off. T...

Can't imagine anybody had time to tinkle the ivories in the War Room what with all the bombs,bombes and bombast. Especially with a german joanna.

have the rats been at those poor old ivories?

You will need to get a tuner/technician to evaluate the condition before putting a price on it. bear in mind it's 50 years old. I doubt it has ivory keys at that age. Can't remember Knights offering them

the last person you want to take to help choose a piano is a professional pianist or a piano teacher!
Take a good technician in stead. It will be worth his fee.. You can judge best the tone and touch that suits you. Nobody else.

The various tradesmen in a piano factory; polishers.backmakers, markers 0ff, tuners and finishers and regulators often had their own stamp that they would affix with some pride to their work.
I still do it but have still never found any of my juvenile works of art.

the bit"Hoflieferant -----Baden" means that this chap Prince Friedrich was a patron to this piano company in his petty Court in Baden.They probably presented him with one.
After German Unification in 1870 he would have disappeared and married one of our royals.

congratulations on your K500. Clearly Kawais are well tuned before leaving the factory as they reach us in very good tune. Certainly leave the piano a few weeks to adapt to it's new settled environment. After that, you will have to judge when your ear tells you attention is needed. With Kawais speci...

looks like a Bentley 85 C model to me,

who says it's straight strung?
When M&W introduced the double iron frame they became overstrung.I fitted dozens of them.
However, this doesn't negate all the comments as this 1930s piano has little value commercially.It could be a nice little worker tho'

I've never had a secondhand Kawai offered as they're like gold dust here.
Plenty of Yamahas tho

That's the way to do it. Don't completely remove any screws till you've made sure you've freed something. The curved bit behind the keys should slide UPWARDS.If it doesnt at first, waggle it well as it may just be stuck. Once out you will be able to see the next step. The action is probably in two p...

Never heard of any Knights being made outside of Loughton except in the very last days

Were the ages even similar , the Kawai every time.
However, the answer is in your use of the word "personally" What you like is what is important.

I've a customer that did up his old Weber player. He wanted it tuned as it was now excellent. The painting cost him £3000 alone he said. And I believe him! The whole joanna was covered in idyllic pastoral scenes-- nymphs and shepherds , trees,glades et al with just a small brown square saying "...

Don't forget that if there is no iron frame -work, then the CASE is the frame and takes all the strain so it has to be rigid

You will definitely need guidance BEFORE you start dismantling things. The belly is probably distorted, possibly with a collapsed crown.. The hammers are usually covered in leather. The keys will be lime wood and usually some warping. The" ivories" may be thick bone and the fronts boxwood....

The legs have obviously been replaced by square legs that have gone on crooked and not been properly shimmed up..
Wonder what happened to the original legs.

You'll definitely need to gauge every string if the size isn't marked on the plank or frame.
We do them marked mwg with swg on the back

Wouldn't call a Kawai K200 an entry piano!

If your budget is £3500 then please look at the Kawai k200. It is in a different class to the others you mention and why one would pay over £900 for a fifteen year old Rieger,Woodchester or Kemble I don't know. Try one and if it accords with your requirements you get the millenium action and the tra...

took me ages to even work that out.

Carysfort Rd N.16 I am sure I was told by my Dad, tho' he did tell many things, some of which proved a bit off the mark.

As far as I gathered Cousin Bertram's pianos were called Kennard or Drannek, or Brunger for the Scottish market. They were only good middle of the road trade pianos so I can't think anyone would be bothered to put a fictitious name on them. They were made in London N16 in their factory that became K...

We have sold several K500 to the

universal satisfaction.

of the customers and to us as the servicing technicians.
Where are you in the UK?

The bottom door IS original

Just an aside--- We're doing a Bechstein and a Ibach (OLD ones )and they both have the correct serial number in pencil under the nameboard/keyslip. viz Colin Nicholsons post) As an apprentice we used to "modernise" pianos in a sweat shop round the corner after work in Kentish Town.. The fa...

The cast "badge" seems to say Japan under it and also KK.
I wonder if it an attempt to bamboozle people into to thinking there is some connection to K Kawai the eminent maker?

It's lovely to see examples like this.
I've never seen one in my life tho' my family was with Brinsmeads for 2 generations as employees.
We did restore a very similar Bechstein a few years back tho' it had been somewhat vandalised in the case work tho' the giblets were fine.

Can't we all see it?

I've got plenty ivories even some unused! But we've had them at least pre-War!
I've a whole set of keys that could help

I used to work at Monington and Weston so if you post a pic I may recognise it.
M&W pianos have a picture of the Parthenon cast into the frame if not too old

nb
kendal is in the English Lake District so not quite up here in Scotland.

I just said all that! Forgot to warn that turning the set off buttons sometimes presents an unused bit of felt that produces the opposite effect!. That's the problem about giving DIY advice as with experience we check things and do things subconciously without realising it's experience that guides u...

As it's straight strung don't expect too subtle results. Take out the keys and make sure all the felts under are the same and sound.Remove damper rail.Make sure the action is firm in it's mounting and can't move to and fro or up and down. bend all the checks back slightly with your thumb to avoid co...

When tuning with clicky pins, you often get a "recalcitrant" string that clicks up in pitch past where it should be and when you try to drop it the click takes it down too low and it will keep doing it ad infinitum. So, Gill the Piano and I take the string above where it should be then rub...

Fear not. Mr Papps has formulated the plastic of his wedge boxes very specifically. It will allow of a small groove when first used but the groove does not wear and ensures the new tool does not digress from it's proper course onto a lateral path that could could cause curses and scratches on the so...

regarding rubbing down recalcitrant strings to pitch with a split stick, I would inform you that there is already a special tool for the job ........ the plastic box that houses yer Papps wedge.
Fully recommended,material of the exact texture and lubricity.

sounds very wafty to me.
Are you saying that during playing the notes in the bass alter?
Do they go back after the recital or do they need retuning?
Are they out of tune after playing?

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