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Although search engines will try to help, it is important to check the spelling before you search. The name is Gors & Kallmann, they are famous German makers, and there is a tremendous amount of information spread around the internet in bits and pieces, but I don't know of a particular specialist si...

I meant to ask what numbers are in there. In particular, is there a scruffy handwritten number of about 5 or 6 digits written above a larger, clearer imprinted model number? My Numbers page gives some clues to Collard number dates, and describes them as one of the most difficult, so it's always nice...

If you can send me photos, I may be able to tell you more, or spot clues to date etc.. Does it have rounded sharps? I have no great amount of contact with restorers of antique pianos, they seem to live on a different planet to me, a fantasy world where people spend thousands of pounds moving these p...

Is that a picture of your piano, or someone else's? I know they are not always worth the time & money, but at a time when some people are spending thousands of pounds moving antique pianos from one country to another, and spending a fortune restoring them, I am inundated with other people pleading w...

The number suggests that your piano was made in 1893, and these Spencer numbers are usually quite clear and reliable, found by opening the top and looking inside. There is no archive material available too look up individual pianos, so I don't know anything apart from the date. Are you able to attac...

The internal layout seems quite normal for an overstrung underdamper, which most of them are, and the main difference is the use of metal or wooden standards (supports) on the action. I would have expected the Steck name at the righthand end of the frame, and the option of the round Aeolian logo bet...

James has done a tremendous amount of research on the address, and would very much like to hear from any descendants of Justin Browne, especially if they have any useful information or illustrations.

Do these help? I still can't get control of the attachments with this new software. 1854? Erard London grand action #3,445 - I drew this from the actual parts some years ago, and although the principle is much the same as Tomlinson's diagram, the details and proportions are quite different, so his m...

I'd love to see that, can you post a link, or email me?

I think the arithmetic went wrong somewhere. 60 minus 19 is 41.

The number date corresponds to the information on my Numbers page, but I have no record of this piano's past owners. Are you based in Morpeth or Houston? I am amazed that, in a time when people are pleading with me to rescue antique pianos from destruction, and I can't even justify the transport cos...

The 1869 ad doesn't say where the factory is.

At different times, Justn Browne gave his address as 237. 239, 243, or 245. I have not yet been able tp pin down the sequence of dates for these, but nowhere does he say that this is a factory. My 1892 Post Office London Directory lists Justin Browne, Pianoforte maker, 237-245 Euston Road NW. The St...

Just found this old post, and I am amazed that in so many words, nobody seems to have mentioned one basic fact. A piano action is a complex mechanical device, but before it is ever going to work properly, and before any regulation is attempted on the action, it is essential to make sure the keys are...

I have had some interesting responses from various tuners and dealers about this known problem, which seems to relate to American-made Yamahas, with a U before the serial number. Yamaha took a week to send me a brief email and said "Our Product Specialist has advised that trimming the Celeste felt i...

I'm sorry, you haven't given us any new information that we can act on.

No dates of serial numbers are available but it might be shortly before 1897. Without seeing it, it is difficult to know whether this is likely. Before you start spending money on sprucing it up, I would recommend getting it checked by a tuner, to make sure it holds in tune, because if it doesn't, f...

Paterson was a big name in the Scottish piano trade, music sellers to the Queen, and by 1922 they had joined forces with Marr Wood to become Paterson, Sons, Marr Wood Ltd., with a royal appointment. Their name doesn't tell us anything about the individual piano, but Winkelmann was one of the makes t...

According to Fox's centenary booklet, they took over Burling & Mansfield's name in 1915, so the piano could have been made later. I don't know what sort of information you are hoping for, no archive material is available for this company, but have a look at http://www.pianohistory.info/edwardian.htm...

I'm glad my site was useful but it hasn't been a pianogen site for years, people couldn't understand the name! The Names page at pianohistory.info gives some indication of names used by Barnes, but not which wholesalers made the Barnes pianos. It's odd that some were sold as "Barnes". King & Adam ar...

The spring is doing its job in the bass section, as is the pedal mechanism, it's the fact that the rail sags at the treble end.

I am as sure as I can be that making it tighter pulls the rail downwards, that is the opposite of what I need. Also, the bass end of the rail functions perfectly well, it is the sagging of the treble end that is the problem.

Thanks but the thing is already slackened off to the point where there is slack play between the celeste rail and the metal rod that pulls it, so slackening off more won't help. The connection between them also has a flimsy bit of baize that is wearing out already. The spring is placed in a position...

I have just tuned a fairly new Yamaha upright, and found a problem I haven't encountered with them before. The working of the celeste rail is all at the bass end, and the treble end of the rail just swivels with a pin into a drilled hole in the end of the case. Unfortunately, that end of the rail fl...

WIllingerhaus & Co. were importers and retailers, but probaby supplied imported pianos to other firms as well. 1892 My Post Office London Directory lists Willeringhaus & Co. 13 Hamsell Street EC. Sole importers of G. Ad. Ibach, established 1794) & Rich. Lipp & Sohn (established 1831) 1892 My Post Of...

The number suggests 1886, so have a look at http://www.pianohistory.info/victorian.html However, most pianos have several numbers inside, so if that doesn't look right for your piano, read http://www.pianohistory.info/numbers.html or if you want to search for clues inside the piano read http://www.p...

Dating a piano purely on the basis of numbers is not always as simple as it seems, but 11165 suggests that it was made around 1906.
If you are doing searches, "Gebruder" means brothers, so it might be important to sell it correctly.

The number suggests that it was made in 1935, but I don't know how accurate that is, there are discrepancies in the published dates. Also, it has been suggested that another factory produced their grands, and this may affect the date, but it is probably 1935.

Spencer's output around the late 1800s and early 1900s was huge, and I have more listings for enquiries about his surviving pianos than any other make. The number suggests that it was made in 1906, so your guesstimate was good. D is just a model. Recent changes in software on this website have made ...

The procedure for attaching images here is quite difficult, it is no good giving the name of the image. The piano might seem old to you, but I am surrounded by much older pianos, which are often amazing for their age. My Archives page http://www.pianohistory.info/archives.html explains the problems ...

Yesterday, I tuned this piano, and although I could find no evidence to support it having been "fully restored" internally, it was polished and looking pretty on the outside. My instant impression was that the case might be a little too fancy to be Edwardian, so I was thinking 1890s, although it tur...

My Numbers page http://www.pianohistory.info/numbers.html explains that dating pianos purely on the basis of numbers is often not as simple as it seems. It also mentions Collard specifically as one of the worst makes to date, and about a third of the way down the page, there are various estimates of...

Is this an upright piano? Normally, you just open the top and one or more numbers should be visible somewhere. HMX7 sounds like a modern Zender or something, but I can't find any record of that marking. Are you able to attach a photo to show what the whole piano looks like? If you want to search ins...

My Numbers page http://www.pianohistory.info/numbers.html explains that dating pianos purely on the basis of numbers is often not as simple as it seems. There are usually several numbers inside a piano, and even if 3110 is the correct serial number, we cannot date it, because no Lipp numbers that lo...

Over the years, I have taken a great interest in the history of Collard & Collard pianos, but there are always new things to learn. When Barry Balcombe sent photos of his Collard cottage piano, it seemed at first glance to be a typical model from around the 1860s, with carved leg tops, and the numbe...

Thanks for that, it is sad, but useful to know.

Thanks, it is interesting to hear of another one, it prompts me to have another go at finding some record of the factory. Is there any chance they could email me photos of it? I don't suppose an overdamper with oblong pins will be anything strikingly original, but it would be interesting to see it.

Yes, I am sorry, it's not my website. The photos you sent confirm what you already said, that is the likely serial number, and suggests 1909. What sort of information are you hoping for? The retailer is shown as W.F.Cole & Sons, Sheffield. They appear on our Sheffield lists from soon after 1899, so ...

The number suggests that it was made in 1901, just before Spencers supplied a piano to the Princess of Wales. Spencer numbers are usually clear and simple to find inside the top, but dating pianos purely on the basis of numbers is not always as simple as it seems. Is there any chance you could attac...

I just received an email from a Katie, and I am suspicious of it. It has no subject, no text, so it looks like it might be trouble, and the attachments won't load, so I dumped it. Is it from you? If so, please send again with a subject heading and some text to explain what it is about, otherwise it ...

What sort of history are you hoping for? Nobody can trace the life history of an individual piano once it leaves the factory, but if the manufacturers' archives survive, they may be able to provide you with some original details. How do you know it is 1909? Is it a London Erard or Paris? Can you tel...

I am sorry the software for attachments has become very troublesome, it's not my website.
We can't help with value, the number suggests 1932.

I know that the software for attaching pictures has changed recently, but it is not my website, I am struggling with it myself. That is the serial number but it doesn't help with this maker, there are no dates available for their numbers. This is typical of the many Edwardian pianos (my guess is 190...

I am in Lincolnshire, does that count as North East? James Hulbert was established in 1860, and by 1875 the firm was Hulbert & Sons. Later, there was also Hulbert & Jones. James retired around 1910, but we can't tell you anything about the individual piano just from the name. Are you able to post ph...

See the corrections in the new posting on the Piano History forum.

There is an old posting on this website for the firm, but not entirely correct. The Pierce Piano Atlas lists serial number dates between 1865-1880, wrongly labelled "Guild-Church" & Co., Washington, Massachusetts, at least some of the numbers are wrong, for example #17232 was made after the 1880 pat...

By 1900, the Post Office London Directory lists Green & Savage, Pianoforte Makers, North Road, London N and describes them as "Makers of the Brooklyn Piano". Previously they just used their own name. They were average commercial pianos, by now very old, and likely to suffer problems, especially loos...

I have been approached by a descendant of the Bedwells, who would like to get in touch with you. My contact details should be displayed on the right.

If you open the top of the piano, you should easily see numbers in there, and a serial number would usually have 5 or 6 digits.
For example, # 44,100 is 1927.

Although Stroud is in Gloucestershire and Berlin is in Germany, the phrase "The Pianola Company" suggests the other side of the world, such as Australia! Is that where you are?
If 10690 was a Stroud serial number it would suggest 1920, but the piano looks more like 1902.

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