buyng a piano - advice pls (Kemble, Boston, Samick, Welmar)

[mcnash]

Hi - I'm new to this site, but I've enjoyed reading it, and am finding it v useful. Thanks!

I'm buying a new piano to replace a clapped-out pre-war upright (Hoessel, Gertler & Co, Berlin). I've tried quite a few, ruled out several makes I didn't like (Yamaha, Eavestaff, Essex) and narrowed it down to four, very different, pianos. But I haven't played a great deal in the last 10 years, and the acoustics in the shop weren't forgiving, so I don't entirely trust my judgement! So I'd be grateful for any advice, please.

My four possibilities:

1) Ex-demo Kemble Concerto upright for £3330 - nice tone and action for the price, I thought, though top/bottom few notes sounded a bit ropey.

2) Then I tried a new Boston UP118 upright - much more depth and richness, though rather muffled tone for my taste (can apparently be voiced differently). Top/bottom notes sounded ok, and nice action. Better than the Kemble certainly - but at £7350, I'm not sure it's really £4k-worth better?

3) Decided to try a little grand - new Samick 48D. I enjoyed the extra power (like driving a 2-litre after an 1100), but top end sounded a bit harsh, and the action felt a bit imprecise. And overall, I wasn't sure the sound of it was 'me'. At £5236, cheaper than the Boston, but...

4) Tried a 2nd-hand 1976 Welmar 6ft grand. Big mistake! Loved the tone, sounded good across the whole range, action felt good (better than Samick anyway) - and the dealer said he hasn't even begun to work on it yet. I like it! But at £8950 it's stretching my budget to the limit and beyond.

So, my questions...

1) Do my impressions seem valid, or am I misreading these instruments?

2) Assuming condition is ok (I'll get a technician to check it out), is £8950 a reasonable price for the Welmar? Is it worth my scraping the money together?

3) Whichever I buy, I'm hoping it will last me for life - so which of these (if any) can I expect to last 40-plus years? (Yes, I'm an optimist!)

4) What have I forgotten to consider?!

Thank you all for any advice

Mark