My wife wants a piano

[lts70]

My wife wants a new piano, but is willing to settle for a used one. The only problem is I don't know anything about pianos and all she knows is how to play them. I know this is a shot in the dark, but I have yet to post a topic on this forum that someone hasn't been able to answer a question for me. One of you has to have a wife/or is a piano expert.

She is looking at getting a used 16 year old Story and Clark upright. It is in excellent condition on the outside. It is 58" wide and 24" deep and 41" tall
I went and played it and it sounds great. I looked inside and everything looks good in their too. The bench is a little beat up, but I think we can fix that easy enough. It has been tuned on average every other year. It has only been moved once and they are the original owners. The reason they are selling is that they have to move and are downsizing. They are closing on the house this week and have to get rid of the piano. They are asking $800.00.
I will post pictures. Thanks guys...or possibly your wife.

[Sven]

If I'm buying something like that I don't know anything about I would call in a pro. A local piano or music store might have an expert you could pay $100 or an hours time or something to check it out.

-Steve

[cgrossl]

I know just enough to be dangerous. I do play, and my dad has been tuning/working on pianos since well before I was born. I used to tag along alot. A piano is a fascinating machine. Anyway, you'll want to hit every key and make sure that they all sound ok. Raise the lid and make sure that none of the strings are broken. The lower notes should have 1 string, mid range notes will have 2, and upper notes will have 3 strings, if I remember correctly. It is possible for 1 of the strings to be broken on the keys that have multiple strings, and the key will still sound, but it will be weaker than the other keys. If your wife plays, this should be fairly obvious when and if she hits a key that has a broken string. Also make sure that the low thru upper mid notes mute when you release the keys. With the lid raised, you should be able to see the dampeners mute the strings as you release the keys. Upper notes do not have dampeners. Your wife should be able to tell if the piano is reasonably in tune or not. I would ask the owner when they last had it tuned. If it was a long time ago, and it still sounds reasonably in tune, that's ok. If it was recently tuned, that's still probably a good thing. The tuner would have probably fixed any issues that were there.

The other big thing that you want to look at is the sound board. This is the heart of the piano. It is the amplifier that resonates the sound that comes from the strings. They are typically made out of spruce, and they can crack. Pull the piano out from the wall and look at its back. There should be some vertical "studs" every 12" or so on the outside, and a big board just on the inside of the "studs". That is the sound board. Inspect it carefully for cracks. If you find some, and you are still interested, I would have it looked at by a pro. They can be repaired depending on the severity of the crack.

If you buy it, you will probably have to have it tuned after it aclimates to its new environment....a month or two.

As for price, I really don't know. I'll leave that one up to you. Story & Clark is a decent piano, and you are looking at a console piano. I can tell because of its height. A studio piano would be a little taller. The taller the piano, the bigger the sound board, and usually, the better the piano sounds. This rule of thumb doesn't usually apply to antique pianos. They are a whole other ballgame. Most spinets (the really short pianos) don't sound well at all. Most baby grands don't sound very well either because the sound board is so small.

Good luck,
Cameron

[Desperado454]

Originally Posted by lts70

My wife wants a new piano, but is willing to settle for a used one. The only problem is I don't know anything about pianos and all she knows is how to play them. I know this is a shot in the dark, but I have yet to post a topic on this forum that someone hasn't been able to answer a question for me. One of you has to have a wife/or is a piano expert.

She is looking at getting a used 16 year old Story and Clark upright. It is in excellent condition on the outside. It is 58" wide and 24" deep and 41" tall
I went and played it and it sounds great. I looked inside and everything looks good in their too. The bench is a little beat up, but I think we can fix that easy enough. It has been tuned on average every other year. It has only been moved once and they are the original owners. The reason they are selling is that they have to move and are downsizing. They are closing on the house this week and have to get rid of the piano. They are asking $800.00.
I will post pictures. Thanks guys...or possibly your wife.

I work for an auction and have been out to many estates that are looking to sell off everything. Pianos are one thing we refuse to touch. Far too much labor to move, the cost to retune, and a tough sell as well. Recently there was a woman who was asking close to $800 for her's and she ended up paying someone $200 to take it away. Might be worthwhile to wait and offer to take it off her hands for nothing.

[cdowns]

if you want to get rid of a bunch of friends just get them to help you move a piano one time

[lts70]

Well they came down in price well enough and everything on and in the piano turned out to be in tip top shape. I will attach photos.

[Lugnut64052]

Story & Clark is an old name in pianos. The old ones (like 1900) were wonderful. The newer ones are just okay-- more of a "homeowner" quality. It'll play just fine.

You'll need to tune it in a few weeks. Moving a piano usually knocks them out of tune somewhat. Also, it'll take a few weeks for the piano to get used to your house (your particular humidity level and furnace/air setup).

I'd tune it a couple of times in the next year just to get it settled down. After that maybe once a year.