Is it wrong I want to bust this up.....

It’s pretty cool as a piano.

Reality is you probably couldn’t get much more than fingerboard out of it - lots and lots of fingerboard. Since I’m sitting beside my wife’s baby grand as I type: the legs are hefty, but a bit too short for a neck; I might get three tops from the sides - but the one listed looks like it might struggle to give that much; the huge top on ours is too thin for a PRS carve.
 
The blurb about the shape of the piano in the link is incorrect. The traditional grand piano shape that we think of was originally based on the harpsichord shape, and that was around for quite a long time before the piano.

However, the rectangular pianos like the one that's linked were used in homes in the era before upright pianos became popular (making them upright took less space). That one's pretty interesting!

It has what was then the latest innovation: a full cast metal frame for the strings that is suspended above the soundboard, which allowed strings to be heavier and the piano to be louder.

I had a friend whose parents had an antique piano like that, and it was a nice instrument, sweet sounding. Think parlor guitar for an analogy. The case on that one certainly looks like BRW, and it would make sense if it was, since shipping from Brazil to Connecticut was probably a lot less expensive than shipping from India or Africa. Obviously, the wood wasn't in short supply then, people even used BRW for flooring.

For strength, the way pianos have been made for a long time is to glue layers of wood together, kind of like plywood, and shape it with steam over a form. So there may not be very thick slabs of rosewood on that one. Or there may be if they made piano cases differently then.

It'd be a shame to destroy an historical instrument like that.
 
On an unrelated note, it was a revelation to me when I saw how many people are always giving pianos away on Craigslist and Facebook marketplace. They are so damned hard to move that people just give them away for nothing if you can get it out of their house. I don't know how piano stores stay in business
 
On an unrelated note, it was a revelation to me when I saw how many people are always giving pianos away on Craigslist and Facebook marketplace. They are so damned hard to move that people just give them away for nothing if you can get it out of their house. I don't know how piano stores stay in business

That's kind of how we got our piano. It was in the house when we bought it. When we made the deal, we asked the previous owners if we could get the piano. They countered with something like $500 because they'd all taken lessons on it and it had some sentimental value, so we said never mind. Couple days later, our agent called and said, "They said you can have the piano." Found out later they changed their mind when they found out how much it would cost to move it.
 
On an unrelated note, it was a revelation to me when I saw how many people are always giving pianos away on Craigslist and Facebook marketplace. They are so damned hard to move that people just give them away for nothing if you can get it out of their house. I don't know how piano stores stay in business

There are lots of serious piano players who want the best new piano they can get their hands on. And there are lots of people who want a big, impressive, grand piano in the living rooms of their homes.

And lots of people can be both!

As with other instruments made of wood, each one sounds different. You have to play before you buy, and you can't have one shipped to you on 24 hour approval, as with a guitar. Also, stores sell refurbished used pianos, and do well with them. Then there are the newer electronic pianos that actually sound good in the $10,000 range. A friend has a Yamaha upright that I'd swear is a traditional piano if I didn't know it was electronic. They sell pretty well, too.
 
Wow - two restricted substances on that fine old piano: Brazilian rosewood, and genuine ivory keys.

Nahhh, keep it as it is. Not too many like it these days.

I do understand the impulse, though. I have an old dresser and desk from the late 19th c that are solid flame maple. I've had few evil thoughts about what they might sound like. ;)

=K
 
On an unrelated note, it was a revelation to me when I saw how many people are always giving pianos away on Craigslist and Facebook marketplace. They are so damned hard to move that people just give them away for nothing if you can get it out of their house. I don't know how piano stores stay in business
My neighbour is doing some renovations. Smashed down a bunch of walls...and a piano. When I went in to make some suggestions regarding removing load bearing walls, I noticed just the metal construct that the strings were mounted to. The wood was in the trash bin.
 
My neighbour is doing some renovations. Smashed down a bunch of walls...and a piano. When I went in to make some suggestions regarding removing load bearing walls, I noticed just the metal construct that the strings were mounted to. The wood was in the trash bin.
:eek:
 
I bought my wife a Charles Walter console piano when I bought Miss Pernie. It has a beautiful sound especially for the small form factor and made in the USA. Also signed by Charles - I like it when the founder signs their musical instruments. :) It survived our move from hell (13months in storage with nearly all the rest of our stuff) very well, but it does need some minor tuning. I’d hate to try to move a Small Grand - ours weighs a ton!

It has nice Mahogany, but I’ve already got that tone wood covered ;)
 
On an unrelated note, it was a revelation to me when I saw how many people are always giving pianos away on Craigslist and Facebook marketplace. They are so damned hard to move that people just give them away for nothing if you can get it out of their house. I don't know how piano stores stay in business

I think that's been true for as long as there's been pianos. Yet still new ones sell, because, well, new and how do you know how a used piano has been treated?


I moved a couple of pianos while helping a friend move (out of an apartment so WTF?) in my 20's and we wrecked ourselves and darn near wrecked the pianos.
 
This is why you just give it away ...

laurel-and-hardy-piano.gif
 
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