The Piano.....

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Airjockie

Airjockie

Watanabe Whore!!!
Rest In Peace
When I got the house...it came with a piano...an old upright piano...some keys didn't work...and now it's in a room that we are starting to re-build. It is repairable and tunable condition...to an extent...but it's in the way right now. I have an option to move it to the basement and clutter up that area as well...since I might do some more work down there this winter as well....but part of me says to just give it away, take it outside and burn it, or use the wood from it and make something like a counter or tv stand. It's a Boston 1893 piano...and the house I bought was also built in 1893...so the original owners prolly bought it brand new for the house...and it's been in the same room ever since.....and that kinda worries me....

I have heard that the other neighbors have said that one of the residents used to play it constanty though out the year, and they would always hear great music from our house...but that old lady moved out, went to an old folks home...and is prolly not on this earth anymore. And since the piano has been apart of the house for so long...I'm kinda afraid that if it leaves...then the house's aura might change for the worse....call me superstitious...but I feel something telling me to leave it here. If I junk it, give it away, or dispose of it...then what will become of the house?.... More room....or certain disaster?



A. We want it out of that room....
B. We want it off the first floor....basement will be OK...kinda
C. We want to get rid of it... (to an extent)
D. I fear that it may change the house's destiny in some way...if I get rid of it.
E. Could it be valuable?
F. I always wanted a piano....but I can never learn to play...
G. With my bad back...it would take about 6 people to move it to the basement.
H. It's in the winter season, and about 6"s of snow is outside....moving it is a bitch.
I. it would cost too much to have it repaired and playable to enjoy.
J. I kinda want it...the wife has no want for it....does the house need it?
K. The keys that do work...sounds great.



Keep it and move it to the basement?

Or...

Tear it up and watch it burn?

Or...

Sell it or give it away?
 
keep it, fix it and learn to play. If not sell it.

Pianos are worth money. Find out the brand/model, find info on it and if it's worth doing anything with.

I can play piano/keyboard, but I have a piano and a few keyboards, just haven't used them in years.

I say find some info on it before anything.
 
get it tuned up and have it appraised to see what its worth cause after all it is an antique. it might be actually worth some money and you may wanna keep it :)
 
Never destroy a musical instrument, regardless of how bad of shape it's in. There are always players out there that will take it, and appreciate it.

-> Steve
 
I say keep it, it's gotta be worth quite a but being 100+ years old. It could also be a great selling point down the road for your house.
 
Guess none of you know much about pianos =)

If It was mine I'd pull out the book on pianos its kinda like the KBB but for pianos, chances are its worth less then you'd have to pay for someone to haul it out.

If it was mine I'd burn it.

Do keep in mind if you spend the $500-1000+ to fix the piano you will still need to have it tuned every 6 months.

Pianos cost a lot, they have a lot of upkeep and IMO for you I wouldnt bother with it. If anything clean it up some and put pictures on it.

If you want to learn how to play the piano get a keyboard. This is coming from someone who started lessons at the age of 3.

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/P90/
I'd rather play on this then your piano AFTER you spent $1000 on repairs. I'd still pick the keyboard.

Just to be safe do check out the prices on the piano, one way to do that is to go to your local piano store and ask them to look up the value of the piano, If they base it on trade in keep in mind they're only taking money off the top of the new piano, kinda like trading in a 1982 nova for $1000 bucks towards a 2006 Camery. they have room to bend the prices so they make it sound like you're getting something for your piece.
 
I say, find out what it's worth at the very least. If it's not worth much, and you still don't want it, find someone to come take it off your hands. As Celerity said, someone will ALWAYS be out there to appreciate it.
 
You can get 100 year old pianos that barely work for $200 I've no experience with them other than they cost a crap load to tune. I almost bought a really clean nice piano for $200 and it was going to be something like $2,000 to get the dead keys fixed and have it tuned. Screw that.

You, however, should keep it with the house. And keep it in that room. Its been there longer than you've been on this earth, so you should leave it be.
 
StealthMode @ Dec 11 2005 said:
Quoted post[/post]]
I say, find out what it's worth at the very least. If it's not worth much, and you still don't want it, find someone to come take it off your hands. As Celerity said, someone will ALWAYS be out there to appreciate it.
Click to expand...

When I worked at the piano stores we use to get tradeins we'd give the person $500-$1000 for their piano, and then take it straight to the dump.

If a new piano is listed at $22K (nice baby grand) the baseline price that we could let it out the door at with out it cutting into our own commision would be around $17-17.5K So if we give someone $1000 for their old piano and sell them the new 22K piano for 21K we stil managed to keep it 3-4K over our baseline what it could be sold for.


When you see old pianos for $200.00 bucks in the paper thats just a random # people pick. If you want an old piano you can find them free almost anywhere.

Bottom line, getting an old piano is like buying an old rusted out car. Sure you could fix it so it works ok but in the end you would have been better buying either a keyboard or a cheap new piano.

Also over the last hundred years there have been hundreds if not thousands of piano makers out there. 98% of them are worth only what the wood its made from is worth.
 
jeffie7 @ Dec 11 2005 said:
Quoted post[/post]]
StealthMode @ Dec 11 2005 said:
Quoted post[/post]]
I say, find out what it's worth at the very least. If it's not worth much, and you still don't want it, find someone to come take it off your hands. As Celerity said, someone will ALWAYS be out there to appreciate it.
Click to expand...

When I worked at the piano stores we use to get tradeins we'd give the person $500-$1000 for their piano, and then take it straight to the dump.

If a new piano is listed at $22K (nice baby grand) the baseline price that we could let it out the door at with out it cutting into our own commision would be around $17-17.5K So if we give someone $1000 for their old piano and sell them the new 22K piano for 21K we stil managed to keep it 3-4K over our baseline what it could be sold for.


When you see old pianos for $200.00 bucks in the paper thats just a random # people pick. If you want an old piano you can find them free almost anywhere.

Bottom line, getting an old piano is like buying an old rusted out car. Sure you could fix it so it works ok but in the end you would have been better buying either a keyboard or a cheap new piano.

Also over the last hundred years there have been hundreds if not thousands of piano makers out there. 98% of them are worth only what the wood its made from is worth.
Click to expand...

that company throwing pianos in the dump is EXACTLY what might make his piano worth something. no matter what, i think it's worth it to find out what its worth.
 
Find out what its worth, but i think it actually may become a selling point of the house...

I know what you mean about karma... I'm a firm believer in things like that too... To a point...

On a side note... Anybody want an upright piano in pretty good shape?? FREEBIE! My Brother in law wants it GONE... Located in Marlborough... Dont care if you take it and throw it off a cliff... He just wants it gone... Its VERY heavy... Hell.. He might even pay ya $50 to take it away.
 
Just use it for a display.

The only way an old piano is worth anything is if its a big name well built piece, odds of that are next to nothing.
even more so if its a standard upright.

People left it there for a reason.

that company throwing pianos in the dump is EXACTLY what might make his piano worth something. no matter what, i think it's worth it to find out what its worth.
Click to expand...

On a side note... Anybody want an upright piano in pretty good shape?? FREEBIE! My Brother in law wants it GONE... Located in Marlborough... Dont care if you take it and throw it off a cliff... He just wants it gone... Its VERY heavy... Hell.. He might even pay ya $50 to take it away.
Click to expand...

point made.

Trust me I love pianos but I also know that most all older pianos are worth jack shit unless its a babygrand/full grand.

Once you do put money into fixing it it still will sound like shit. trust me, uprights never did sound good, unless it had a very tall soundboard, you can almlost never find those and if you do they're in good shape becuase people who have them know what they are. (pretty much an upright baby grand piano) not cheap.

The book I was talking about listing values was a book that looked just like the NADA book for cars.
so many companies and most all of them worth only a few dollars 50-100 dollars. if lucky. unless its a newer piano made in the last 10 years.

What it comes down to is everyone and their mother made a piano at point theres shitloads of them out there in peoples houses like airjockie and most of the owners are willing to let them go if they could find someone willing to take them.

Anywho, try to figure out what its worth, and remember whatever its worth it will take that and then some to make it sound somewhat ok.
 
Seriously, or put it on freecycle. There must be someone out there that wants a free piano. Hell, me and my buddies are looking for a piano for our house right now. Unfortuanly, we're all the way in MN, but my point is that someone probably will come and get it if you make it know that you want to get rid of it.
 
I am digging the piano desk idea though....

at least it will kinda stay with the house and keep any bad spirits away.

I just got to get some help over here to help move it to the basement....


There could be a JDM BBQ involved :wink:
 
My next Sunday is open, and I may be going to Torrington anyway.

That is, if things go alright on the Stereo install.
 
burn it. if it was a grand, or a baby grand, sure id keep it. but the stand up pianos blow. their sound sucks too. burn it and get a nice stereo and play some piano music out of that, problem solved. :mrgreen:
 
The thing about musicians getting pianos is that most musicians can't afford a piano. Donate the piano to the school - and they will come and pick it up for you. They would LOVE to have this, and you may even see a tax write-off.

-> Steve

Sidenote: My friend in highschool and I picked up a used upright Piano for free. It was the piano that toured with "Average White Band".
 
tore the piano apart today to move it....and me and Walter came up with a sweet idea....


Since it's going into the basement...and I thought about a desk....it will be a BAR instead....

ohh this is going to turn into a sweet side project. :)
 
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