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sussexpianos

Yes, I agree with Barry, the cheaper option is to have a Pianodisc system fitted, around £1200-£1400. This would give you a silent piano and you wouldn't loose any money selling or trading in. The Kawai system fitted to K2 upwards is a better system but is very expensive.

sussexpianos

You have to remember the "Grey Market", as these pianos are concerned, are mostly bought from large music academies where the pianos are played 7 hours a day. How can you call a piano reconditioned when all that's been done is a soft fall been fitted?? Felts, leathers and more importantly,...

sussexpianos

They lost funding for next year. I have been informed that they are moving to new place and will incorporate another course, tool making?? I think the end is in sight.

sussexpianos

Heard yesterday that Newark has lost its funding. That is the end of college trained technicians in the UK.

sussexpianos

No worries, found the info. They are now being made by Pearl River. Bechstein had a few problems with them apparently. Tuning stability and bridge problems, one dealer said 1 in 8 had a major defect.

sussexpianos

They are still being made? I can only find the Hoffmann on their site.

sussexpianos

The Newark college has gone badly down hill since I had been there. Its a course which after 3 years you still don't know much, you might be able to tune commercialy but its up to how much extra time you put in to it. The last people who worked for me were not good enough, they are doing something e...

sussexpianos

Touch weighting is a very advanced skill which I would not recommend to any person not in the piano trade. Most people think you start with downweight, no; you start with upweight, gauge the movement and then do downweight. D-U=F for friction. This only tells you if there is a problem with the movem...

sussexpianos

Can I ask why you want a U3? have you played one? Will it be OK for the room its going in? Another question is are they local to you? Are there other dealers nearby you can visit? Remember the instruments are going to be 30-40 years old and nothing lasts forever.

sussexpianos

Pianos move up and down in the seasons and i tend to leave the pitch where it is if its very close. Unless your recording or on stage, leave it. How do you know that the device you are using is correct? Have you calibrated it? Unless you spent a few hundred pounds on the right software and have cali...

sussexpianos

Lets not go into pitch again please?

sussexpianos

Anyone come across a repair where the wrestplank is routed out in sections and new pinboard is cut and glued in its place, thus not needing to remove the whole plank? Got a Bluthner upright in with tuning trouble, customer spent a lot of money 7 years ago with a big firm. I thought it would be a re-...

sussexpianos

Yes, as many people have said, in the UK, a tuning is just that, a tuning. Its not regulation, or polishing or vacuuming!( for heavens sake). A good tuner will ask a few questions at the start of tuning like" any problems?" "do you need it at concert pitch?(if its quite a bit below)&q...

sussexpianos

I e mailed a local tuner for a historical tuning and he said he only did Equal Temperaments. . ...... what happened to the original piano tuner who did your Kirnberger temperament on 13th January?????? How many tuners do you have ?? Did you not ask YOUR previously booked tuner for this info? (I wou...

sussexpianos

Some tuners don't know how or are too busy to worry about it. A tuner who has an ETA, electronic tuning aid, will be able to tune in the many temperments available. You will just have to ring round. Also try opera houses, tuners like me who work in them, tune to different pitches and sometimes diffe...

sussexpianos

Poor quality spammer. You'd think they'd take more pride in their work than to just copy & paste from website. You can picture them in a room full of 50 other spammers working on cheap little webbooks in India with a boss man training them to copy & paste vaguely related text to forums all ...

sussexpianos

Did you check the date serial number? I had a customer who thought they had a 15 year old Yam, I said it was 1965, it was a local firm, now bust, and recommend by their piano teacher(probably taking a huge commision)

sussexpianos

Who is going to carry out the warranty? A Bechstein dealer does not have to do any warranty on a piano they have not sold. Its also only 5 years and for UK bought models only. Kawai will only honour UK bought models, acoustic or digital. Its a high risk.

sussexpianos

As a dealer, I do show my prices and measurements and as much info as I can with links, but some manufacturers have rubbish websites, poor dealer info and no leaflets/downloads. The main problem is people go to a shop, spend time getting the info and then they search for the best price. Nothing wron...

sussexpianos

There are some interesting techi stuff on the site but mostly its a joke. I had a customer in last month, bought a lever on ebay(China) but it won't fit the tuning pins! I had to laugh as I had quoted him to come a tune it but he spent the money buying a lever, which is usless. He even tried to sell...

sussexpianos

It is hard to explain to people the economics of restoration when they see a load of nice looking uprights and the odd grand piano outside my workshop in the rain, waiting to be retired. Hammers do not last for ever, you can sand them 2 to 4 times depending on the amount needed to be removed but the...

sussexpianos

Why would you want a 100 year old grand? They were hardly anything special. The costs involve in getting these instruments in to something resembling a well regulated instrument are high, not to mention the tired soundboard!

sussexpianos

Id go for a Kawai RX-5 or RX-6. It would be better in the long term.

sussexpianos

if you get stuck, I might have a small job there soon

sussexpianos

Bol-Bechstein in Holland has them in his showroom, very nice pianos with high quality parts. The main problem is the name is not that well reconnized so the re-sale will be difficult. The US has a bigger Estonia presence.

sussexpianos

You need to ask yourself if you can afford the time? Learning the piano will need time from you, if you can manage 30min a day, then go for it, you have already done the hard part of reading music.

sussexpianos

Yep, def. American, probably without padding as well! Us British like padding.

sussexpianos

I have a new B1 and B3 in the showroom. I do have to say they are toned very nice and are not what the old cheaper Yamaha pianos used to be. The tone is nice and action plays well. Yamaha actions are very good but I do like Kawai actions as well. I do however wish Yamaha did a B4 (131cm), that would...

sussexpianos

New bass strings would be a start, I find more and more older Yams suffering from tubby basses.

sussexpianos

The climate system Dampp-chaser would be a must but you would need a good insulated shed(garden room) The better air tight it is, the better the system can coupe. I would also have a room de-humidifer as these will also gently heat the air during the process.

sussexpianos

I don't think buying local is THE most important factor. It should be lower down the list behind quality, condition, guarantee and price. If buying local leaves you £1000 worse off it's no wonder people buy from dealers further afield. I wonder if those who advocate buying pianos locally do all of ...

sussexpianos

I helped find a Steinway B , never used 3 year old for £54k, for someone who had never played the piano but did research and found that it held its price well! It did look nice in his reception room, but the fireplace was bigger!!

sussexpianos

The Yamaha P114 is priced right, and the 3 year option is a cherry. If you don't need the 3 years then you can ask for a cash deal(dosn't mean you have to pay cash!?) You might get £100 off. The most important thing is what MDW mentioned, find a good local dealer and not someone hundred miles away. ...

sussexpianos

Chris Norman 1066 is a very respected piano trader and some of their restored pianos are excellent,must be trying to break into the new piano market but the public are not daft and will not fall in love with the sound of music brand names,its an old trick which as been around over 100 years rebadgi...

sussexpianos

I find it irritating whenever i go to a home where there's a piano displayed and when i ask the owner if I could play it, they would answer me that the piano's not functioning and it's there for display purposes only. :( Or its a bookcase or its been in the family too long to get rid of it or even ...

sussexpianos

There are not many things to salvage on a piano. We dispose of around 10 pianos a month. The only things taken off are music desks, small hinges, action nuts(schools loose these), sometimes the ivories if in good condition, and maybe a pretty looking top panel. Other than that, everything is scrap. ...

sussexpianos

Are you from the UK? are you going to visit this piano?

sussexpianos

The pianos are still being made in Germany, the old Wendl & Lung are using the name but have improved the models a little. You can still buy the German Feurich, bit expensive though, but I think the Saulter pianos are the best buy.

sussexpianos

Its a stencil. They do it to a lot of pianos when they strip. The photo looks like a standard old straightstrung with a modernised case (used to be a nice traditional case with panels, straight legs etc.)
Looks like a burn item to me.

sussexpianos

I have seen a 1960 recon U3, Via Europe, and I have to say it was very good. But.... Id rather have a good 1960's Welmar or Knight. The last of the 120+cm Welmar & Knight uprights were very great pianos (old designs but still worth the money). I occasionaly find a 1990's model. I think they were...

sussexpianos

Got a quote from CTE Pianoplan. They do one which looks like the Tracko, it can also lift horisontal to get the grand on stage. £10k +vat. Today I saw the new shape/design grand shoes. Very nice. No side skid, more molded on the side and another further down to stop it slipping and banging the corne...

sussexpianos

£18k! They said it is not good for carpets, eats them up!

sussexpianos

I have asked for a quote for that Track O machine, any guesses anyone?? There is the German grand raiser and mover but its not good on rough surfaces or steps, so mostly for the studio/venue. The is another invention called the Piano Horse, invented to raise or lower grands by one person, off a shoe...

sussexpianos

Brill, love it, its the future!
Where do you get the yellow skid and rotator? never seen it before. The klavier roller is nice but it wont go through doors very well as its very wide.
When hiring large grands, the big cost is transport. If you can do it by yourself or with the wife, lots of profit.

sussexpianos

The 178cm is £9495 RRP.

sussexpianos

Had a brand new Feurich 178(W&L) delivered on Wednesday, have to say I am very impressed! I do like the light veneer inner rim. A nice tone, mellow. Great for the home.

sussexpianos

I had a huge retailer near me when I first started tuning after leaving college, Sound Instruments, they had about 7 tuners, the vans were on the road all the time, delivering, picking up. They'd buy rubbish, sell it for £250. Old overstrungs for 1200 easy. They exported loads to Italy etc. All gone...

sussexpianos

Am i my missing something here are most of the imported,musically knackered,tubby bass strung,moth-eaten felts,cracked keys, broken looped,shimmed soundboard,sheared pinned,not forgetting loose bridges YAMAHAS not reconditioned in CHINA using cheaper materials before been imported here.Seen a so ca...

sussexpianos

I have sold many U3 H, 1975+, and they are great pianos if in good condition or reconditioned well. Remember these "grey imports" have different quality levels and mostly all come from music schools. You need to speak to your tuner, and get him to inspect before you buy. Another alternativ...

sussexpianos

The Feurich (Wendl & Lung) is only 178cm but is a nice piano if set up right by the dealer. There are a few dealers around with these The Perzina grands have just been redesigned so there wont be many out there. In general, not many dealers stock the big Chinese middle of the range grands as man...

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