Steck piano - date?

[Bill Kibby]

Julian Dyer has written an article somewhere on the net about the many problems with the published numbers for Steck, and I have said repeatedly that numbers in general are often misleading. Press the numbers button on the PianoGen site. The frame was cast in 1929, the piano completed up to 6 years later.

[Bill Kibby]

Put simply, if it is George Steck, the numbers don't help. Otherwise, there are still major problems between the Hayes and Gotha factories, do you know where it was built? These numbers don't match any I have.

[Mrbirdz]

Ive just read this thread and trying to ge a date for steck made here in the UK is nigh on impossible. My case has the number 173970 stamped on one end on the other is S13367 the iron frame bears the name aeolian and the front of the case has James smith and sons liverpool (sole agents) on it. Cast into the frame at the bottom is a big made in gt britain and again something that looks like a date 27 8 28. Now looking at my frame number and the one of the other guy in this thread i see my case number is earlier and also my that frame number/date? is also earlier, could this steck really be 1928? it does have on the frame a transfer sort of thing that says by appointment to his majesty the king and hrh the prince of wales? Is there any other numbers that i can look for that will give me an accurate date? all the steck info seems to be all over the place and unreliable at best. Any help would be gratefully received Karl

[Mrbirdz]

I have also discovered under the lid a transfer saying this
BY Appointment
(royal standard here)
The Aeolian company ltd
Hayes,Middlesex, England
show rooms aeolian hall
131-137 new bond street London

many thanks Karl

[Bill Kibby]

The number preceded by S is probably Smith's stock number, although some of his say JS&S. See
http://www.uk-piano.org/piano-gen/piano ... mbers.html

The frame casting date seems clear enough, so the design existed then, and the piano would have been completed within about 5 years of this date. See
http://www.uk-piano.org/piano-gen/datem ... ianos.html

Since most of the surviving Stecks are player pianos, I don't have a lot to do with them, I leave them to the specialists.

[Mrbirdz]

thanks Bill for a prompt reply, i just wasnt sure that the frame number was actually a date regards Karl