Garrett Feord piano, London

[louisdobson]

Hi
I have had a piano in my family for the last 15 years, and it was bought from a neighbour whos grandparents have ownded it for a long time before that. I am wanting to get a rough age,

Its a Garret Feord, London, with Whitfields Limited above the keys, the action inside is Herrburger Brooks ltd. I have looked for numbers, the frame is British Manufacture, with a number of 292, there is 9971 stamped on most of the components (wooden frame, removable front panel) i removed the first key to find only a signature of SR

What else could I look out for to help me put a rough date to it?

Thanks

[Bill Kibby]

Garret may be the forename, pianos are marked "Garret Feord", but directories list "Feord (Garret)".

1892 Not listed in my Post Office London Directory. Monington & Weston were at Bayham Place.
1894 Not listed.
1899 Feord Garret, 50, Bayham Place, W.
Circa 1901 Feord - name on keys of Blankenstein.
1911 Feord Garret, 48, 50 & 52, Bayham Place, W.
------------
1911 Dolge lists M.Feord Ltd. among piano makers.
1936 M.Feord Ltd. 18, 20 & 22, Prebend Street, Camden Town.

There may be dates inside, see
http://pianohistory.info/datemarks.html

For general information, see
http://pianohistory.info/edwardian.html

We can probably tell you more from photos of the WHOLE piano.

[louisdobson]

[louisdobson]

[louisdobson]

[louisdobson]

[Bill Kibby]

Thanks, but none of these pictures show me what the WHOLE piano looks like. The 292 mark on the frame suggests the twenties, and appears on various pianos made by unknown wholesalers, sold with dealers' names on them.

Incidentally, your photo points out that although the spelling I was quoting from books agreed with yours, it is wrong!

[louisdobson]

[louisdobson]

[louisdobson]

Hi, Yes sorry I did miss-spell the name of the piano, I was typing from memory, and missed a T off the end. I have tried to include pictures of the whole piano, hopefully this will help. I am trying to ascertain if it is worth restoring the piano, or whether I just scrap and get a new one? I really like the feel of it, and it has a lot of character. One of my concerns is there is a split in the sound board, not sure if this will have a negative impact on the sound

Thank you for all your help so far

[Bill Kibby]

It certainly looks like a twenties piano, although I suppose it could even be as early as 1916. We can't make assessments of value or condition from here, you really need advice from a tuner on the spot. Splits and cracks in soundboards come in many varieties, ranging from cracks in the varnish when the wood is absolutely fine, or hairline cracks that make no difference to anything. If a real crack is opening up, it reaches a point where the two edges vibrate against each other when the piano is played, causing a buzzing noise. As the crack opens wider, this stops, and the piano is functional, but may have lost tonal quality.

There are lots of pianos like yours doing useful jobs, but my recent efforts to sell unrestored uprights of the early 1900s have shown that people are not really interested, I couldn't even give them away.

[Colin Nicholson]

I would be very cautious about using the word "restoration" - not many people know what is involved & what it costs...... maybe a refurbishment would suit? There are various levels and degrees of refurb [or renovation] you could take - but in all - due to the name not well known/ no provenance/ and the fact that its a box-standard overstrung & under damped piano of the 1920's.... you would never get your 'restoration' money back..... not economical/ minus equity.... unless you treasured the piano and it was a family heirloom?

As Bills says - small cracks in a soundboard do not always spell danger - and the piano could happily play as normal.... same as driving a car with a dent or large scratch on the side. However - if the crack starts to open up or it passes under a bridge [where the strings ride over and steer in an 'S' shape around bridge pins] - then any weakening of the bridge/soundboard can cause loss of down-bearing/ buzzing/rattling noises - and 'dead' notes/ muffled sound etc.

The mechanism looks to be in its original [and poor] condition - with many bridle tapes replaced. I suspect also there may be some hammer shank problems - as there is a hammer missing at the top end - and the odd hammer head replaced.

A full-on restoration involves: [without an initial inspection]
A.re-stringing/ soundboard repairs/ shimming/ revarnish/ new tuning pins/ cast frame resprayed/ decals/ art work/ serial number etc
B. Mechanism refurb/ new hammers & shanks/ new damper felts & springs/ leathers/ bridle tapes/ repinning/ jack springs/ back check felts/ various cushion felts/ baize/ cloth/ set off screws unseized/ hammer rest rail refurb etc....
C. Pedal restoration/ re-felted rockers & lift rods/ re-cloth rebates & guide blocks
D. Keyboard restoration/ rebushing keys/ repairs to capstans... if any chipped keys - then replace key tops with new.
E. Casework either French Polished or stripped & polished in satin finish/beeswax/ new decals/ brass work polished & lacquered.. or just tidied up/ scratch repairs.
F. If needed.... new castors/ back cloth and misc. items/ repairs......

Guess how much?

Colin

[Catherine Groelinger]

Garrett Feord was my great grandfather. Do you still have this piano? There are several family members who would be interested in obtaining one. From the research I have done there appears to be little to no collectors value to the items. Family lore has it that the piano's were made to withstand tropical/humid climates. I have no proof of this and these are the first pictures I have seen of the pianos.

Garrett Feord was born in 1860 in London, England, the child of Edward. He married Lucy Thornton on December 25, 1887, in St Aloysius Chapel - Fr. Edward Smith. They had six children in 18 years.

According to the 1891 and 1901 census's he is listed as a Pianoforte maker. He died approximately 1934. Again family lore had the piano making business he owned going out of business shortly after the 1929 crash.

Please feel free to contact me directly at cg226343@gmail.com. Thank you

Catherine Groelinger

[Bill Kibby]

Thanks for that information. There are a few examples shown on google images if you search for feord piano.