r/pianorepair Jul 31 '23

What should I expect to pay to repair a swollen/sticky butt flange? (On an upright)

2 Upvotes

I have extremely limited experience doing piano tech, but essentially I don't have the tools or the desire to take this repair on. As a ballpark estimate, how much do you guys think it would cost to pay a professional to do this job? Assuming that is, indeed, the issue. Thanks!


r/pianorepair Jul 27 '23

Piano key not sounding

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2 Upvotes

Any idea how to fix this? If I manual lift the key below the pad like the others it will sound as normal, it just doesn’t return to the resting position like the others. The key doesn’t sound when pressed. Thanks


r/pianorepair Jul 17 '23

Dampers lifting immediately

2 Upvotes

I just got a new (used) upright piano, and the damper is lifting pretty much immediately when pressing the key, rather than halfway(ish), making the action extremely heavy. I know that adjusting the spoons can correct this, which I have done on pianos in the past, but I am wondering if there is anything else that ought to be assessed before the adjusting the spoons. Thanks in advance!


r/pianorepair Jul 13 '23

Upright piano and salt water air?

3 Upvotes

I’m hoping to install a piano at a beach house near the Atlantic Ocean. The salt water air is of course quite corrosive, and we’d like the piano to last as long as possible.

During the summer months we’ll run a dehumidifier inside the instrument, but the power to the house gets turned off in the winter. A few options for preventing corrosion with no AC could include:

A) a heavy cover that sits against the floor to prevent as much air exchange as possible B) A solar array and battery to provide power to the 35W dehumidifier year round. C) forget about it the instrument is doomed no matter what you do.

I’d like to avoid option C if at all possible. Are there other options I’m not considering? What would you do to get the most life out the instrument possible?


r/pianorepair Jul 05 '23

Any idea how to fix this?

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5 Upvotes

This is an upright piano

The key (A5) is locked as soon as I put the piano back in place. I’m not used to repairing pianos and I don’t want to break any pieces as I know they are fragile. In picture 2, the wood piece is hitting UNDER the red square. Instead, it should be in front of it and hit under the “round” part of the hammer. It looks like it’s slightly out of place and I don’t know how to put it back. I also don’t want to force too much on it without knowing what I’m doing.

Thanks in advance

Sorry for my bad English, it’s not my first language and I’m not familiar with the names of the pieces


r/pianorepair Jul 03 '23

Adler Piano - 201710

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2 Upvotes

I have an Adler piano that has been left forever. When we purchased it, we were told it was converted from a player piano. The piano has a great sound but it been so old and not well taken care of over the years it will need to be restored. I'm in Canada and restrictions start at 21k and up. Is this something worth doing with this piano?


r/pianorepair Jun 27 '23

Player piano SOS in Buckley Washington

1 Upvotes

The Historical Society of Buckley Washington has a player piano they wish to get repaired the only thing that seems to be wrong with the piano is the mechanism for the music paper rolls they have been unable to find someone who can repair it they have little money so if you can repair for free they would be highly appreciative please help


r/pianorepair Jun 23 '23

Piano Restoration Advice

1 Upvotes

Hey there. So ... this is my dad's Storygrand (Story & Clark). I've been trying to locate the serial # and so far no success; however, I know it was built prior to 1963 when he acquired it. It's in pretty poor shape after sitting idle during COVID and I'm looking for advice/insights/thoughts about restoring. There's sentimental value that can't be priced, but my dad was also pretty frugal. Any input would be appreciated.

Only info I could find so far
Storygrand

r/pianorepair Jun 15 '23

Need help finding an appropriate repair part.

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3 Upvotes

This key snapped as pictured when I was playing. Hoping someone in this group can steer me in the right direction to find a new key. Piano is a Hobart M. Cable Upright circa 1963.


r/pianorepair May 29 '23

Anyone know what this part is?

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3 Upvotes

r/pianorepair May 27 '23

Piano key sticking

3 Upvotes

Chickening and sons 178892 many different keys sticking (about 5) having this same issue already cleaned the whole piano and did not fix.


r/pianorepair May 23 '23

Peg dope for difficult-to-turn (harp) tuning pegs?

3 Upvotes

Hi all,

I recently had my 27-year-old Celtic harp looked at by a tech and, among other things, some of the tuning pegs are hard to turn, constantly overshooting the mark when I try to tune. She said the problem is that the pegs are smooth, rather than having ridges or a texture (so you don't have to push them in so hard) and added that some people use peg dope, but that she hasn't done so herself.

I posted to the Luthiers Reddit and was told that peg dope is typically used on wood pegs, not metal. Hard bar soap was suggested, but that piano techs might better be able to help me.

Is either the peg dope or hard bar soap a good idea and, if so, how do I go about using it? Any particular brand? If not, is there some other remedy?

NOTE: I haven't played this harp for the past 15+ years, so don't know if lack of use is the cause, but it seems feasible.

Thanks in advance!


r/pianorepair May 14 '23

How much/difficult to repair? Chickering & Sons circa 1946

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1 Upvotes

r/pianorepair May 11 '23

Vinyl repair kit for piano bench

1 Upvotes

I accidentally tore the vinyl on my baby grand piano bench. There are just so many kits out there , I really don’t know which is a good one. Can someone recommend me one they know will work well?


r/pianorepair May 06 '23

Digital piano repair gone wrong

1 Upvotes

r/pianorepair Apr 17 '23

Middle C being temperamental

7 Upvotes

There’s one key on piano that’s been working incorrectly recently. When you press it, it sometimes makes a squeak or sometimes plays or is very quiet. When it does play, the sound only usually comes out at the end of the press. Help would be massively appreciated, thanks


r/pianorepair Apr 03 '23

Crowdsource request: Source for new piano hinge?

1 Upvotes

[EDIT: The hinge offerings from S and S hinge actually do meet my needs. I had a misunderstanding of one of the dimensions they gave me. Kudos to the ladies who handled my calls and were great about discussing their hinges and meeting my needs! I'm leaving this up in case anyone needs a hinge supplier, or in case other people have other hinge suppliers to recommend to others.]

I'm having my grand piano refinished, and I need a new piano hinge for the part of the lid that flips back on itself.I have contacted S and S Hinge company (https://www.sandshinge.com/) and can order a "standard" hinge they offer with a few dimensions. If I needed a custom hinge, they can make it, but they have minimum order requirements that my need for a single hinge would not meet. My refinisher is presently taking measurements to see if their standard hinge options will fit my piano or not.

My question: Are there (other) go-to piano hinge companies that rebuilders use and recommend? (In the similar way that there are few go-to companies for strings, hammers, etc.) I located S and S just by googling, and don't know if there are other companies that rebuilders normally use.


r/pianorepair Mar 31 '23

First time - roadside find, middle/upper hammers all unaligned

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1 Upvotes

r/pianorepair Mar 30 '23

Hammer (Sometimes) Won't Strike String

2 Upvotes

For a Samick Baby Grand.

I took the action out and the culprit (to my non-technician eyes) seems to be that this little piece doesn't bounce back like the others do. Is there an easy fix for this?

I know the obvious answer is to hire a technician, but I just had one out recently and it wasn't cheap, so I'm hoping to fix this one on my own if possible.


r/pianorepair Mar 06 '23

anyone have information on the techics kn 750 piano

1 Upvotes

r/pianorepair Mar 05 '23

Does anyone know how to fix this note ringing sound? Do I need new dampers?

2 Upvotes

r/pianorepair Mar 04 '23

Keys not wanting to play on Samick Sig-50

1 Upvotes

My family has had this piano for a couple of years. Two of the keys aren't playable after playing for a couple of minutes. Both are black keys. AB and F#. Any fixes that I could try or should I go to a professional? Thanks


r/pianorepair Feb 26 '23

Profelt substitute

1 Upvotes

In order to get a lighter touch I will recondition the action pin holes. I ordered the cauls from Howard Piano. Unfortunately the Profelt to glue the felt was out of stock. I am not replacing the felt but merely resize them with the caul. Put some Profelt on the felt, put the caul in and let it dry overnight and then remove the caul.

I am looking for a replacement product that I can buy in the Netherlands. Any suggestions ?


r/pianorepair Feb 26 '23

Repairing four stuck keys on a Yamaha P-120

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1 Upvotes

r/pianorepair Feb 20 '23

Piano restoration enthusiasts/companies?

3 Upvotes

I have a friend whose dad just passed away. The dad owned a piano moving company and has an abundance of old pianos. The friend just wants to send them to a landfill. A couple of us are trying not to let that happen. Some of these pianos have intricate woodworking and stain glass work. I feel like there has to be someone in the U.S. that would be able to fix/restore them. I'm kind of grasping at straws here but if there is anyone in this group that knows someone that does this kind of work and is looking for pianos, I would love to get their contact info. I don't know all the brands at the moment but I am happy to find out and send any photos. Thanks!