To the list in general: This appraising, evaluating, and recommending which piano to buy gets sticky sometimes. A long time piano teacher customer of mine is thinking of buying a 1925 5' 8" Mason & Hamlin for around $9 or 10 thousand. It does have a very nice tone, but there are 7 cracks in the soundboard (they don't buzz; there's not much rib separation, they're not opened up, but they're "there") and the board doesn't have any crown left. (Has anybody ever tightened the turnbuckles on the "spider", or tension resnator? Does it restore crown? Or do you just not mess with it?). The action's in pretty good shape for its age, but I can see that after another filing or two, it'll need new hammers, and probably in 10 or so years it'll also need flange repinning, new knuckles or new shanks and flanges, and key rebushing. Also it's got the two-piece jacks, some of which have been repaired or reglued, so I know others will also start to click, break, or separate. She likes the tone, the touch, and the ivories, which are pristine. But for the same price ($10 K), she could get a brand new piano, even though it's a Korean-made Kohler & Campbell. To me, the tone isn't that much different, and I checked the sustain time in the upper treble, and it's about the same (5 seconds, holding the damper for that note up and plucking one string). It's a stiffer touch, being new, but that should loosen up some with breaking-in. Even though the M&H is prestigious and might sort of retain its value because of the name, it's already 75 years old and will need major action work in the next 2 or 3 decades, whereas the new K & C will just need minor stuff (light hammer filing, screw tightening, regulation touch-up, voicing) and probably nothing major for at least 20 years. And after that length of time, the K & C will be worth maybe 2/3 what she paid for it while the M & H will only be worth $5, 6, 7K (today's prices). (?) Should I tell her to just buy the one she thinks sounds best in terms of tone, or should I tell her you're always better off buying a brand-new instrument, even if it's not a high-end brand? Thanks for any pinions. ---- Vascillating, --Dave Nereson, RPT, Denver
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