<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; = charset=iso-8859-1"> <META content="MSHTML 5.50.4522.1800" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV>Willem wrote:</DIV> <DIV>"Take 30% off for age, and deduct costs for repairs."</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I'm always trying to better my ability to value pianos. My = understanding (from Larry Fine's book) is that a good rule of thumb is to devalue a = piano from new, 25% every 5 to 10 years. Using that, this Bosey might be worth less = than $40,000. Larry's guide does not take into account calculating cost of repairs.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I curious about just how you figure for something like this. Is = this your general rule to take 10% off per year and then subtract cost of repairs to make it like new? My guess is this would fall apart for a piano = that is in very good condition and 20 years old, but might be real good for = older pianos. Please fill me/us in on any details I have not identified. = Thanks!</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Terry Farrell</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>P.S. Downbearing does not necessarily reflect crown - you can = have zero crown with some downbearing! <SPAN id=__#Ath#SignaturePos__></SPAN> :-)</DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; = BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV> <DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: = black"><B>From:</B> <A title=Wimblees@AOL.COM = href="mailto:Wimblees@AOL.COM">Wimblees@AOL.COM</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A = title=pianotech@ptg.org href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">pianotech@ptg.org</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, July 25, 2001 = 9:27 AM</DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: bosendorfer = research</DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica><FONT size=2>In a = message dated 7/25/01 7:40:43 AM Central Daylight Time, <BR><A href="mailto:dwight_pile@hotmail.com">dwight_pile@hotmail.com</A> = writes: <BR><BR></FONT><FONT lang=0 face=Arial color=#000000 size=3 FAMILY="SANSSERIF"><BR></FONT><FONT lang=0 face=Arial = color=#000000 size=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF"> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px = solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px" TYPE="CITE"><BR>2)  what would you value a 30 year old Bosey = imperial at with a zero crown, <BR>0.5mm downbearing only on the front of the = bridge, </FONT><FONT lang=0 face=Arial color=#000000 size=3 FAMILY="SANSSERIF"></BLOCKQUOTE><BR><BR></FONT><FONT lang=0 = face=Arial color=#000000 size=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF">.5 mm downbearing is not = zero crown. I get the feeling the technician in <BR>question is trying to make lots = of money by persuading the insurance company <BR>to let him replace the = soundboard, or get a commission for selling a new one. <BR><BR><BR>beaten-up body, = cracks in <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px = solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px" TYPE="CITE">several ivory keys, and poor regulation and tuning <BR>stability?  Please indicate if you are using U$ or CAN dollars!</FONT><FONT lang=0 face=Arial color=#000000 size=3 FAMILY="SANSSERIF"></BLOCKQUOTE><BR><BR></FONT><FONT lang=0 = face=Arial color=#000000 size=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF">What is the value? In = $US, according the spring/summer 2001 Ancott directory, <BR>a brand new Bosy 290 = Imperial grand retails for $175,000. Take 30% off for <BR>age, and deduct costs = for repairs. The repairs might include removing the <BR>pate, (thus the = strings), and repairing the soundboard, and restringing, <BR>regulation, etc. = <BR><BR>I don't know the extend of the case repairs, but the total restoration = costs <BR>is not going to exceed the value of the piano. Therefore, it is = definitely <BR>worth doing. The question is, who is going to do it? In this case, = it might <BR>be worth it to ship the piano back to Vienna. <BR><BR>Willem = Blees <BR><BR><BR></BLOCKQUOTE></FONT></FONT></BODY></HTML>