Well, it's been close to 20 years since I played... but a friend has hooked me up with a church that is literally THROWING a PIANO AWAY. No, it's no Steinway... haven't seen it yet... but, from the story, it's a decent upright baby-grand. Needs some TLC, but works.

Now, I just gotta find some way to re-arrange the living room where it can fit, and still be able to get to the couch!!

Now, I used to be able to actually TUNE a piano (helped the piano tuner we had back in my grandparent's home so many times, I learned how)... it'll be interesting to see if I can get back in practice, both in that and in the playing department afterwards...

Now, I just gotta get a plan to MOVE the thing... :scratch2:

Regards,
Gordon.

Hope you're not getting a VERY large "pig-in-a-poke". Our church decided to get rid of a bunch of its Sunay-School classroom pianos, a fella came & appraised them, said they were too far gone & too cheap to begin with be worth anything. I don't think any of 'em had been tuned in decades, if ever. Rotsa ruck movin it, in any case. -Sandy G.

Originally posted by GordonW
Now, I just gotta get a plan to MOVE the thing... :scratch2:


I moved one in college years ago. We had 4 guys on it and probably needed 4 more. Those things are HEAVY!!!!

Wound up taking stops off the door jamb and busted the stair rail getting it inside.

Get LOTS of help, measure and plan your route and try to aviod as many turns, stairs, and inclines as possible. Personally, I'd check out a moving service's rates; it's that much of a PITA, which is probably why you're getting it so cheap.

My wife has played piano since her teenage years and she bought a baby grand in high school. I've moved it myself (with friends) over 5 times in various relocations and have this to suggest. If you are over 40 and in fair physical condition -- hire piano movers. Not just local yahoos with a box truck. Call a music store and get a recommendation. I'm 50 now and wouldn't take it on -- it's 600 pounds and I don't mend as quickly these days.

Even moving an upright can get to be a real job -- I've moved those too. My daughter bought one last year (a used one from a church) for $25 -- if we moved it. You don't want one of these to get loose.

If you want to make sure you're not buying junk, get another music store recommendation for a tuner/repairer. They will do an appraisal fairly cheaply ($25 or so) and let you know if you're buying a musical paperweight. Or, get the name of the piano's tuner from the seller and get a sense of its upkeep.

Good luck and hope if works out for you.

Recently I bought a large upright piano from a thrift store for $10...for a small extra donation they delivered it for me. They had a lift gate box van and myself and a friend maneuvered it on the lift, they hoisted it up and we tied it down in the truck. They unloaded it into my barn where it will go in an enclosed, air conditioned room.

Do not try to move a large upright piano in a pickup truck...there is too much weight at the top above the bed and it can fall out. You need a lift-gate box van or a trailer with enclosed sides...the piano must be securely tied down to the sides of the truck.

I would recommend hiring professional movers...to load up several pianos and a Hammond organ from a house, move them about 20 miles, and unload them in my house where I wanted them, was about $200. It is money well spent! They know what they are doing to do the job safely and with no damage.

What the hell is an 'upright baby grand'. It's one or the other, no?

I have a strange urge to play the knuckle song now.

I have one at home that is just a studio-size upright but its nameplate says "Cabinet Grand". I have seen "Upright Grand", too, it's just a marketing gimmick for a regular upright piano...made to seem like it has the qualities of a grand just by giving it that name. Have not seen "upright baby grand" in that exact nomenclature though.

I've only seen designations of spinet, console and upright and of course baby grand and grand.
Spinet being the lowest or smallest sound board and upright being the tallest or biggest sound board.

Hey, but what do I know... I remember a time when there were only a handful of guitars makers out there. Fender, Gibson, Guild, Gretch. Now there so many out there I lost count.

Well, we moved it. Successfully.

The two of us (yeah, call us the "Bonehead Squad", if ya like :D ), using a pickup truck, a trailer (heavy enough to use 6-lug wheels!), a come-along, a big nylon tow strap, a bunch of ratcheting tie-downs, some clear plastic and some duct tape, got it here. Yeah, those things are DECIDEDLY TOP HEAVY... we were going EXTRA SLOW around corners and curves, and keeping an eye on the thing. We basically winched it up onto the trailer using the come-along, strapped it down, trailered it over here, and rolled it back down the ramp at my house.

Never will do that again, unless I'm getting paid REAL money for it... enough to go rent a LIFT GATE TRUCK. $200 sounds REALLY reasonable, after having done it myself!!

Anyhow, it's here. It's probably not that great of a unit, and it needs some minor work (the pedals aren't working, and one or two keys need the linkages shimmed/repaired/adjusted as the hammer doesn't quite make it to the string)... but it appears to be pretty solid. It'll be like the Zen Motorcycle project... something I'll do, for "spiritual cleansing"... at my pace, with no stress, whenever it gets done, it gets done... and it'll be done RIGHT.

Regards,
Gordon.