Piano Repair

The following is an excerpt from our beginner-friendly book, When a Piano Falls in Your Lap: A New Owner's Guide to Used Pianos. How to: Replace a broken string A busted string happens fairly often with old pianos, and it absolutely does need to be corrected if you plan on ever playing your instrument. No strings, no sound. But outside of major damage, this is the most difficult repair job you’d be likely to encounter. We recommend leaving this one to the pros, but it is possible to deal with it yourself. Tricky, but possible. If you think you’re up...

Piano casters are the wheels attached to the legs of your piano. They help make moving your instrument easier and give the piano a polished look. Unless, of course, the original casters are broken, missing, or outdated.  Old casters can scratch up the floor, dent rugs, get rusty, stop working, or just look tired. Once they've reached this stage, they'll need to be replaced with new modern hardware with rubber, cast iron, or brass wheels.  Which kind of casters should I get? First, choose the best type of wheels for you and your needs. Remember to ensure the weight rating of your new casters is...

Uneven keys are an unsightly side effect of a well-loved piano. If you play your piano a lot (or not!) you may notice that the felt holding up your piano keys has compressed. Over time, the material loses its integrity and the keys settle out of alignment. It's an aesthetic issue, true, but when the keys are left out of whack, play can be affected. It can feel spongy, wobbly, or just "off," making it less pleasant or even trickier to play. Sound is altered, too, because the distance each key needs to travel to strike the hammer will not be...

Over time, piano keytops can become worn, broken, or even fall off entirely. This is especially apparent with antique pianos which use real ivory. Keytops that have become damaged, faded, or warped can be replaced at home or in the shop. Simply pry them up, smooth them down, and stick them back on. Just kidding, there's a lot more to it than that! Replacing keytops is a delicate process that requires a deft hand, lots and lots of time, and quality products. Read on for a detailed guide to replacing your own piano keytops.   image Schaff Before we begin, understand...

Are you unable to play certain notes on your older spinet? Does the key stay depressed? Chances are the elbow in the drop action mechanism is broken, misaligned, or needs maintenance. Fortunately, the process of replacing the elbows is fairly painless. Spinets were created to be compact with a sleek design, so they have an unusual action mechanism. The drop or indirect-blow action actually sits below the key, not directly behind or above, as it does with consoles, uprights, and grand pianos. In order to reach the strings behind the keys, the mechanism uses small wood or plastic inserts called elbows that facilitate...