Case 1: Antique is just Antique

As you can see wood changed its color to gray-brown.
It almost looks like rotten.

Bridle tapes (usually made with white colored-bucks skin)
also changed its color and hardened.

Since it had been absorbing too much moisture for a long time.
(longer than 100 years.)

If you press the key with fortissimo,you will get a hammer-shank breaking sound.

Keep this picture in your memory so when it is time to buy the piano.

You can open the cap and see the inside to compare with it.

If it looks like this color, I strongly recommend you to choose other one.

Case 2: The piano which was opened to the public .

The hammer felt (the portion which is hitting the strings was made of wool) 

It worn away.So now the wood hitting the strings.

You will hear a metallic sound.)

These are mainly found in the piano. That accesible to the public

like old church,schools.

Case 3: Pin block defectiveness

It is discovered most frequently and also most critically.

To keep the quality of the sound (not only pitch),the friction force
between tuning pin and pinblock should be high which means hard to turn it
when tuning the piano.

(*tuning pin* - like the nail which gets stuck densely come out bouncing upper part of the piano)

These pins are usuallly longer than 5cm with delicate thread. And pinblock is made of specially seasoned laminate woods.

But even though it was specially dried for a long time. It's wood.

So as the time goes on it changes its volume as temperature and humidity changed.

The picture above is due to exceed moisture and it expand pinblock's volume inside.woods squeezed to pin hole like toothpaste.
(usually these piano can not sustain its quality after tuning.)

Contrary if the piano was exposed under dry circumstance for a long time. Woods in the pinblock shrink its volume,
so there is a vacancy between the pin and the pinblock.

As a result less friction force makes fast descend of the pitch and creates a
bad quality of the sound called "howling sound".

To repair this,physically you must replace tuning pin or put a chemical bonds
in the tuning pin.

Physical treatment cost a lot and once you replace tuning pin,you shoul replace
string and it takes long time and frequent tuning until the string stabilize its pitch.
(3 or 4 tuning at least).

The second alternative to that is to use the chemical treatment for it costs less.

But this makes chemical bond between pin and wood so the wood may be damaged  when next tuning.

Picture above shows someone filled the damage with some woodfiller in order to
hide 2nd damage to sell it.

The picture shows the same part of a 2 years old Yamaha piano
The life of the Yamaha product is 2 times longer than others.

The photographs below shows microscopic cracks.
It can happen due to both lack of humidity or exceed of humidity.

But mainly lack of humidity

When these cracks became bigger inside.

As you can see it become loose and impossible to tune it.

Case 4: Rust on tuning pin,wire,string,hitch pin.

This is the picture of my business card after rubbing the tuning pin with it
Same condition on wire and string also.

The percentage of the piano with the rust in canada is a lot higher than Korea.

Analyizing this,main reason is on shipping process by the vessel.

• It passes the area where the warm,cold current flows and the temperature range between night and day time is so intense
  During one months(can be longer) shipping process.
  Dew condensation repeated on them.
   
• As the latitude changes average temperature difference cause it repeat
   shrink, expansion . (The crack of the soundboard happen.)
   
• The tree and the metal exposed erosive salty air

To prevent these thing from happenning.
Put the piano inner wall of the building,or house to avoid direct sun light and
desperate change of humidity.

If the rust only started from the surface it can be recovered.

But too much rust on bearing can be a reason of bad sound and disconnecting.

Case 5: Foreign material inside and inflating of the felt ,
           twisted key, etc.

Seriously space under key is good nest for mouse,roach,ant small insects
The photograph above shows space under"Ivory key antique piano"
How splendid it is!

It is not too hard to find mice's dung aroud pedal about 20~30 years old piano.

In the case which key does not enter, return or slowly.

There is numerous cause but there are three major reasons.

1. Foreign material insertion inside of the keyboard.
2. Twisted keyboard or key form
3. Action region (piano inside operational parts) felts inflating or the spring
   lost its bounce.

i) the children of the house put the a pasteboard card,coins in the keyboard gap  
It's not a matter at all only of it can be discovered and removed.

ii) again it can be classified in 3 cases.

 a) the balance rail pin which exists in the location  2/3 about of keyboard length (like seesaw) was bent by a strong shock to left,right,front,rear.
Frequently happen in a family with 3-7years old.l



b) change of the key it self by moisture and temperature,
Frequently happen to the piano which was left in cargo or storage long time.

c) inflating of the felt by moisture located between balance rail pin and key If sometimes your key works smoothly and sometimes not.
(Depends on daily weather) probably this is the main reason.

Especially somebody spill coffee or water or coke over the piano.
It absorbed to the felt and make it harden.
Ofcourse it makes noise when ever you press the key.

iii) in this case the felt which wrap the center pin inflate by moisture
so corresponds badly to each joint region of inside action   Too much friction inside.replace center pin and using the lubrication will be required.

Case 6: Creaking noise in the pedal

If the pedal does not move or it creaks -
put the lubricating oil(WD-40) in the pedal joint region is one good solution

If it still makes noise tighten all the screw

If it does not working after moving,usually the pedal rod was escapes from where it was it can be fixed in 5 seconds.

The rod does not break easily.

So don't be anxious to this.

Some of the pianos with two pedals with blue or green rust can be warning sign

For usually it's age is over 80 years.

Case 7: Necessity of inside action re-regulation

Double or tripple (or more) hitting

(The hammer does not stop after hitting the wire.
metallic noise accompanied)

Side movement of the hammer which is caused by escaping action center pin

It changes hitting point of the hammer so color of the sound will be changed

If you let it go. Soon the hammer will get away from the action and it will affect nearby hammer for escaped center pin will penentrate nearby center pins.

The hammer sticks to string or wire. (Metallic Noise follows)
It prevent vibration and resonance of that key.

Can be fixed after adjusting the capstone block.

As you see in video file above.
The hammer will hit nearby hammer in motion.

It will change the touch of the key and sometimes make nearby hammer hit the wire
altogether.

Case 8: After hitting the key, damper does not works properly.so endless resonance remain.

It is seldomly discovered from the piano which has been older than 60 years.

If the damper becomes hardened or rotten it can not mute the vibration

of the wire,string.

It will sounds like as you press the sustain pedal .

Case 9 : External damage

If the Side bottom is peeled off trace on the piano is usually made by the process of erecting up the piano to pass a narrow entrance.

Skillful and delicate skill is required to move the piano without any damage.

There's a high possibility the piano suffered inner damage for the shock from the outside.

Case 10 : Crack on bridge,Improper angle on bearing pins

As the time passes ,wood bridge(the part where twisting wire,string twice) became
twisting and shrink or expand.

Not to mention change of moisture,temperature.

Evenmore,because of bridge was attached to soundboard,
if the bond to the soundboard is not strong enough ,bridge itself shift its position toward the twisted string forces.(clock direction)

A string without distortion,without tension is nothing.
Fortunately usually that starts from the highest-pitched tone area to the middle.

Vibration is lost if theres no tension.

(Usually the tension in one string is 80Kg and theres arount 200 strings in there.
the total tension from tuning pin to bottom hitchpin through all the frame is 16 Ton.

Beautiful sound from the piano is mainly from the tension of it.)

You will hear a loud striking sound instead of strings sound.

Imagine what will happen if it lost its tension from middle tone area.

It starts trifle cracks on the bridge.

It is hard to distinguish changing of the sound only by hearing, it is almost impossible except expert.

Below pictures will show you beginning and ending.

Under this condition if you hardly played it during 10 years.
Just put it under dry surrounding.

One day you hear a striking noise instead of the vibration of string.

The bridge became completely divided into two or three pieces.

The only way to fix it is to replace it.

You should release all the string before replacing it.
And should carve new bridge nail the bearing pin again.
Bond it. and put the new string again. tune it. 

Isn't it sounds like making a new piano rather than fixing it?

Yes it is.

Don't buy the piano with cracks on the bridge that's all I can tell you.

Additional information: What's the Buzz? ?

The most frequent question from pianist or senstive player.

When "Can't you remove this buzzing metalic sound by tuning?"

No clear answer for this question.

Sometimes Yes or sometimes No

For the various reasons stated below

Test of the senior in this field and discussion specialty forum. it says

i) - it can be made from the frame or the pressure bar or the part of the wire between upper bridge to tuning pin.

(Explanation: sparkling iron bar with 9 screw is the pressure bar.
It distorts the wire and strings vertically.)


In this case there is no solution.
The defect is the piano it self.

These two movies is good example of buzzing sound.
One for piano dehumidifier and the other for music board.

ii) - All the material have its natural frequency.
If the piano sound matches same frequency to the material around it.


It will resonate the material and the noise became louder and louder
as long as you keep press the key.

The resonance between the piano and a decorate near it, window frame,glass

(It can be removed by removing stuffs around piano one by one or move the piano somewhere else in the house.)

http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/mythbusters/episode/00to49/episode_08.html

(to know more about resonance.

check myth buster Episode 12.Break step bridge.)

The way how to finding it is something like this.

If you hear buzzing sound on 4th octave C

Press 3th octave C and listen carefully.(it will be weaker than before)
And if you can hear buzzing on it.

Press 2th octave C and if you can hear it either.
(its almost impossibe to hear it)

If resonance between the piano and stuff around it ,is the main reason of buzzing, remove the stuff or moving the piano to other place.

I

 iii).

   

   When buying a used piano,usually people check only outside and inside but not bottom inside.I mean the soundboard.


Those cracks in the middle of the soundboard makes weaken bridge bass's bond and move it slightly. Which makes buzzing sound.

Just like guitar and violin. Soundboard is most important part of instrument.
Who wanna buy violin,chelo,guitar with crack.

But people frequently do when buying the piano.

(One more tip: Also check surface of soundboard.Touch it with your palm.
If you feel rough surface it means its dry and weak to damage.
so don't erect it when moving or passing through narrow entrance.
It will be easily cracked when you do it.)

(If the piano doesn't work properly.It must classify as a xylophone)

* 

iv) - the adhesion of the bass bridge bass became weaken the metalic noise follows.

 

(Explantation: The woods with black color is the bass bridge.and the plate it was bonded is bass bridge bass.
it transmitts vibration of the string to the soundboard.)

v) If the winding of the bass string became loosen.
    It can be a reason of buzzing.



---

These are the main  I can tell you.


---

With career of many in this field with various experience.

The pianos listed on Pianoinside.com  ^{tm passes all the defacts above information.Which means best of the best.}


It takes over 10 years until the brand new piano became completely stabilized.
And after 20 years possibility of defact realize as a malfunction.

So to speak,if it woks perfectly after 20 years,it's already proven quality product.

You can buy brand new piano but you can't buy 20 years test of time.


---

As a conclusion,Who worked long time in automobile industry
informs me a joke with truth.Cannot be ignored.

"The automobile with a lot of trifle malfunction 

is assembled with

a lot of Friday component.

 

We Pianiinside.com will guarantee you.

Purchasing the used piano through us is the most wise shopping you can do in your life in Canada.

Is not just  one day,one weeks,one year.

"Make customer can see what their grandchildren play with it."

That's our slogan.

"Piano is not the furniture but the musical instrument"

6:45 p.m. -2006.4.28 complete writing contents.

8:42 p.m, -2006.9.01  complet translating.(thx for Cathy,my client and mentor)

5:50 p.m, -2006 9.24  complet correction impolite moods                               miss spells and weird expressions.


3:00 pm -2007 1.1 bought pianoinside.com domain and changed its domain address and business name for better service and better web searching result

              Again,I owe you so much Cathy. Is it looks better now? ;)


James Shin of Pianoinside.com^tm.