How to Buy a Good Used PianoHow to buy a good used piano is a piano inspection checklist written with the amateur in mind. If most of the points here turn out to be OK it is highly likely you have found yourself a good used piano. However........one caution - this checklist to buy a used piano is basic - after you have done the piano inspection and think you have found a good one, do yourself a favour and ask a technician to inspect it. There's a lot more that could be wrong that you can't tell by just using this piano checklist. Cost for an inspection is generally half the price of a tuning and is money well spent. But since it will cost $50 - $75 you don't want to invite the technician to view every piano you look at. Take a copy of our How to Buy a Good Used Piano with you and make notes. When you think you've found the one you like - then call the technician to do a more thorough inspection for you. Cabinet*Does it need refinishing? Can you live with it? Many old pianos look terrible but are good musical instruments. It really is what's inside that counts. Has the cabinet been altered? Do parts line up and look good?*Are there any missing parts or hardware? Notice particularly where the music is placed or the hinges on parts that move. *Look carefully for loose veneer or other signs of water damage. *Is there a bench? Does it match? What is its’ condition? Pinblock and Tuning Pins*Ask the owner if the piano is at standard pitch of A = 440 vibrations per second. If they don't know that, ask when it was last tuned. Does the whole piano sound reasonably in tune?*Does each note sound in tune with itself? Play every key one at a time. Badly out of tune unisons may indicate loose tuning pins, especially if tuned within the last couple of years. If so, a technician needs to check the torque before purchase. *Are tuning pins the same size? If some are larger, it may indicate the pinblock is deteriorating. *Look for at least 1/8” clearance between the back of the coil on the tuning pin and the body of the piano. *Look for circles around the tuning pin of a different colour than normally on the plate. This indicates the pinblock has been chemically treated to temporarily tighten the pins. *On a grand piano, remove the key cover, look at the underside of the pinblock for signs of cracking or delaminating. If you learn anything at all from this "How to Buy a Good Used Piano" this is one area of a piano inspection that is critical. The pinblock is the heart of the piano. If this is not in very good condition - forget it! You do not want to buy this used piano. To replace one of these is over $1,500.00 Strings*Light rust is okay. Excessive rust, especially on coils or at bearing points, is a problem, and could lead to breakage.Are there any strings missing?*Note if there are any new strings. If there are a lot or a lot missing it may indicate a breakage problem. *Do the bass strings give a rich full sound, or are they tubby or thumpy sounding? This can indicate either very old strings or the bridge may have a problem. When you buy a used piano you may want to consider replacing the strings, particularly the bass if they sound poor. If everything else looks good and this area is the weak point, have a technician do an inspection and make recommendations on the cost of replacing the strings. New bass strings can make a huge difference in the quality of sound. Rough cost to replace is about $600.00 Bridges*Hairline cracks around bridge pins are not abnormal. However,excessive cracks that cause dislocation of the bridge pins, are a big problem and indicate the need of a new bridge. You may need a flashlight and to get your head up close to the bridge to see this.*If the bass sound is poor at one end and not the other, this could indicate the bridge is not attached to the soundboard. *If the piano has an upper bearing point made of wood, notonly check for cracks but consider it must be at least 100 years old. Once again, this is an area that a piano inspection needs to happen if you suspect the bridges are not attached or cracked. Cost to do the repair here could be a much as $1,000. Structural Integrity*Before lifting the lid on either a grand or upright to look inside, check for cracks in the wood near the hinges and that the hinges are attached. If the lid hinge pins are missing the whole thing can fall on the floor when you lift it.*Although very rare, check for cracks in the cast iron plate, both in the struts and in the tuning pin area. These are almost impossible to repair properly. *Look for delamination in the bottom edge of the rim on a grand, or in the back of the top horizontal beam of a vertical piano. You need to look up from the floor to see this on a grand. *Check legs for cracks or for an undue amount of rocking of the piano. *Check vertical pianos for missing or broken casters. Soundboard and Ribs*Play each key separately from one end of the keyboard to the other listening for any buzzing or rattling sounds.*Look for excessive soundboard cracking. A few minor cracks are usually not a concern. Your inspection should include a look at the back of a vertical and the underside of the grand, to see if the ribs are attached to the soundboard. However, if there are cracks and there are no resulting buzzes - the cracks may not matter. *Long wooden shims in cracks indicate the piano has been repaired. Cracks beside the shims may need the shims removed and redone. *Check to see if the soundboard is glued all the way around the perimeter. *Pluck test: Depress a key in the treble (octave above middle C) slowly so that the note does not play and pluck one string. The sound should last at least 5 seconds. If less than 3 seconds, the soundboard is either not functioning or the scale design of the piano is poor. Action, Keys, Hammers & DampersWhen you buy a used piano this part is detailed and important. There are a lot of parts in a piano - over 5,000 in an upright - over 9,000 in a grand. They all need to work properly. One or two not working properly can drive a student to quit.The following two diagrams show the parts of a grand and upright action. You can refer to these as you read this information on the piano action. Note that these diagrams are showing the mechanism for 1 key in the piano and you are looking at it from the side. There are 88 of each of these mechanisms in each piano. 
*Take the front off the piano. Make sure all keys play. Are parts missing, broken, or unglued? All 88 notes have the same parts so you can compare the good ones with the bad. *Look at all the movable parts. Are they neat and even, consistent and aligned? *Look for plastic parts. If made before 1970 do not buy unless you can be sure the plastic parts have been replaced with new. Old plastic is usually a pale yellow colour. *Look at all the felt for moth damage. If there are little holes in it, that's moth damage. It usually degrades the sound. Are the keys level? If the white keys........when you get down and look at them from their level, look like a roller coaster....it is quite likely the felt is damaged or gone underneath them.......Or the keys are warped. *Check to see if the bridle straps (small cloth strap from one part to another) are in good condition. *Are any keys sticking or sluggish? Two or three are not a big concern, but a lot - costs a lot. *Are the keys evenly spaced, square with each other? *Are keytops ivory or plastic. Are any missing, chipped or damaged? *Move the keys to the left and right quickly....not up and down. They should barely wiggle and should not rattle or click. *Check the hammers to see if there is enough remaining felt. If there are deep gouges in them from hitting the strings, they may need to be replaced. A new set of hammers start at about $1000 and up. *Move them left and right (not forward and back) to check tightness. If they wobble, they may hit the wrong strings. Clicking sounds when played indicates loose screws or possible loose glue joints. *Play all notes staccato (except where there are no dampers) to see if the sound stops quickly. If not, the dampers may need to be adjusted or replaced. *Do all the dampers move together when the right pedal is depressed on both the grand and upright? If not, alignment needs to be done. Regulation*On the upright piano the key and hammer should move at the same time. Any delay of the hammer after the key is depressed is called lost motion. It can produce a sloppy feel and doesn't help when you try to play expressively.*The jack, which pushes up the hammer, should disengage when the hammer is about 1/8 inch from the string. Test by playing a key softly. If the hammer does not reach the string, disengagement is too early. Play a note loudly. If the hammer is blocked against the string, disengagement is too late. *The backcheck is to catch the hammer from striking more than once. If caught too far from the string, repetition is compromised. If caught too early, the hammer may be blocked against the string. If the backcheck does not catch the hammer, the hammer will bobble and produce multiple sounds with one strike of the key. *In the grand, the hammer shanks should rest about 1/8” above the rest cushions. The keys in a grand should be level (or rise slightly in the middle) from one end to the other. *Check repetition by playing a key rapidly with the right pedal depressed. *Play a number of keys as softly as possible. If the action fails to play reliably (i.e., skips or misses) while playing softly, the action probably needs regulating.
Pedals*Right pedal - see dampers above*Middle pedal: If it has a sostenuto - depress the right pedal which will lift the dampers, then depress the middle pedal and keep depressed while releasing the right pedal. The dampers should remain raised. If it doesn’t have a sostenuto, the middle pedal will act similar to the right pedal, but usually for only the bass end of the piano. *Left pedal: moves the hammers closer to the strings in a vertical piano or shifts the keyboard to the right in a grand to play quieter. If the left pedal on a grand operates just the bass dampers, the piano is of lower quality. *Is the grand pedal lyre coming apart at the glue joints? Are lyre braces in place? Does it feel secure when pedals are used? Age of the Piano*Copy down the name and serial number. Email us this information and we will try to give you an answer within 48 hours.The information above won't make you a piano technician - but it will sure keep you from buying a piece of junk. Remember most of all - just because a piano looks beautiful doesn't mean it is a musical instrument. If you need to ask me a question....email me at plumbpianos@bellnet.ca. I will try to respond as quickly as possible. I hope this How to Buy a Good Used Piano gets you a piano you can enjoy for years.
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