Mason & Hamlin Piano?

Question

I have a Mason & Hamlin Model 50 piano built in 1905. It looks to be in pretty good shape. It was serviced and tuned about five years ago. can any one give me a "ball park" figure on what it might be worth?

Answer 1

M&H are well known to be top quality pianos ... however age is a determining factor.



1. Tastes in cabinetry styles have changed a lot in the past hundred years. Unless this is a fairly unadorned instrument, you'll be looking for a buyer looking for period furniture (and probably not the piano)



2. Uprights are less favored than grands. Most people will opt for a new (or newer) upright or digital than an old one, no matter how good.



3. Service and tuned FIVE YEARS AGO? ... seems like this has not been a well cared for piano. Tunings should be twice or thrice a year ... you might get away with annual tunings if the environment has been fairly constant in terms of temperature and humidity.



4. Felts and leathers deteriorate over time. Pin bushings, bridle tapes, backchecks, balance rail punchings, key buttons, and more may need replacement.



5. In the late 1890s M & H were producing "screws stringers"; piano's that didn't have a wrestplank (pin block) but rather bolts and a jamming device to keep the strings in tune. While the concept was sound, the end result didn't make it big. Screw stringers are tuned by turning the pins in the opposite direction of other uprights (why, I don't know) I don't know if the screw stringers made it into the 20th century ... if it has a traditional pinblock, that may have dried out. A piano that does not hold its tuning is worthless.



6. How are the bridges, bridge pins, hitch pins, soundboard, & ribs? Bridges, especially an offset bass bridge, can delaminate from the soundboard. bridge pins carry a lot of bearing load side to side, and sometimes cause the bridge cap to crack. hitchpins can pull free from the plate, soundboards can crack, ribs can work loose.



That's the internal ... then there's the case work ... appliqués and veneers have a horrible habit of working loose from the case. I imagine that the varnish is probably pretty well crazed and darkened by now, unless the instrument was refinished on the last go 'round. Ivory keys are probably chipped and or have missing sections. How are the ebonies? Any missing?



Not meaning to be all doom and gloom, but there are conditions that will determine if the piano has any real value.



... look to http://www.ptg.org to find a registered piano technician in your area.



Only a technician acquainted with piano sales in your area can give you an honest assessment of the instruments potential salablilty. With restoration this might fetch a better price as an antique than as a piano.

Answer 2

No one here can give you a ball park figure because one needs to see the piano. I'm sure someone will shoot of some prices from the Piano Blue Book but do not take those for any value. Your piano needs to be assessed by a piano technician. That is the only way you will know the value.



The Blue Book will give you a figure that is based on the piano being in tip top shape. However neither you nor any one here will know if it is. Even slight wear and tear can drop the value of the instrument. And for an instrument that is over 100 years old, the condition of the tunning block will decide much of the value and the condition of the sound board. If the tunning block isn't tight, meaning the wood is completely dry and cannot hold the tunning pegs in place after tunning the piano is almost worthless. Any damages to the soundboard, or repairs will significantly alter the value. As well as the condition of all the felts. If all the felts are worn down the piano will require a significant repair and replacing felts is not cheap. They will also look at the condition of the keyboard action. I imagine because of the age, the action is probably fairly warn and loose. To rebuild and repair an action is a minimum of a thousand dollars.



These are all significant factors that none of us can tell you without looking at the piano. So I suggest you find a piano technician, not a tuner in your area to assess it. Tuners only tune pianos. Technicians are the guys who know the guts about the instrument

Answer 3

They are both quality pianos, but I think the key is to have them voiced and regulated by a top piano technician. I have recently been to several showrooms of both brands, and was appalled at the lack of preparation of all the instruments. They were uneven in tone, and the actions were very unresponsive in some cases. On one there was even a key that stuck-and it was a new piano! It appeared that all of the instruments were just taken off the truck and tuned-no more than that. I inherited a Steinway B from my late piano teacher, and it wasn't especially gratifying to play until I had it voiced and regulated by a master technician. This took a couple of days and it cost $800-900 at the time, but it was well worth it. Now it is one of my favorite instruments I have ever played. But I had no idea of what I had until I had this done. It is a shame that piano stores (at least the ones I have been to in southern California) don't invest in this process so that their pianos can be shown to their advantage. Perhaps if you find a piano you're interested in, you could insist that the dealer prepare it by one of their staff technicians so that you can evaluate it better. Also you could (and should) have a technician you trust look at a prospective piano before you buy. Again, I think they are both quality brands, and even within each brand the instruments vary a little. It is a matter of personal taste. I happen to like to Steinway better in general, but I have played several Mason & Hamlins that I really liked as well.