Scroll down to see the piano restoration process!

About this piano: This beautiful piano was built by Chickering in 1927, the "Golden Age" of piano building in America.  This was a time when historic and period furniture and interior design styles were experiencing a huge revival, and better piano manufacturers were building period style instruments to meet market demand.  This piano is of the French inspired carved Louis XV style and is made of beautiful walnut wood with elegantly carved wood accents and moldings.  These carved period "Art-Case" style pianos were more expensive than the traditional models and were made in fewer numbers - they are a bit rare today.

The owners of this piano had considered purchasing a new instrument, but soon realized that restoring this magnificent piano was a better alternative to buying a cheaply built new generic piano.  At nearly 100 years old, the carved walnut case had suffered extreme sun fading and the interior had become brittle with age.  Despite a century of deterioration and neglect, the owners could see and appreciate the huge amount of potential this piano had and a decision was made to invest in its restoration rather than to dispose of it.

After professional restoration, this instrument is far better than the majority of new baby grand pianos flooding today's market.  The piano is being used and appreciated once again, not only because of its obvious aesthetic beauty, but because of its substantial quality of tone.

Scroll down to see the piano restoration process!

Piano Restoration Process:

Assessment & Disassembly

Years of exposure to direct sunlight has caused the piano case to become dry and faded.  The interior of the piano was dirty and deteriorated but still very restorable.  Each individual piece of the piano is disassembled, labeled and recorded.  The elaborate CHICKERING decals are measured and copied so that they can be replaced with historical accuracy.  The piano is assessed by our team to determine what parts are to be ordered and what parts will have to be made.

Piano Restoration Process:

Cabinet Repair & Refinishing

The faded old finish is carefully removed from the piano and the natural walnut wood is exposed.  Broken and missing pieces are repaired or fabricated. All parts are sealed before going back into the piano.  Several coats of walnut stain and lacquer are applied to the case, each coat painstakingly sanded to ensure clarity and luster.  All hardware and brass pieces are carefully hand-polished and sealed to prevent future tarnishing.

Piano Restoration Process:

Soundboard Repair & Re-Stringing

The old brittle strings were dirty and lifeless, making the piano sound "tubby" before restoration.  The strings and harp were removed and the old-growth wood soundboard restored and refinished.  The harp was re-gilded with brilliant gold lacquer and a new pin block was made for long-term tuning stability.  The new strings were installed and the piano looks like brand new inside!

Piano Restoration Process:

Action & Keyboard Restoration

The piano action comes to us brittle and dirty with the old felts and leathers deteriorated beyond repair.  The piano gets new hammers, shanks, flanges and whippens with all other felt, leather and bushings replaced in the piano.  The original ivory keyboard is repaired and the ivory restored and polished to look brand new again!  After assembly, regulation and tuning, the piano is now ready to be delivered back to it's happy home!

PHOTOS OF PIANO

AFTER COMPLETE RESTORATION

Professional restoration has made for an amazing transformation!  Luckily its owners could see its potential and this beautiful piano did not end up in the landfill like so many others do.  The beautiful walnut finish now shines with rich luster and the instrument now looks, plays and sounds like it did when it left the factory nearly a century ago.