Another Piano Done

Here are a few pictures of a Baldwin Studio I recently finished. The piano was originally a medium walnut stain with some yellowing keys. We finished it in a satin black, replaced the keytops, and replated all of the brass parts in nickel. It looks nearly as good as new.

Nearly Completed

Here is the latest piano I have been working on. Considering the last post in this blog and all the problems associated with the contamination, it is still amazing to me how flat the paint went down. Here are some pictures.

The Dangers of Cheap Furniture Polish

One of the most important components in caring for an antique piano is choosing a good wood polish. This is especially important if you want the instrument to remain an heirloom and/or retain the possibility of refinishing or restoration. Obviously tuning and regular maintenance are key components as well. There is a specific situation that brings this to the surface right at the moment but first, let me delve into the 'evils' of regular ol' polish.

About 95% of the polishes that you can buy at your local grocery store or Walmart have one of two base ingredients on which the product is based: silicone or wax. What's wrong with silicone and wax? To understand this point we must examine wood a lot more closely and then think about these products and where they are used.

WOOD: UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL

Wood is basically nature densely packing fibers in a specific alignment. The wood's grain is the alignment or direction of these fibers. Different species of wood have different 'grains' In fact, much of species identification with wood is color and grain. Some woods are more densely packed than others. For example, maple is very dense and therefore has much less 'open grain' than say oak or mahogany. These species are also very dense but more of these 'natural imperfections' show through in the way of grain. If we were to view this grain through a microscope it would look like the grand canyon compared to the realtively flat surface. These 'canyons' attract all sorts of contaminants. When we prepare a piano for a new finish we try to minimize the grain 'gaps' with a variety of prep techniques. However, it is impossible to remove everything when it is deeply imbedded in the grain. Your furniture polish is designed to fill these gaps to provide a smoother looking surface.

SILICONE is used to seal the minuscule gaps after a window has been installed. It is also heavily used in bathrooms as a sealant. In short, silicone is known for it's waterproof properties. So why does this make a bad polish? Truthfully, as silicone is being sprayed on your piano or fine furniture, it looks really great. It reseals the wood and doesn't have much of a build up like wax does (more on that in a minute). However, this is a refinisher's nightmare! The silicone seals the wood by working itself into the grain of the wood and is pretty much stuck there for good. Remember those waterproof qualities? These properties also apply to solvents and oils. Pretty much nothing will go over silicon. So when the refinisher goes to apply a new finish, any part of the wood - especially the grain where that silicone settled, will not accept new finish. It has an effect that we call "fish-eye" as the paint will recede from the silicone and expose the wood in that particular spot. This results in a much heavier finish around the spot and the result is something similar to snakeskin cowboy boots. Here is the latest example that prompted this post...
WAX is a little easier to imagine since it is a product that most of us use regularly on our vehicles. Imagine a newly waxed car in a rainstorm. What happens to the water? It no longer slides off the paint in a nice even sheet. Rather, it beads up and rolls off. This is the same effect that happens when I start attempting to spray new finish on that waxy piano. The same result as described above is inevitable - fish-eye syndrome. So this is the part where you, the consumer, asks, "But don't you strip all the old finish off, wipe it clean, sand it, and any other preparations necessary?" The answer is, yes. However, I do not have a microscopic sander that can get into the grain of the wood. Another issue that wax brings is build-up. If this product is used time and time again, it will begin to show a grayish residue on some parts like the bench top, sides and music desk. Waxing your furniture is much different than your car because your car is exposed to weather, dirt and sun, which eventually wear away this coating of wax making it necessary for a reapplication. Your furniture doesn't get any of this unless you take your piano out for regular Sunday drives! Therefore the wax sticks, stays and builds.

A WORD ON OILS
Lemon Oil is a popular choice and would have been fine 50 years ago but it just isn't compatible with modern lacquers. It isn't necessarily harmful but it doesn't do any good as it just smears over the top and looks blochy at best when you are finished. Plus, after the finish has aged a bit and been helped along with the occasional nick, ding, or scratch, the oil can actually begin to be harmful. As the damaged wood is polished, the oil is deposited in the scratch or ding and then continues to seep into the wood underneath the finish. In a worst case scenario this can actually lift the finish leading to exponential damage.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Don't buy furniture polish from a grocery store! Unfortunately, polish is not like food - the manufacturer doesn't have to tell you what he is making it out of. But just a few helpful hints. Pledge is wax, ArmorAll is silicone. Anything that resembles these will NOT work. My top recommendation for fine furniture care is Cory Piano Polish. Cory Piano Polish is available through my company or over the internet at a variety of web sites. They make several different types of polish that correspond to the type of finish of your piano or furniture. Here is a step by step of how to polish:
1. Whenever possible, simply use a soft cloth to dust the finish.
2. When polishing is necessary beyond dusting, choose the correct polish for the application.
3. Lightly mist the surface with the polish - you don't need nearly as much as you think you do. A very little goes a long way.
4. DO NOT SCRUB! Very gently wipe the stain evenly across the surface taking care to polish with the grain.
5. Turn rag frequently so that the same gunk that you are polishing off is not redeposited.
6. Enjoy!

Holiday Break and the Economy

I have returned from a much needed break from the piano biz. I will be working feverishly to finish up the pianos I am currently working on. I apologize for the delay.

With the economy in its current condition, the piano business (not just mine but the entire industry) has been hit pretty hard. We, as technicians are aware that pianos are a luxury item. However, I would encourage you to not let the music cease. Support your local music stores in any way that you can. With the severe drop off of piano sales, music stores are struggling. The last thing we need is for them to go under (even the ones I don't like) because without them, it becomes very difficult to teach music. Please make any purchase of anything musical from them, not walmart, not Amazon, not eBay. It isn't worth the savings. If the stores fail, then it will be a lot more difficult for your budding students to find a place to experience a true concert quality instrument.


Lastly, as I mentioned, Heirloom Piano has not been unaffected by the economic strains. If any of you have any referrals to pass along, they would be greatly appreciated. For nearly 5 years I have enjoyed a 3 to 6 month cushion on scheduling. This has waned to 2 or 3 pianos left and if substantial leads are nowhere to be found, I will be forced to look for another profession. I have also started refinishing furniture for informational purposes. Thank you, everyone, for your patronage and support.

Catching up...

I apologize to those that are trying to keep current on their pianos or waiting for a piano deal to come over the wire. I have just finished course work for my business degree and it has kept me plenty busy writing final papers and the like. Now that I am done, I can again spend more time in updating what takes place during the day in our restorations.

In regards to our current projects: We have been refinishing a Winter upright. It has posed some challenges in terms of repairing damage but we finally got all of the affected spots patched with new wood or veneer and have it sanded and stained. I will get some pictures up here shortly. It is finally ready for final finishing coats including sealer, toner and final lacquer coats.

Our other project in the making is a Baldwin Hamilton that we will be transforming from a walnut with brass hardware to a ebony with nickel hardware. This piano is mostly stripped and nearly ready for final sanding and grain filler. Again, pictures will be coming soon.

Weekly Special(s)

Here is the piano of the week... well... three actually.

Starting at
$650

The two blond pianos are Everett studio pianos. The top photo is a George Steck studio. All of these pianos are great starters - meaning they are pretty good as they are. With our standard cleaning, tuning, and regulating these will be $650 each. However, the options are endless. We can refinish, touch up, add a bench, make it blue... wherever you want to go with these pianos, they are ready. A refinished price with a bench to match would be $1999 or so. That is like paying for the refinishing and getting the piano for FREE! However, if you want this finished for Christmas, you need to act super FAST! Please comment, email or call with interest. Thanks all!

Comings and Goings

Just to let you all know, the Baldwin studio that was the piano of the week a couple of weeks ago is sold and delivered. We also delivered the player piano that was refinished. We also delivered a new piano that sold out of our Tooele store (Stowe Family Music). And with all those pianos going out, I decided that our shop was getting too empty - actually it was finally getting comfortable instead of overcrowded. Nevertheless, more came in. I will spotlight them tomorrow as our piano(s) of the week. So after 6 piano moves, I am ready for Thanksgiving!