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Hi,

I am looking for a used piano for my 8 year old son. I don't know how to play, but my son has been taking classes for a year, he has a digital keyboard at home and the teacher recommends to start looking for an acoustic piano. So when the family goes for piano shopping my son plays the piano and he is our benchmark.

I came across a Baldwin Hamilton style 245. The piano looked okay from outside. The bottom and the back looked perfect, no cracks on soundboard, the bridges looked good. However, some of the hammers looked wrong to me. Some of the hammers looked not well aligned. Two hammers were complete misaligned. Also about 5 to 10 the keys on the treble side were sank and not producing any sound. I told the seller that the keys were sank and not working and he pressed them very hard and suddenly they started to play. He said that when a piano is not played sometime it happens.

When my son played the piano we didn't like the sound too much. This is in part because the piano is out of tune. However it could be some other problems that I am not familiar with.

The piano is being sold at $300. From what my limited knowledge it seems that it needs regulation to align the hammers? I read regulation is around $500.

The question is. Is still $1000 ($300 + regulation + tuning) a good price to pay for this piano? Or should I just move on and keep searching?

Thank you for the Help.

Below are some pictures:

Two Hammers on the right side are very misaligned
https://photos.app.goo.gl/iJX2shjenteo2tNv5

Hammers on the left side (bass) look funny
https://photos.app.goo.gl/aP5Hrq27kJzeUR5cA


https://photos.app.goo.gl/vfdVm7CbAXEnVR4u8
https://photos.app.goo.gl/9bUVkPj8acgdTHZP7

It looks like the hammer felt on several notes has come unglued from their cores. I would not recommend buying it.

+1

The hammer head felt separation is an indication the piano was exposed to higher levels of humidity for long periods of time. This can be repaired, but if a few have come unglued, more are likely to follow.

Good luck.

Rick

The seller is lying.

Run. Run. I repeat...Run.

Please keep shopping. 1)determine the max budget you want to spend. 2)Find a reputable piano technician that can provide you with knowledgeable help and an inspection before purchase. 3) Download a copy of the Piano Buyer by Larry Fines to give you valuable information on piano buying. 4) Ask a friend who plays piano to help your son figure out what sounds and plays nice. If you don’t have a friend or relative that plays, your son will have to try many pianos to figure out what he wants to learn on and practice on for the next several to many years.

You don’t wanna buy a money pit that your son will grow to detest practicing on because playing the piano sounds lousy and is painful to play advanced repertoire on. Best Wishes.

Thank you everyone for your response. I keep searching

Thank you everyone for your response. I keep searching