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Original poster

Buying a secondhand piano?

7 replies

npg1 · 29/08/2009 21:36

Hi, there is someone just up the road who is selling a piano for £30, its a Pohlmann piano, I know nothing about pianos! My DD is 6yrs old and wants lessons and I would quite like to learn so was thinking would it be a good purchase?

It needs re tuning also, does anyone know how much this would cost?

Thanks

OP posts:

WebDude · 30/08/2009 16:55

Tuning cost might vary by region - and availability... Might get a better idea if you mention county or city near you.

AMumInScotland · 30/08/2009 17:09

Tuning costs about £50 round us. But if it's an old piano it may actually be garbage and not able to be tuned, or else not hold the tune for very long till you have to get it redone. It might be a bargain, or it might not, it's very hard to tell when you're buying privately and it's not currently in tune. My SIL bought one, and it could not be tuned at all!

ChookKeeper · 30/08/2009 17:37

The first one we bought was £100 and a real bargain (we thought). But when we got someone in to tune it all the strings had been overtightened and it couldn't be tuned - oh and it was full of woodworm .

We didn't make that mistake again and got someone who knew about pianos to check out the next one for us.

WebDude · 30/08/2009 18:29

Sounds like an appointment for a piano tuner to act as the OP's 'expert buyer' to advise whether it is worth getting...

snorkle · 30/08/2009 18:50

Aside from the tuning issue it would be worth getting an expert to look at it first anyway. If it needs restringing that costs £££ (almost certainly far more than it's worth) and if the hammers are very worn (so there's barely any felt left where they strike the keys) it is also very costly to refelt them. So it could not be worth it at any price.

If you call a local tuner you could ask how much he would charge both for tuning and to look it over (he'd have to tune it AFTER it had been moved). If the seller has had it tuned remotely recently then it might be worth asking who did it & contacting them as they might have an opinion as to its tunability and what work might need doing from memory. If it turns out that this one isn't really for you then a local tuner may well know of another that is, or be able to keep an eye out for you.

Mybox · 30/08/2009 18:52

If he's just starting on the piano then £30 sounds great. Will it be delivered to you? Also have the tuner come round asap to get it sorted. If it is awful at least you've not spent lots.

Tangle · 31/08/2009 16:29

Its definitely worth getting an opinion of a piano tuner before you buy it - getting it home won't be trivial (pianos are HEAVY) and you want to find out whether its a non-starter before you take that step.

Getting hold of the current owner's tuner would be a very good first step - if they've had it for a few years and never had it tuned then I'd probably back away. Piano's last a lot better with a bit of TLC.

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