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Baby Grande moving question.


AUSSIEKEYS

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hi all

 

been awol for a while due to 6 full months of most days moving my fathers deceased estate...with only 3 weeks to go [yes we were both hoarders and i had 20 vintage cars and parts to move from there also..]

 

today my inherited Yammy baby grande gets moved home [it has in essence been mine for many years...]

 

we have enlisted professional piano only movers who have been recommended to us by many including one fellow piano/synth player who actually owns a furniture removing business.

 

after asking does he move pianos, hoping for a sympathetic removal, he promptly recomended the professionals rather than a general carrier...so I am sure i have a quality removalist.

 

my simple question is should I be letting the piano settle aclimatise for a certain amount of time before hooking in and playing...i will find it hard to hold back but will, but my partner is busting to get it home as she has missed playing real piano for many years [i had the luxury of working at my fathers house for years and using this beloved piano, whenever I wanted]

 

4 hours and it arrives home..I am busting to see if it holds its tune as it has been a piano that rarely goes out of tune...and when it has it was almost not noticable to others.

 

so do I hold off playing for a set time, or do i play softly or ?

 

 

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Play it all you want the second you get it. Just don't TUNE it right away. It will go out of tune in a couple weeks. Leave it untuned for about a month but during that time feel free to play as loud as you want.

Kawai C-60 Grand Piano : Hammond A-100 : Hammond SK2 : Yamaha CP4 : Yamaha Montage 7 : Moog Sub 37

 

My latest album: Funky organ, huge horn section

https://bobbycressey.bandcamp.com/album/cali-native

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thanks man

 

yea I had hoped so and figured it must be cool, because all the pianos moved to concerts are played within hours.

 

yee haa...fun tonight.

 

this piano possibly has a lot of Aussie rock and roll history as it was a traded in piano that was used in our famous Redfern RSL club. [Dad bought it from the infamous or famous Chris Marshall in his heyday before the government chased him...such memories.]

we loved him because we got what we wanted....

 

Redfern RSL...a venue that oft held performances by the greats in rock...I do remember Jerry Lee performed there..and would love to know who performed on this piano.

 

it has stiletto heel marks and scrapes and knocks, and the lid was a mess of scuffs and totally dulled from fingers etc...so much patina i love it

 

dad did a sympathetic rejuvination of the exterior so it looked shiny but still held all its history...

 

i love a piano with history showing in the same way my vintage cars are preferred to have their history showing..not restored masterpieces but living memories of a previous life.

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hee hee

 

they are the noisiest neighbours anyway [part time, scrap metal chasers..ie dropping on and off of scrap from trucks and hotrod reving etc, ]...we have a mutual understanding..we put up with their noise and more..now its their turn...infact when I've had duo practise here, apparently they sit out on their porch to listen..

 

though constant piano playing can be more annoying. hee hee

 

lets see how does chopsticks go again

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It really depends mostly on the change in overall climate. If you're moving it from one part of the same general region to the other, I wouldn't expect there to be too many issues in that respect. However, if you're moving a piano from, for example, Florida (hot and humid) to Maine (cold and dry) then it's gonna go wacky, and will need some time to adjust.

 

Of course, other changes in micro climate will affect it as well, just not nearly as much. Like, if you, generally keep your house temperature significantly warmer or colder than your father did, it will affect the tuning slightly. Also, just the simple act of moving a piano to begin with will affect the tuning, even under the best of care.

 

Long story short, it's going to go out of tune. How badly it does, though, depends on many variables. Best to do what Bobadohshe said and let it sit in its new home a bit, although you might not need to wait as long as a month to tune it. If it was a short local move, then it won't need to adjust much. Seek out a reputable local piano tech and see what he says.

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I would advise to contact a Piano Technician's Guild member and follow his advise and ask him about a humidifier and a de-humidifier which can assist in tuning stability. Humidity plays more of a part in the tuning than any other factor, playing the least. A guild member is a highly trained expert who will know the right thing for you which is how he became a guild member. Hope this is helpful to you. I love Yamaha grands which are brighter than a Steinway as a rule. If it's tuned, regulated and voiced properly you should have a wonderful instrument which will last many years.
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hi guys its arrived 2 hours early [dont forget while reading this we are early afternoon here in Aussie,]

 

they had a cancellation and asked if i was ready...you bet

 

also delivered was my very rare Edison Amberola cylinder player that dad left to me. These are quite rare and in original condition well respected.it comes with 4 drawers filled with cylinders.

 

the removers were great, and I was confident with them. And before they arrived I raced down bunnings to get some what i thought were hard plastic [bakerlight looking] floor protectors, they turned out to be ruberised, ok at a pinch till i could find my genuine bakerlight ones I had somewhere, but low and behold the movers said they had some used grand piano wheel cups, and would i like them...nice blokes, and told me that the wheel screws were no good on one leg that to be careful if moving until you could effect a repair, ok if its not moved.

 

believe it or not the piano is still in tune with itself..

 

when they first put it down it was slightly offtune..

10 minutes later its now intune with itself...on a quick play

but i am guessing it may go in and out with adjustments to temp.

 

Fortunately it is only 20 minutes away so climate is same..but now on a wood floor as opposed to a concrete floor.

 

only thing so far i need to address is D one octave above middle C , this D note is now at half its height and is sustaining without the pedal

 

and the very bottom note was jammed but after playing is sluggish

I am hoping some further inspection will lead me to solve these slight problems...

 

i still cant believe it has returned to being basically intune with itself, sure i cant tell you if its tuned to A440 as my ear is not that perfect [and did dad have it tuned under concert pitch i dont know], man if its sounds ok to me so far there is hope for a good aclimatisation,and if I am wrong its because i cant hear over the ringing of my ears [damn rock bands]...hee hee]

 

i'll see how its tuning goes this arvo.

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