This may seem like an unusual question, but I was wondering, after a vintage pre 1880's large Steinway Grand has had its sound board replaced , what is done with the old board? Im sure there must be some very experienced piano technicians who have some stories to share. It occured to me that it seems a shame to destroy somthing like this just because its no longer fit for purpose.
I always thought a coffee table, an obvious choice, albeit a very large one, might be a good start?

There is a farm in the Midwest somewhere…all the sounding boards are put out to pasture and roam freely for the rest of their days trying to “bridge” the gap between their differences. This is hard for them to “pin” down.

Most end up "cracking" under the pressure of this type of lifestyle…it is very stressful for them this unknown freedom after being restricted by the “rim” of success all of their lives…..

Ok serious now…..I have no idea, but someone just called me about this a couple of weeks ago. They wanted an old sound board for their music studio. I didn’t ask what it was for…….he told me he wanted to hang it on the wall??

Toothpicks????

You gave me a brain storm, Dan. Lets say I buy discarded Steinway soundboards, chip them up and send them to an Asian piano factory to make pianos under the Deutschle label. The chips would be used as part of the filler in an AntiPhlegmatic SuperHyteroDiaphramic, guaranteed never to crack (Oh, that's not a crack, it's a feature) soundboard made with genuine Steinway Approved Sitka Spruce! Oh, you can't hear the "Steinway Sound?" Well, it takes a discerning ear, you know... Ah, you can hear it now? You have excellent taste, I see. Did you also see the Emperors’ new clothes?

Ha……I knew this one had the potential to deteriorate quickly……

And what nice clothes they are for the Emperor. Shhhh Jeff you are giving away all of the secrets to making a good Asian piano.

How many years supply of toothpicks would that be Ron? I guess for a 9 footer, more than a few boxes. We could have a new side business developing here…..

Oh those toothpicks are only Yamaha toothpicks….mine are Steinway brand…….. Oh, how very pooh pooh........

I forgot to mention that Deutschle pianos are made in the ancestral tradition of Old World Bavarian potatoe pharming.

To begin this endeavor of Steinway toothpicks, you must first supply every 5 Star restaurant with a free complimentary batch to be prominently displayed and promoted. After some time every person who eats will eventually want only this brand since more 5 Star restaurants will use them than any other toothpick.

Maybe the soundboards should be cut up and sold as "premium" old growth shims for repairs of cracked soundboards.

I cut out the decal and hang it in my wall or give it to my client as a keep sake. The rest gets burned.

Old soundboards become the decking of yachts for the people who replace them.

By providing free toothpicks to buffalo wing eating, uh, "Artists" they would agree to use the toothpicks exclusively....

I like the idea of cutting them up and using them for shims,……….wondering if the wood fibers might be too old for that one.

People replacing their yachts with sounding boards? Buffalo's have wings? Boy I am really getting behind these days…..

I tried that once. I like a shim that is taller than the thickness of the board. Makes it
easier for gluing in. I also press my shims in so I need a surface to push down on.
Mine you I don't do much shimming these days.

The other thing is the time spent to detach the ribs clean up the old wood.

I don't think an old wood shim would be better than a new wood shim. As long as the board and shim are dried all will be fine.
I cut enough shims 10 years ago to last me my entire career.

Wow you guys are in the wrong game, maybe a bit of comedy moonlighting might be useful as a second job. I really enjoyed your post Dan, there were some very heartfelt touching moments there!

Like Rod, if the soundboard decal is still present, (and doesn't have dark scratch marks running through it from previous restringings) then we'll often save it, and present it to the customer..

We also keep several sets of original ribs for each model, from different time periods...