Hi all. I've done some search engine work but have come up with more questions than answers.

Can anyone shed some light on the history of these Steinway vertical models and how they can be properly identified/differentiated? I now have a few clients with old "Vertegrands" which I believe are also called the Model K, although I have not seen the model number stamped anywhere on the piano.

Can a "Vertegrand" be either a Model K or a Model V? What is the difference?

Also, what year did Steinway discontinue use of the double flange in their vertical actions? Did they ever manufacture a vertegrand without these flanges?

I've tuned three "Vertegrands" over the last six months and have been quite impressed with the bass response and overall quality of sound, even though the parts are original and quite worn in all three pianos. (1912, 1923, 1925) Any insights greatly appreciated.

A K is 51 inches, a V is 49". I think the double flanges were used until the introduction of the 40" upright, which used a Pratt Read action. There was a gap of several years between the last of the early uprights and the 40" models. It is said that there was nobody who remembered making an upright when they designed the 40" model. Pratt Read made the action for the first reintroduced Ks, but then Renner has been used. The V has a long history in Hamburg, and I have never seen Hamburg actions from any period.

I like the V a little better than the K. The shorter action makes it feel very firm. But they are all good pianos, even the 40". The 45" models seem to be cobbled together out of a bit of the 40" and a bit of the larger pianos, and never struck me as great.

Thanks BDB...Here is an older thread I discovered showing a beautifully restored Vertegrand from Rod Verhnjak.

http://www.pianoworld.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/631194.html

Hi ,
I have a Steinway upright as well and its a 1911 model "I".The Piano Book lists the Model "I" reproducing (player) pianos as 55 1/4" tall, manufactured between 1909 and 1914.

The non-player Model "I" was 54 1/4" tall, from 1898 to 1913. It was 54" tall from 1914 to 1923.

I have the player piano model here.

Dan

The Model I sounds like a rare piano.

I'm still wondering, though, if a Vertegrand can be either a model K or V.