I need to stop looking at the piano ads on Craigslist. I saw an ad for this piano at an estate sale and it was just few miles from my home. Checked it out this morning, and I made an offer... the owner accepted.

It is a late 1960's model K. Kawai K48A studio upright in great condition. It is a Seisakusho pro model, what ever that means. It has a very nice, mellow tone and real ivory keys. They need cleaning and polishing, and are just a tad on the yellowish side, but I'll get to that in time.

It belonged to a career church pianist and piano teacher who passed away last year.

Guess I have an obsession that has a hold on me... I need Psychological help!!

Rick

Rick...so you are suffering from "PAS"---Piano Acquisition Sydrome"!!!

Uh-oh. I didn't know they had a name for that problem. I wonder if there is a cure, or you just have to keep getting your fix?

If its anything like "GAS" -- Guitar acquisition syndrome, there apparently is no cure.

Hey Rick,

Admitting it is the first part of recovery, right?

Congrats! I've never seen a Kawai older than 1970.

Wasn't it the Duchess of Windsor who said that you cannot be too thin, too rich or have too many pianos?

It just shows that everything OLD is NEW again! Kawai built this exact cabinet in the BL-51 in the late 80's. These are NICE pianos. CONGRATS!!! So, when does your store open?

I love it! Now, see, WHY can't "they" make those music desks standard these days, on uprights? Not everything "new" is improved!

Mine is 48" but I hate that flip-over music desk!

have fun, Rick!

Rats... That means I'm in trouble. Last count I had 14 various uprights, and one old unknown painted white ugly grand.

Then I have customers pianos that I'm rebuilding. I had to hunt a bigger place.

If there ain't a cure, my wife is in trouble when I'm gone.

Rick, this is going to be an expensive habit of yours. And with your MO you're going to sell it in a few years time at half the price.;)

Don't worry, I do the same thing with guitars, but my guitars are much less costly than pianos.

What a nice looking piano!

Congrats Rickster!

Norbert

BTW, how do you post pictures without directing to another URL? Is there a way to just upload?

That is the first "K KAWAI" decal I have seen on an upright. I thought I have read here that it is the badge used exclusively on the grands.

Definitely like the music desk on this one. Have you had it long enough to compare it to the Hamilton?

ha ha you're a hoot Rickster! But I think you're having fun. Just don't divorce your Yamaha or Baldwin.

Does that have the plastic action?

Good luck and have fun!

Thanks for the comments, All!!!

And rockett88, I'll have to seek out a cure for "PAS"---Piano Acquisition Syndrome" (if there is one)!!!

But when a great deal on a great piano comes along, right up under my nose, it is hard to be strong.

The former pianist who owned the Kawai bought it brand new, according to her son, and she apparently took great care of it. I'm really proud of it! The rich, mellow tone is almost mesmerizing and hypnotizing and it plays like a dream to be an upright. It has a heater bar in it too.

Now I’ll have to decide if I want to sell my 100+ year old Schiller “saloon piano”. I put the Kawai in my living room where I had the old Schiller. Currently I have 4 acoustic pianos (three of which are very nice pianos) and my digital.

Now, if I could just play a piano!!

Rick

Dude you need to stop



As much as I like roomy music desks, the flip-over music desk has a "height" advantage for young players. They don't have to look up as high to read music with those flippy music desks.

There is a mathematical formula to determine the ideal number of pianos (or guitars, or bicycles or whatever) to own. The formula is: n+1, where n = the number of pianos (or whatever) that you already have!

I like that formula.

Rickster's House of Fine Used Pianos - open for business. Rick, it sounds like you're ready to host a piano party and have some music for multiple pianos ready. Your next challenge - get them all in the same room and in perfect tune with each other. Actually, I found a similar Kawai upright piano for my brother and he loves it. Have fun with all your "projects".

So that's why I failed Algebra, I thought it was nx2. Silly me!

Another awesome piano there Rickster, I expect it to show up on youtube shortly

Awesome, Rick!! Looks nice. You do indeed have a house of fine used pianos. Dunno if I should say "keep it up", but that's one fine collection you got there.

Rick that is so funny! I just read the online ads. Not purchase! But you certainly are finding some nice pianos! I noticed more grands are coming up in our local classifieds though and I'm getting excited. Maybe time to get out and test play some of them.

Thanks for all the comments on my new-to-me Kawai!

Pianos are a lot of fun... the recently acquired Kawai has a rich, mellow tone and seems to be suited well for classical music. My Yamaha C7 and the Baldwin 243 are louder and brighter and better suited for jazz, pop, blues and most other types of music that I like.

So, I recon I'll need to learn some classical!!! Hey, I can play most of Fur Elise with some proficiency.

Rick

Rick,you have got your priorities right! Pianos are for enjoyment and it seems that you are loving your new-to-you Kawai. It looks a very interesting and nicely made piano.

All the best,

Robert.

I was just watching a program on TV about a hoarder.

Just a few more pianos and you might qualify to be spotlighted in a future segment.

I've got the piano acquisition syndrome as well. This winter, I've gone from one piano to three. And I keep looking at Craigslist postings as well.

I started out with a Starr 7'11" grand, which is still my main piano. But then I started to want a player piano ... and wound up acquiring a non-player upright (which I am going to get fixed up and enhanced with a modern player system) as well as a roll-player upright.

The extra pianos will come in handy though...the Starr is going to be out of service a couple of weeks being worked on.

Where do all you multi-piano owners keep all these?

I either need a bigger house- or less furniture!
Maybe my kid doesn't really need a bed, after all.......

Rick, you are gathering quite an assortment of pianos. I think it is time you shared them in the form of a party!

piano joy -

Those of us with PAS (piano acquisition syndrome) are inclined to squeeze a piano into any available nook or cranny. Uprights take up less floor space (5' x 2.5') than grands (5' x 5' or larger).

Piano Joy: I have two space-eating hobbies - piano and weaving. I have two uprights and a digital piano in the house, plus two floor looms, two table looms and two spinning wheels - plus lots and lots of yarn and weaving accessories. I have an old upright (it's going to a new home soon...) and a floor loom and table loom stored in my garage. Now I am patiently waiting for my kids to grow up and move out..... I think I should have taken up violin or flute and stayed with knitting.

and here I though that when I got my grand.........

Well, I really only have 3 acoustic pianos in my house. I moved the 100 year old Schiller upright (saloon piano ) out to my garage, which I have recently enclosed.

When I decided I wanted a grand piano, I really didn't have room in my house without rearranging everything in the house. So, I decided to enclose my attached car-port/garage (20X20X10). The enclosure turned out great and it is now my primary music room. The Yamaha C7 fits very nicely in the music room and the Baldwin 243 upright is over in the corner of the music room.

Thing is, I like playing all three of my pianos! But, if I had to choose between the three, you all know what my choice would be!

As far as having a piano party the "Rickster's residence", who knows... stranger things have happened!

Rick

This Kawai has the wood action, right?

I have too many pianos already, let alone four! although, it is great fun anyway. Have fun,Rick!

Yes, Tom, as best I could tell, the Kawai is a late 1960's model (1968, 1969) and would certainly have the all wood action. The serial number is 314358. Someone with a Pierce Piano Atlas might pin-point the age more accurately.

The paino seems to have been well taken care of, in spite of its age. I've come to the conclusion that high quality pianos usually last a long time with regular maintenance; though my experience with pianos is limited.

And though I'm not rich or well off financially, I consider myself very fortunate to have the pianos I have... and to have the Piano World friends that I have!

Rick

Oh you don't even wanna go near violin prices.

that' a given.



yes. +1

Forgive this stupid question but if you have the space and money for multiple pianos, why would you not get the single biggest, best piano that space and money would allow you to buy?

I keep pondering this question, but except for a 2nd piano that's a digital (for transporting to gigs, for silent playing with headphones, etc.), I can't come up with any answers, though I'm sure you've got them. What can y'all tell me?

But then if you have (space for) multiple pianos, then you can have a variety of styles, brands and sound character, rather than one big piano with one character. It is all in the matter of variety and interest, so it seems to me.

Like then Rickster can't have a nice large grand, two contrasting studio uprights and an old saloon sound piano. And variety adds a definite amount of spice!

jivemutha -

What Rotom said. Different periods and brands of piano have different looks and sounds, which can suit different styles of music or décor.

Another reason, as I discovered, has to do with player pianos.

The player piano most people are familiar with is the 88-note, non-expression player. But if you get hard-core about player pianos, there were three competing pneumatic expression player systems - Duo-Art, Welte-Mignon, and Ampico. Each had a different mechanism and different encoding on the piano rolls.

Seriously obsessed collectors of old piano rolls might have four antique player pianos just to cover these competing formats. With the expression systems, they were often in grands!

And then there are modern player systems that take CDs, MIDI, etc. They don't easily coexist with the old pneumatic systems ... so, guess what? Another piano!

A valid question (and not stupid at all).

I can’t say that I have a good answer, other than to reiterate what Rotom and Colin Dunn as said.

My wife tells me I’m like our little 5 year old grandson, Grant. He has always loved to play with a toy in each hand… two at a time, and sometimes three.

Without divulging what I paid for my pianos, (all of which are older models and didn’t break the bank) I would say that I have made very good investments for what they are and I could afford them; and I could probably easily get my money back out of them and then some. All of them are in better shape now than when I got them.

My Yamaha C7 (7’6”) is all the piano I will ever need; I absolutely love it. The two uprights are nice pianos too, and don’t take up too much space. Each piano has its own unique look, tone signature and key touch.

At this particular time in my life, acoustic pianos have become an interest, a hobby, a pastime and a major stress reliever. The purpose of my thread was to share my joy with others here and not to stir up controversy. We can only play one piano at a time. But having more than one is a lot of fun too!

If it is any consolation to you, I also have two pick-up trucks, an El Camino (half car and half truck) and two farm tractors, two lawn mowers and 4 goats.

Rick

I finally got around to making a video of my new-to-me Kawai K48A upright piano. The video turned out to be a little grainy (after converting from MOV to AVI then to WMV) ) and my playing is terrible, but what’s new about that…

Also, the piano sounded a little brighter in the video than it does in real life… kind of embarrassing since I talk about how mellow the piano sounds in the video.

Anyway, I thought you all might enjoy watching it…

My latest piano adventure (1969 model Kawai K48A upright)

Rick

Rick, at first glance at this title thread, I thought to myself " OH MY GOSH, he's bought ANOTHER one SO SOON!'

ha! I know it'll be at least a few months still.......

You know, Piano Joy, I thought about that too, after I posted the video…

Maybe I should have started a new thread; or maybe folks are sick and tired of me, my pianos and my pseudo piano playing!

Rick

Nope.

Oops, didn't mean to imply that at all! I am living vicariously through your PAS,
please...carry on!

Wow, Rick. Congrats on the Kawai! I am also a member of the 3 piano club. Your right about playing different pianos for different music.

BTW, I am jealous of your El Camino!!

Congratulations....it's quite a beauty.

Rick,
Now that you have all those pianos could you give us your feelings about the differences between them, like action, tone, volume, "sweetness". Are there differences in how you feel when you play them?

Aprreciate any thoughts you might have.

Well, there are differences between my three acoustic pianos (and my digital piano ).

The cream of the crop is the Yamaha C7. The tone is bold and rich, and powerful, and yes, a tad bright, but bright where it counts. The action is superb, not too heavy or too light, but lighter than my last grand, which had a medium heavy action. The C7 wins, hands down, as being the best out of the bunch.

The Baldwin 243 is really sweet. The tone is like that typical Baldwin upright tone… I suppose that many pianos of the same make and model do share some similarities, as well as some differences. It is actually pretty loud and could stand some hammer voicing, but as I get older, I like loud! It is definitely fun to play and I can get rough with it when I’m getting down with some oldies rock-n-roll! Yet, it can take it. It holds it tuning well too, especially the way I pound on it.

The newest edition to my family, the Kawai, has a nice tone as well, and retains some if that traditional “Kawai” tone. I suppose it is difficult to alter a piano’s DNA too much (what’s the old saying, “the acorn doesn’t fall too far from the tree”). The bass of the Kawai is better than the Baldwin 243, and better than any upright I’ve owned (except for a 100 year old Conover upright I owned). I’m trying to decide if the hammers on the Kawai have been replaced, or just reshaped and voiced. Either way, it was taken good care of and serviced by a pro. The touch of the Kawai is on the lighter side, but not too light. The video didn’t do the Kawai justice, nor did my poor playing.

In regards to my playing, I figure it’s bound to improve due to the fact that I have more than one piano, and they all demand my attention at some point throughout the week!

If you all think I’m sick or silly or a combination of the two, just keep in mind that I suffer from PAS (piano acquisition syndrome)

Rick

OK, you've motivated me to do the same.
I'm now keeping an eye on the classifieds to see if any great deals come up on an older upright.
It would be good to practice my tuning on.