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I do not think the hammers were refelted. They look like they have walnut cores, which would not have been original. They look replaced, and poorly done, but it is hard to tell unless they are lined up properly. It also looks as if they have been filed irregularly.

Spoke at length with my issues and he insisted that everything functionally in good shape but did admit cosmetically the work is not so good. He will at for cost of materials $800.00 install Renner or Abel Action. He will order the correct weight hammers for the piano or per my request. They have a qualified (references and reviews checked) work shop so I trust it will be done correctly
Hammers , flanges & shanks.

Any thoughts on the two manufactures?

You cannot get a "Renner or Abel action" for 800, Unless the parts come out of the bin near the back door behind the factory. This is the typical communication problem between lay people and technicians. You may get hammers for that much, but an action replacement costs thousands. For all we know, those hammers could work perfectly well with a bit of time spent on them. Maybe you are being up-sold? Who knows? we're not there.

they had been IMO, you even can see glue traces on the first one.

as the molding, look original to me. the shape of the felt is the last proof

These photos are not good. With the new digital cameras most have a wide angle lens and this cheats on a lot of the photos.

Unless the camera is right on top of the hammers close up there is no way to capture good shots. Appears like the bass hammers have been cut so they pass by each other; cutting them like that can, at times, distort the shape especially if the felt is softer.

Same goes for the bass string set. That photo is at such an angle it distorts the length of the winding.

A second opinion from photos on this forum are not as beneficial as a second opinion onsite.

The dealer actually said that the hammers and action are fine as it is. I was pressing him to have it redone based on observations made plus the fact I don't want to deal with any issues in the short term. Im sure he's got plenty of profit in the piano anyway so he's only "charging" me an extra 800 bucks to get the piano sold. He has on site techs so the labor is absorbed and leaves him with just the cost of the parts. He guaranteed new Abel bechstein hammers, flange and shank, voiced and regulated, plus shipping and a damp chaser system for 11k.

confirmed no cracks or repairs in soundboard or plates and he is a reputable dealer based on recent sales and reviews.

it is surprising then to see him proposing an action not lining at that point, hammers not in shape, etc. changing shanks plus heads mean re weighting the keys, a somewhat long job in voicing, and on an old Bechstein the heads made by Abel have to be with special felt (extra cost) or the ones made by Renner or Abel for the factory for old models (extra extra cost

I would not buy the piano before listening to it in its final condition (repair done, or current hammers prepped correctly)
Or at last a similar piano repaired the same way by the same techs (techs are paid, you know, a hammer/shank job can take a week if all is done correctly)

So may be you could be better with a rebate and the current hammers , in the end you will need a technician to work on your piano so it should be better to talk with a technician, than with a dealer (unless the dealer himself does the technical job)

too heavy hammers is the most common problem ... some dont care but it may ask too much to the acoustical body. also usual Abel heads are too firm for such pianos. the colour of tone may be hidden by excessive power

Thanks Olek for your very helpful comments. The dealer/technician did not do this work it was done prior to his purchase. They buy pianos in large quantities in Europe and ship to the US. He admitted the work looked bad cosmetically but was just fine. I pushed him to give me deal to make me 100% happy. Once the piano is done I will send another technician to review, test and record.

He said he was going to take off some of the hammers and ship to Abel to they can match best as possible. He is also going to regulate and voice to my liking. I stressed that I don't want a heavier action like modern pianos and would like it light to match closely to older Bechsteins. I like sound of warmth mid and top range but like a powerful bass like Mason & Steinway. I figure I can always do some work once I receive the piano in my living room to fine adjust the sound I'm looking for.
Again thank you and everyone else for valuable feed back.

ALL DONE! Still another 4 weeks or so before I receive

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How does it play ? this looks like a lite version of a hamner set, but yet a little more heavy than the originals. (that where really light) The basses are large , now if the touch is pleasing, nice.

They try to make you happy , for sure. The tail of the hammers seem to be different, but I m unsure .

As we can see, a lot of filing is due in the treble to avoid touching the plate underside. That is why original hammers where so thin there.

I may add : try to obtain the original refelted hammers (that where in walnut) mostly the refelting and age of parts made those unevenesses, but those parts could serve as a model for geometry and weight. For instance the modern shanks often are talller and the knuckle is a mm lower , vs Schwander original shanks, that may add some friction at letoff moment if not corrected.

Thanks for the comments. I will ask for the original hammers to be sent back as well so I can have. The technician at the dealer did say he sent back some of the hammers to Abel to get a match. I also expressed that I wanted to keep the action light with the original mid and treble sound of Bechstein but preferred a stronger bass. I will see how she sounds when it arrives and if needed, can make some voice changing with a local technician

As I see them it is very possible that the bass hammers are touching themselves, and they are probably too heavy.

They can be thinned and lightened with a plane if necessary.

Also, the tails must be tapping on the assist springs, I wonder how they solve that issue ( a saw line in the tails ?)

The original hammers have the tails out of axis, deported to the back of the piano.
Unless it is the picture, the washers are missing under the flange screws

I believe its that one picture, the other one you can see the washers clear.

Yes probably. Gluing and hammer line seem nice (difficult to regulate the hammer line on those actions)

I believe the tech noticed that the flanges are taller a hair (-pencil line on the first flange. with 9mm knuckles probably is not a problem

Pics with flange washers.

Damp chaser installed and ready to ship!

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