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Hello everyone. New to these forums.

I am in the market for a piano. My wife played quite a bit as a child and wants to start playing again while teaching our daughter (5 years old) to play. I have absolutely zero experience with pianos...

I have been scanning craigslist (I know...probably not the safest bet) and looking for a "deal". I don't have a problem spending real money on a piano in a few years when I know the family will actually use the instrument consistently.

That being said, I came across this ad in my area.
http://denver.craigslist.org/msg/4810768820.html

Baldwin Howard Spinet...$200. Supposedly good shape.

Thoughts?

Am I going about this all wrong?

Thank you so much for your help!

Don't buy a spinet. Just don't. If you can find a fairly good console upright (40" - 44" tall), then that may be a starter acoustic piano. Otherwise, get a decent digital piano, 88-weighted, pedal minimum.

Casio (PX-150) & Yamaha (P-35B or P105) offer the best options at the lower price range. More brands enter as you move up.

Howard was the cheapest and most poorly built product from Baldwin. You can do better.

Thank you so much for the information. Speaking of digital pianos, a friend knows a guy who is moving to Australia and selling his digital piano. I don't have a ton of info yet other then the maker (Williams). I know it is a full keyboard with pedals. From the pic he sent it is free standing. I am trying to get more info as to the model. Zooming in on the pic I think is says Symphony...

Anyway, he is looking to get $500 for it. Might be a better option?

You can do much better than a Williams digital piano too. Most reviews are unfavorable and not recommended is the conclusion.

Thanks so much for all the responses.

I might get an acoustic. It depends on what you want. I never particularly liked the sound of a spinet before myself, but I got one cheap -a Kimball about 15 years back and made some progress on it. The tuning and action are really more important than the tone, for casual playing and practice I think, recording is another matter. There is some merit to wanting a nice piece of furniture as well I think, but for me that is superceded by the sound-

and that's why I bought a Baldwin Hamilton studio upright- a 1980- at the end of September.

At first I was wondering if I had made the right decision- the low cost was an important factor- but then you know it's a gamble. I had also wondered if I should get a weighted digital, although my 76 key Casio has a lot of voices, I decided I missed having an acoustic- and found out I was right.

Not long after though a Casio PX100 digital came up cheap on craigs- by this time I wanted to end any doubts as to which I thought I'd prefer- so I picked that up, with the thought that resale on that item was probably easier than the Baldwin.

The Baldwin had a few issues, and needed tuning. I proceeded cautiously wanting to see what I could resolve and what I couldn't. I replaced the rail felts under the key levers- immediate big difference. Got a tuning wrench and began to try some tuning gingerly- the last thing I wanted was to break strings.


I put up a thread here "Acoustic v Digital- apples and oranges so far."

http://www.pianoworld.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/2341437/2/Digital_Vs._Acoustic_is_apples.html

And was exploring both the acoustic and the digital. Over time, the acoustic became more important and enjoyable- fortunate because it was the most money. I really really started enjoying it again as the action got more tuned in and the notes up to 440 pitch.

There's just something about an acoustic. It's limited and its an extravagance and needs attention, but there's something special about those strings actually ringing and the whole feel of it.

The only thing I didn't like was the time I was spending tweaking it. I;ve been generally self-cursed with wanting to set up all my instruments- did more of that last year than ever before- so I was burned out. But it's mostly behind me no. In fact I;m thinking of selling the PX100 and going back to the Casio wk200 keyboard because it has so many more voices and records better. The digital piano's action is weighted, but falls in between the unweighted Casio wk 225 and the acoustic Baldwin. I've at least given it a try now. (I LOVE the string voice though)

Now I think only a really really good and probably fairly expensive digital might entice me back to digital, and I've never liked spending large dollars on something electronic that works one minute and may not the next. Still the digitals are convenient- luckily I feel fairly secure where I'm at for the immediate future.

anyway- the best recommendation I can make is to be patient and maybe try to spend a little more than you thought- simply because pianos are hard to move and so you are more stuck with what you get- if you're not a strong young man with a big truck I guess! I'm not.

Also try to find the age- look up the serial umbers on line- Newer is generally better- but be sure to look at the pins and strings for the level of corrosion present, and see if any of the pin holes in the soundboard have gaps or cracks around the pins- just simple things like that.

The spinet in the ad has clean looking hammers- maybe average corrosion for an older piano from what I can see

anyway good luck

Deegs23:

This photo illustrates some things that you should be aware of. Note the unevenness of the two hammers in the bass. This shows that the original hammers broke and were lost. Also note the uneven shine on one of the bass strings, which indicates that the string had been replaced. I would recommend avoiding a piano like this, because chances are you can find one that does not have these problems for a similar price.

I took a quick look in the Denver Craigslist ads to see what else was available. There were several that deserve more consideration than the Howard, so there must be a good piano for you if you are patient and careful in your search.

Thanks so much for all the information. My search continues...

My piano has a couple of hammers at the far upper end that look like they have been replaced, but that play fine otherwise. They're painted now to not stand out so.

Others look uneven because some felt is slightly parting in high humidity and heat of Florida. Im planning to eventually re-glue them.

Four bass strings have been broken and spliced up there too- are up to tune and sounding really good. I found a great line on a set of used strings very cheap- otherwise the bass strings run about $20 for new ones.

Unless you plan to spend thousands, you're likely to have some issues. Corroded looking pins and strings would be greater than the repairs already done to mine, which at least had a humidifier rod installed after sale, and a tuning log which dates tunings to at least the mid 90;s. It's a 1980 Baldwin.

For $400 I'm very satisfied with it, especially the way it came up to 440 tuning with no further issues. thank you.

Once I replaced the balance rail and front rail felts- not difficult- the original key-lever-to-action distances were restored. I had wasted time and money with paper key levelling. The rail felts are like tires or an oil change on a car.

They wear unevenly because most pianos are played unevenly in the middle so the felts compress there and cause unlevel keys and "phantom action" problems that aren't any other problem but the felts.

A lot of people here won't even tell you that, but are quick to want you to throw money at someone.

I might go for the spinet. I too looked at the Denver listings- many- twice as many as Jacksonville and an area roughly the same size, and it seems at a little higher price is Denver. Maybe the higher asking prices are keeping sales down, and it's a hard winter there I know,

Convenience I'm sure may be a factor in your busy life, and your daughter may take to it and may not. You don't want a piece of junk, but maybe something you can turn over again later either way. Good fortune.

http://denver.craigslist.org/msg/4812258427.html

Samick

This one looks to be in good shape...might just be polished up for the pic though.

Looks worth investigating further to me, have you found out how old it is and how it was cared for?

More info on the Samick

purchased in 1992. One Owner. Tuned annually until about 2004...not since then.

looks good- very recently posted, and probably wont last long. More money though than your OP was talking about. I would go for it if you want to go higher. A better investment.

I was first going to suggest the Kawai upright for $800, which looks very clean and new. More money though, and the Sammick is probably the better buy and maybe the piano in better shape

In further defense of my own piano, it may have likely been an inept tuner/tech that broke the two hammers that have been replaced ,
and probably and most likely when the bass springs broke up there being tuned and the tuners momentum took the wrench into the hammers.

So this word of caution, to always be aware of this possibility. As an ancient bicycle mechanic, the knowledge of a cable breaking is an experienced possibility, I try to keep the wrench from nearing the hammers, and I use a measured torque, that allows me to feel whether the peg is going to move or not first.

I fondly recall training at this time of year in Colorado Springs, on a track bike even, with a fixed gear, back in '79 and '80. Jacksonville's more conducive to cycling in this season though, I believe.

Have fun! Don't get your nose broken doing it!

the old Kimball spinet
deceased in a flood 2008