Sell us your piano
Do you have a piano that is no longer used and that you want to sell? We are always on the lookout for good quality used upright and grand pianos, whatever the condition, and guarantee to offer the very best possible price for your instrument. We are particularly keen to purchase Yamaha and Kawai pianos but will consider most makes. Fill in the following form for a free, no obligation quote today – you might be surprised by how much your piano is worth! If you get stuck please contact our specialists on (01428) 647593 and we will be delighted to help.
Frequently asked Questions:
1. Do you buy any pianos?
Sometimes certain makes and models aren’t suitable for sale at retail, but we are still delighted to offer our free impartial advice on how best to re-home your piano.
Upright pianos which we, and most other piano dealers, are looking to purchase are what are known as 'under-damped, and over-strung'. This means that the dampers, the felt wedges which stop the strings vibrating, are located under the hammers where they work more efficiently. Over-damped pianos have the dampers positioned above the hammers, which isn't particularly effective, and is a feature of most early or pre-20th century upright pianos.
You can easily see if your piano is over-strung, which means that the strings cross over in the middle. This has huge technical benefits, enabling the maker to fit longer strings into a piano to improve its tonal quality, while also making the instrument significantly more stable. On upright pianos the two systems usually go together - straight strung, over-damped, or over strung, under-damped.
Sadly, straight strung and over damped models, while usually very pretty, we are unable to buy as we cannot guarantee long term reliability.
2. How do I find the serial and model numbers?
On most upright pianos, you will find the serial number just inside the top lid of the piano. This is usually stencilled onto the frame on the right-hand side and is typically between 5 and 7 digits long, depending on the manufacturer.
On a grand piano, the serial number is usually found on the right-hand side, stencilled onto the frame by the tuning pins. This is a little trickier to get to than on an upright, and you might find that you need to take out the music desk to access it.
Some pianos have the serial number in other places so don’t worry if you can’t find it. For example, some Blüthner pianos have the serial number on the decorative soundboard transfer and Bechstein grands sometimes have their serial number carved into the wooden back-frame behind the action.
Steinway pianos have their serial number in a little recess in the frame, between where the strings cross over, just to the left of the middle section of the keyboard. Every part of a Steinway piano has its serial number carved into it, and this is one of the ways you can tell that the Steinway piano is original and made up from genuine parts. Very handy if you can’t make out a faded serial number on the frame!
On most modern pianos, the model number is usually found next to the serial number, so on an upright piano will be just inside the top lid of the piano. On a grand piano, this will be cast into the frame next to the serial number, again on the right-hand side under the music desk.
On some instruments the casework style is the identifying feature; for example, Knight upright pianos have the numbers cast into the frame just inside the bottom door of the instrument by the pedals.
Please feel free to contact us if you get stuck, and usually just a couple of photographs will do if you can’t find it. Providing this information will allow us to ascertain when your piano was made, usually pinpointing to within a window of a couple of years, and your piano’s value is largely dependent on the period of manufacture.