Age / Value of this piano?

I am trying to find information about an upright (47' tall) Kloman & Nord piano.....Serial # 218399 I know my mother bought it in the very early 1950's but I don't know if she bought it new. How could I establish the value of this piano and was / is it a good one? Was Kloman & Nord purchased or out of business?

Thanks in advance for the help.

Rally

Good luck, Rally. It's rather expensive, but if you get Reblitz's, 'Piano Servicing, Tuning, Rebuilding For The Professional, The Amateur, & The Hobbyist,' there is quite an extensive checklist for evaluating older pianos. Whether you want to spend the money for the text or not, is up to you, but if you are going to restore your mother's piano, this is an indispensable guide.

Cheers,

Frank, 98.1537% of these questions come from people trying to get an estimate for selling the pianos.

I must be very dense. That didn't even occur to me. That's what I get for taking people at face value... :-/ Oh well. The only value that I have found in any old piano, falls into one of three categories:

1. Sentimental Value: Family heirloom, etc. 2. Restoration Project: I love my old Cunningham, simply because I've poured a lot of work and love into it, and watching it come back to life has been very gratifying. 3. A Legitimately Fine Piano: Rare, but they DO exist, and sometimes, we get lucky.

So maybe in the future, when someone writes in and asks about the value of their piano, a better answer might be:

To you, it may be worth a lot. To anyone else, it's probably worth nothing at all.

Cheers,

This is true......I am trying to settle her estate...... The piano is in great shape although it would probably need tuning....... Just trying to find out if it's worth $100 or $2000 or whatever.

Thanks again......

Rally

Are you suggesting the pictures are worthless?

wrote:

And what fraction comes from people who just bought a piano?

No. Only that they are only worth 98.1573% instead of the proverbial thousans words. <G>

The buying is the least painful part. The most painful is getting the end of a broken piano string through your palm. Now THAT'S painful! (Not that I would know from experience or anything...) <G>