- Information we have available on the historical brand Mehlin & Sons. We have information on many other piano brands as well, both past and current.
- I have an opportunity to acquire an upright inverted grand piano for free. It indicates Paul G. Mehlin & Sons with the #34358 inside the piano. The case needs some refinishing, there are a couple broken and chipped ivories. Of greater concern to me is the fact that 5 hammers are broken and only 4 are present.
Q: This is a photo of my upright piano that was made by Paul G. Mehlin and Sons. According to family history, it is called an inverted grand and has been in the family since the 1920s.
Hi,I am considering purchasing a 1906 Mehlin & Sons Upright Grand. It needs repairs to 7 hammer shanks and a tuning (not done for a few years). I am told this might cost between $100 to $300 to repair and $90 to $120 to tune. I have a refinishing quote at around $1600. Add to that $100 for transportation and $60 to $75 for an appraisal just to make sure the repair estimate is correct and there is not anything else wrong with it.
The middle pedal doesn't really work either. It is being offered for $500. I am not a concert pianist nor do I ever hope to be one.
Just need it for the kids and for me to tinkle on once in a while for learning songs and for fun.It looks like a nice old piano with some history. I am wondering if anyone has any thoughts on whether it is worth going through all the trouble.Is there a more sensible or cheaper alternative way to go?Thanks in advance for any advice.DeborahPiano & Music Gifts & Accessories (570)Re: 1906 Mehlin & Sons06/04/03 08:24 PM 06/04/03 08:24 PMJoined: May 2001Posts: 7,051. You may be about to spend almost 2700 bucks on a 100 year old upright.For $2700 you can do much much better.Pianos last about as long as humans, and then only if they are taken care of, which is not likely.Most people take about as good care of their pianos as they take of their bodies.Sure, you could give a 100 year old human a skin transplant, but why bother?For that money you can buy a pretty young thingFirst step: buy The Piano Book by Larry Fine.Re: 1906 Mehlin & Sons06/04/03 09:44 PM 06/04/03 09:44 PMJoined: Apr 2003Posts: 309. Is there a more sensible or cheaper alternative way to go?Ummm.yeah.she said drilyDeborah, honey, I don't mean to sound critical, but-you're thinking of spending $1,600 just to refinish a piano that you only spent 500 bucks on in the first place?
In heaven's name, whyyyy?? she exclaimed in astonishment Take it from me, what's important is not how the piano looks but how it sounds.
And if it's so old and beatup that it's going to need $300+ worth of repairs, then believe me, you're better off even spending just that $1,600 on a better-quality used piano.A $500 beatup old upright piano is fine for you and your kids to tinkle on, but a $500 beatup old upright piano that you then invest a further $2,500 on, and mainly for cosmetic reasons, in my opinion would be just-strange.No offense.Either buy the $500 beatup old upright and enjoy it as is (perhaps get it tuned), or shop around for a better use for that $2,500. It looks like a nice old piano with some history. Unfortunately, with pianos, 'history' doesn't count for much.
What counts is what it sounds like. And-there are hundreds of thousands of virtually identical beatup old uprights all over the country, mainly in church Sunday School rooms and in music department practice rooms, and their age and 'history' doesn't count for squat there. Get a piano that works right and sounds nice-don't worry about its 'history', because the painful truth is that it doesn't matter. A piano is not a piece of antique furniture that accrues value merely by being old.
There are nice old pianos that get sent to the landfill because they just can't hold a tune anymore, and it doesn't signify that they may be a hundred years old and full of 'history'. It would cost tens of thousands of dollars to rebuild them, and the sad fact is, with beatup old uprights, nobody cares.
They're not worth it. So out they go.I hope this doesn't come across the pixels like I'm yelling at you, 'cause that's not my intention.See? -Re: 1906 Mehlin & Sons06/04/03 10:28 PM 06/04/03 10:28 PMJoined: Jun 2003Posts: 2. Thank you for all your 'Sensibilities'. I now get that I am being swayed very much by the look of it.
I don't think I will pay more than $300 for it and the cost of tuning it and perhaps repairing the broken keys. I'll get the appraiser confirm that all this won't cost more than $600 or $700 and will give me a few years more on the life of the piano. No point refinishing the outside if the inside is not going to last.Thanks again!! I have been duely chided!!DeborahRe: 1906 Mehlin & Sons06/04/03 11:34 PM 06/04/03 11:34 PMJoined: May 2001Posts: 2,943. Deborah,What people are trying to say here is that this piano is not worth ANY of the trouble (not even the trouble and expense to move it).
Yes, the old ones were beautiful (I had one myself, but it had been maintained over the years).Please consider your money elsewhere. You're in LA. There are lots of pianos here.Kenny's advice still stands for ANYBODY inquiring about a piano: Get 'The Piano Book' by Larry Fine. It's well worth the $20 or less it costs.pennyRe: 1906 Mehlin & Sons06/05/03 12:11 AM 06/05/03 12:11 AMJoined: May 2001Posts: 7,051.
I can truly understand why you would want a beautiful, old upright for looks and playability. There has to be other beautiful, old uprights out there that won't require as much work just to make them playable.
Take your time and put your feelers out there, comb the newspaper. This piano has an awful lot of repair work needed - not worth spending the money in hopes that it will last long enough to enjoy!Good luck!AndreaRe: 1906 Mehlin & Sons06/05/03 09:17 AM 06/05/03 09:17 AMJoined: Apr 2003Posts: 309. What Penny said.Even spending another 600 bucks to get it fixed is too much. It won't 'extend the life of your piano'-it doesn't work like that. If it's such an old beatup piano that it has seven broken keys, it's pretty much at the end of its existence. For pianos at this stage of their career ('beatup old upright'), they usually have other things wrong with them inside, in the 'action', that require expen$ive rebuilds to make right.A piano is very similar to a car.
If you buy an old junker car for $300, does investing a further $600 in fixing it up extend the life of the car? No, it does not. All that 600 bucks does is maybe render the car a little bit more reliable for the immediate future, but the car itself ain't gonna last any longer than it's gonna last. And a car, like a piano, that's being sold at $300 is basically on its last legs.I'd have to wonder how the piano's tone is. Have you tried other, nicer pianos? Do you know what a good piano is supposed to sound like? I'm willing to bet that a old upright with broken keys will sound like your typical clunky, clanky, twangy church-basement piano.
This is not a good nor a desireable sound.Now, if you wanna spend money to buy a clunky, clanky, twangy church-basement piano, then 300 bucks is a reasonable price-as long as you aren't planning on spending any MORE money on it than the bare minimum, which would be $90 (+/-) for tuning. But fixing the broken keys?
Even for only $900-1000, which is what you'd be spending altogether on this 1906 piano for initial price, fixing broken keys, and tuning, (and not including moving expenses), you can get a decent used upright that works right to begin with, and probably has a nicer tone to boot.Go play some other nice pianos, at piano stores and churches and school music departments, and learn what it's supposed to sound like.Re: 1906 Mehlin & Sons06/05/03 09:40 AM 06/05/03 09:40 AMJoined: Feb 2003Posts: 6,416. Hi,Just to follow on to what others said.Mathilde wrote:'Now, if you wanna spend money to buy a clunky, clanky, twangy church-basement piano, then 300 bucks is a reasonable price-as long as you aren't planning on spending any MORE money on it than the bare minimum, which would be $90 (+/-) for tuning.' I would generally agree with this, with one tweak. I wouldn't pay a cent for the piano. People will give you a piano like this just to get it off their hands. I got 1950s (?) Kimball that way. All of the keys worked, the finish was acceptable, and all it needed was a tuning.
So it cost me $150 to move, $100 to tune, and it has worked fine for the four years since with three people playing it.So go back and ask if they'll just give it to you. If they are foolish enough to decline, leave your phone number. They'll probably call you.In fact, if you want a piano that doesn't have a bunch of broken keys, you can put up flyers at churches and the grocery store and ask your friends to help you find one. Good luck.Cindy.
Here is an interesting alternative. On E-Bay there is a very nice English made Broadwood upright for sale. It belonged on the royal Yacht Britannia. It is currently 1500 pounds ($2400 or slightly more) and would cost another $1000 to ship here. All that is only a little more than what you were proposing originaly.
There is a beautiful royal monogram on it and it would be talk of the neighborhood.Perhaps that is a musical pig in a poke, but I bet it is a better piano than what you were thinking of.Keep looking and good luck!Re: 1906 Mehlin & Sons06/05/03 12:42 PM 06/05/03 12:42 PMJoined: Jul 2001Posts: 97. Deborah,The bias of the Forum is getting as much tone for their buck. Sounds like Walmart to me.I own an old piano and suggest there are other things to consider.
History, rarity, appearance are a few. What it does for the 'musical life' of your family is far more important to my mind than shopping success.A new piano will lose half its value immediately, I should add. In good repaired condition, old uprights will retain their value if not too much was spent on them.Choose carefully and enjoy good old instrument.Re: 1906 Mehlin & Sons06/05/03 01:00 PM 06/05/03 01:00 PMJoined: Apr 2003Posts: 309.
Yes, the bias of the Piano World forums is most definitely 'getting the best-sounding piano for your money'. We are all total piano-playing fanatics here. For every member who will tell you, 'Go by what the piano looks like' or 'Go by the piano's history', there are probably 100 members who will tell you, 'Go by what the piano sounds like'.-except for the few people who consider that a piano is merely 'furniture', there just to look good in the living room, or to impress folks, 'Yes, this is the piano that Horowitz once played at Carnegie Hall', no matter if it sounds like crap now.The whole point of a piano is that it's a musical instrument. With other musical instruments, like trumpets and violins and clarinets, other than keeping it clean, what it looks like doesn't matter.
What matters is what it sounds like. The most beautifully constructed and varnished violin in the world ain't worth diddly if it sounds like crap, nor is it worth much just because it happened to belong to Madonna, once.Re: 1906 Mehlin & Sons06/05/03 01:06 PM 06/05/03 01:06 PMJoined: Aug 2001Posts: 11,678.
Originally posted by Paul Spitzer:Deborah,The bias of the Forum is getting as much tone for their buck. Sounds like Walmart to me.I own an old piano and suggest there are other things to consider. History, rarity, appearance are a few. What it does for the 'musical life' of your family is far more important to my mind than shopping success.What an irresponsible post! History and rarity rarely count for anything with pianos, and appearance, just somewhat.
Piano Mehlin Sons Of Anarchy
Conniptions.I've heard all my life about folks having a conniption fit, and while I've seen lots of fits (jealous, rage, etc.,), I don't believe I've actually seen a conniption, except when we talk about old uprights.Downright passionate, ain't it?Bottom line: If you love the looks of an old piano, and only the sound of 52 inches, or more, of piano will turn your crank, start hunting. There is a piano for you out there, somewhere.Look for a piano that still has some life, or for a piano that is well worth rebuilding - something like a K-52 Steinway, a big Knabe, or an Ivers&Pond comes to mind.I think if you find the right candidate, and take a 'pay-for-it-as-you-go' approach, you could easily have something pretty nice musically, and a wonderful furniture addition to any room, for the same price as a new Asian vertical. Originally posted by D Png:Hi,I am considering purchasing a 1906 Mehlin & Sons Upright Grand. It needs repairs to 7 hammer shanks and a tuning (not done for a few years). I am told this might cost between $100 to $300 to repair and $90 to $120 to tune.
I have a refinishing quote at around $1600. Add to that $100 for transportation and $60 to $75 for an appraisal just to make sure the repair estimate is correct and there is not anything else wrong with it. The middle pedal doesn't really work either. It is being offered for $500. I am not a concert pianist nor do I ever hope to be one. Just need it for the kids and for me to tinkle on once in a while for learning songs and for fun.It looks like a nice old piano with some history.
I am wondering if anyone has any thoughts on whether it is worth going through all the trouble.Is there a more sensible or cheaper alternative way to go?Thanks in advance for any advice.Deborahfanfare Looks like a job for the 'Defender of the Landfill Piano”!/fanfareWith all due respect, this Mehlin sounds like a tough one to defend. In the LA area there are any number of Big-o uprights in the sub $1000 price range that do not need nearly this much work. I have seen several with nicely refinished cases and all keys working/holds a tune for $500 or so. This piano is in the Recycler today:ANTIQUE, oak piano, circa 1915, restored, Quartersawn, Waltham, w bench, $500 (818) 348-9812(more) P $500If it is the one I think it is, it recently sold on E Bay for something like $1200. Can't be all that many restored Waltham Tiger Oak uprights in LA.
1915 is the same year, too.If it is, it is a real nice old piano - beautiful case, newer strings and a ton of action work already done. 'Restored' in this case may mean a lot or may mean nothing, but my point is that if your desires run to Big-o upright pianos, there are better choices than the one you are considering.Certainly have a piano tech check out any used piano before you buy it.Good hunting!
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