Mechanical Sound Check - Acoustic Piano
https://youtube.com/shorts/YInkBnyGj2g
I said:
That’s actually a nice find, especially for free. The brand on the fallboard is Kimball, and they made a lot of very solid home uprights in the mid-20th century. They’re not rare collector pianos like a concert grand, but they’re known for being durable and surprisingly musical if maintained. Getting one free is very common simply because moving a piano costs more than the instrument’s resale value.
What I can see from your photo
Console / spinet-style upright (smaller upright, likely 1960s–1980s).
Cabinet looks in good shape—no obvious structural damage.
The bench cushion is worn, but that’s cosmetic.
The music desk lattice and wood finish suggest a mid-century Kimball console.
The tambourines and books on top tell me it’s probably been sitting in a church or community room, which usually means:
It was played regularly
But not tuned often.
The big question: hammer action
You’re thinking exactly like a pianist should. The three things that matter most are:
Hammer felt wear
Grooves in the felt from strings are normal.
Deep cuts mean it may need hammer filing or replacement.
Action regulation
Sticky keys
Uneven key depth
Slow return
Tuning stability
Depends on pinblock condition.
Your tuner will be able to tell in about 30 seconds if the pinblock is solid.
Why this could be great for you
From what you described in other conversations about soft touch, finger sustain, and acoustic placement, a console like this can be useful because:
They have very direct action feedback
They’re good for quiet dynamic control
You can practice finger sustain instead of pedal, which you’ve been focusing on.
Even if it’s not perfect, it could become your “practice action lab” while the Seaquist House grand stays your performance instrument.
The one risk with free pianos
Sometimes they’re free because they need $500–$2000 of work.
But since your tuner is already coming for the Seaquist grand, that’s perfect. Ask him to check:
Pinblock torque
Hammer wear
Damper timing
Key bushings
He’ll immediately know if it's a keeper or a pass.
One interesting detail I notice
The Kimball consoles often have a slightly brighter tone than many uprights. Based on what you said about the bright piano at the care facility, this one might actually train you well for light-touch playing.
That can translate really well when you go back to the grand.
If you want, I can also show you three quick tests you can do in 60 seconds on site to tell if the action and soundboard are healthy before even calling the tuner. 🎹
I said:
Good instinct being cautious. Moving pianos is where people get hurt, especially with only two people. A Kimball console isn’t the heaviest piano, but it’s still 250–350 lbs, and the weight is awkward because the center of gravity sits high and forward.
A few things will make this much safer for you and the kid helping.
1️⃣ Remove the Bench and Anything Loose
Take off anything that can fall:
Bench
Books
Tambourines
Tissue boxes
Music stand if removable
Even a small shift can throw balance while lifting.
2️⃣ Close and Secure the Lid
Make sure the keyboard lid is shut so keys don't move or break.
If possible:
Tape or strap the lid shut.
A piece of painter’s tape or duct tape works fine temporarily.
3️⃣ Lift From the Bottom Frame, Not the Top
Never lift from:
The music rack
The top board
Decorative trim
Instead grab under the main body frame, near the legs.
Think of it like lifting a heavy dresser.
4️⃣ Tilt First, Then Lift
The safest two-person method:
Tilt the piano slightly toward one person.
Slide hands under the bottom frame.
Lift together on a count.
Do not deadlift it straight from the floor.
5️⃣ Pickup Truck Loading Trick (Very Helpful)
If the truck bed is high, use the tailgate pivot method:
Lift the piano onto the tailgate edge first.
Rest the weight there.
Then push/slide it into the bed.
This saves a huge amount of lifting strain.
A moving blanket or cardboard helps it slide.
6️⃣ Put It Against the Front of the Truck Bed
Place it:
Back side against the cab
Keys facing the rear
Then strap it.
That way braking doesn’t slam the action forward.
7️⃣ Quick Soundboard Check Before Lifting
Before you move it, open the top lid and look inside.
Things to look for:
Good:
Long thin cracks (normal)
Solid ribs attached to board
Bad:
Large separated cracks
Loose ribs
Mold or water damage
Also press a few low bass notes hard.
If you hear buzzing or rattling, that can indicate board separation.
One More Honest Thought
Since this is free, don’t be afraid to walk away if:
Keys stick badly
Big soundboard damage
Pinblock loose (tuner will confirm later)
Your back is worth more than a piano.
Given everything you've been doing — the Seaquist grand, the care facility piano practice, your touch control work — even a modest upright like this could become a great mechanical training instrument.
But only if it’s structurally healthy.
If you want, I can also show you a 15-second trick piano movers use to estimate weight balance before lifting. It’s surprisingly useful when you only have two people.
I said:
That actually works in your favor. If the tuner is already scheduled for another job, you can just have him look at the Kimball while he’s there and give you a quick verdict. Tuners do that all the time.
Since you're picking it up before he arrives, just focus on the structural basics so you don't haul a dead instrument.
Here are the 3 fastest checks you can do in under a minute when you see it.
1️⃣ Soundboard glance (10 seconds)
Open the top lid.
Look for:
Acceptable
Hairline cracks
Slight separation lines
Walk away
Big open cracks you can fit a fingernail into
Ribs visibly separating from the board
Warping or mold
Most old uprights have small cracks — that's normal.
2️⃣ Key action test (20 seconds)
Play a quick run from low to high.
Watch for:
Bad signs:
Keys staying down
Delayed return
Loud clacking wood sounds
A few uneven keys is normal. Entire sections sticking is not.
3️⃣ Bass thump test (10 seconds)
Hit a few low bass notes hard.
Listen for:
Buzzing
metal rattling
vibrating wood
That usually means loose soundboard ribs or bridges.
About the lift with just two people
Kimball consoles usually weigh around 300 lbs, but the weight is manageable because they’re compact.
The key trick:
Lift → rest on tailgate → slide in
Don’t try to lift it straight into the truck.
One more small thing I noticed in your photo
That Kimball cabinet style is usually from the 1970s–1980s, which means:
It likely has a full wooden action, not plastic.
Hammers are usually decent quality.
That’s good news for the touch control work you've been doing.
If you want, when you get there you can also send me one picture of the inside (top lid open) and I can help you judge the soundboard before you lift it. That might save your back if something looks off. 🎹💪
I said:
Got it — so Sunday pickup first, tuner months later. 👍
That just means your goal Sunday is “Is this structurally worth hauling?”, not “Is it a perfect piano.”
A Kimball console like that is usually safe to grab for free, but there are a few quick checks that really matter since you won’t have a technician there.
The 60-Second “Worth Loading?” Check
1️⃣ Play every key once
Just run your hand across the keyboard.
Acceptable:
A few notes slightly out of tune
One or two sluggish keys
Bad sign:
Many keys not sounding
Keys stuck down
Entire sections silent
If half the keyboard doesn’t work, the action may be damaged.
2️⃣ Pedal test
Press each pedal.
They should:
Move smoothly
Change the sound
If pedals feel loose or dead, linkage could be broken (fixable but annoying).
3️⃣ Soundboard glance
Open the top lid and look inside.
Normal:
Small cracks in the board
Walk away if you see:
Large open splits
Wood ribs hanging loose
Heavy mold or water damage
Small cracks are common and usually harmless.
Loading it with two people
You and a high school kid can move a console upright if you do it smart.
Best method:
1️⃣ Lift the front slightly
2️⃣ Slide it to the tailgate edge
3️⃣ Rest the weight on the tailgate
4️⃣ Push it into the truck
So you're not dead-lifting the full weight.
Weight estimate:
250–300 lbs
Manageable with two people if balanced.
Important balance tip
Pianos are top-heavy.
When carrying:
Keep it tilted slightly toward you
Move slow and steady
Count your lift “1-2-3” together
One encouraging thing
Kimball built a lot of durable consoles in the U.S. through the 60s–80s. Many of them survive just fine after decades.
Even if it ends up:
Not concert quality
A little bright
Slightly worn
…it can still be a perfect practice piano while you're working with the Seaquist House grand.
If you want, I can also show you one visual clue that instantly tells you if a free upright piano is junk before you even play it.
Piano movers look for it first thing. It saves a lot of wasted lifting. 🎹💪
I said:
Alright — here’s the one thing piano movers and technicians look at immediately when deciding if a free upright piano is worth moving.
The Tuning Pin Test
Open the top lid and look at the metal plate where all the tuning pins are (the rows of steel pins the strings wrap around).
You’ll see hundreds of pins sticking through the plate.
What you want to see
Pins perfectly vertical
Pins evenly spaced
Plate clean and stable
This means the pinblock is likely still tight, which means the piano can probably hold a tuning.
Walk away if you see this
Pins leaning or crooked
Pins that look like they’ve been hammered way down
Cracks in the wood around the pin area
Rust everywhere
If the pinblock is loose, the piano cannot stay in tune, and fixing that is usually more expensive than the piano is worth.
Second fast clue (10 seconds)
Play the lowest bass notes hard.
If you hear:
Metal buzz
rattling wood
vibrations that shouldn’t be there
That can indicate loose soundboard ribs or bridge problems.
One more practical loading tip
When you lift it with the kid helping:
Stand it against the truck bed and pivot it in.
Think of it like loading a refrigerator, not lifting a weight.
The trick is:
Lift → rest → slide
Never carry the full weight longer than necessary.
Realistically
Since it's a Kimball console, the odds are actually pretty good that:
The structure is fine
It just hasn't been tuned in years
A lot of these get given away simply because moving costs $300–$500, which is more than people think the piano is worth.
So free pianos often aren’t bad — just inconvenient.
One last thing I'm curious about from your picture:
Those tambourines stacked on top and the books make me suspect this may have been sitting in a church or community music room in Junction.
If that's the case, it might have been played regularly, which is actually better for the action than a piano sitting untouched for decades.
When you open the lid Sunday, if you want, you can also check one tiny felt part that tells you instantly how worn the action is.
Technicians look at it first because it reveals 20 years of playing history in one glance. 🎹
I said:
That’s a very reasonable assumption. Church pianos are often structurally fine but simply out of tune, because many small churches stop maintaining them once a regular pianist isn’t there.
A few things that work in your favor if it is from a church:
They usually stay indoors in climate-controlled rooms.
They tend to be played occasionally, which keeps the action from freezing up.
They’re rarely moved, which means the soundboard and pinblock stay stable.
The fact that you noticed the Bible study books behind it is actually a good contextual clue. Instruments sitting in fellowship halls or classrooms are often just retired from regular use, not damaged.
Your plan is solid:
Look inside quickly (top lid).
Play through the keyboard.
If it sounds structurally okay—even if wildly out of tune—it’s probably worth taking.
Out-of-tune doesn’t matter right now since your tuner won’t be coming for months anyway.
One practical thing for Sunday
Bring a couple simple items if you can:
Moving blanket or old comforter
Ratchet straps or rope
Work gloves
In a pickup, put the back of the piano against the cab and strap it so it can’t tip.
If everything checks out
Even if it’s not a concert instrument, it could become a useful practice piano while the Seaquist House grand remains the main instrument. A lot of players actually like having a separate upright to work touch and articulation.
Hope the pickup goes smoothly Sunday. A free instrument that just needs tuning is always a nice score. 🎹
--------------------
Redundant waste of energy, and I know how to move shit.
Kimball is actually a really good brand of Piano, after doing some research on it.
I said:
Nice — the two most important things checked out:
✅ Soundboard intact
✅ Piano survived the move
Those are the big structural hurdles. Everything else you described is very typical for a piano that hasn't been serviced in a long time.
What your symptoms usually mean
Very out of tune
Normal if it hasn’t been tuned in years.
It may take 2–3 tuning passes over time to stabilize.
Keys sticking
Most common causes:
Humidity swelling in key bushings
Action centers tightening (felt + wood aging)
Keys slightly misaligned from being moved
These are routine technician fixes.
Mute notes
Usually one of these:
Hammer not striking the string properly
Damper stuck against the string
Hammer misaligned between strings
Occasionally a broken hammer shank, but that’s less common
Again, all normal regulation work.
What the tuner will probably do
When he comes months from now, the visit will likely include:
Pitch raise (if the piano is very flat)
Full tuning
Basic action regulation
Freeing stuck keys
Minor lubrication / easing of centers
Kimball consoles are mechanically straightforward, so techs usually fix these issues fairly quickly.
What you should do right now
Just a few simple things:
1. Let it settle
You moved it. The wood needs a few weeks to acclimate.
2. Don't force sticky keys
Tap them lightly but don’t push hard.
3. Play it anyway
Even out of tune, playing helps the action wake up after years of sitting.
One encouraging thing
If:
the soundboard is good
the pinblock holds
and the action isn't broken
then you basically rescued a perfectly usable practice piano.
Many good uprights start exactly like this when they’re revived.
Also… respect
You and the high school kid got a 300-pound instrument into a house with a pickup truck. That’s no small feat. 💪
When you get a chance, I’m curious about one thing:
How does the tone feel?
Even out of tune — does it sound bright, warm, or thin?
Kimballs have a recognizable voice, and that can tell a lot about how this one might behave once it’s tuned. 🎹
I said:
Ah — that explains it. That’s actually the best possible way to move one of those. A small forklift removes most of the risk that usually happens when people try to muscle pianos down ramps or tailgates.
So the piano likely experienced very little shock during unloading, which is good for:
the soundboard
the pinblock
the action alignment
Given what you reported earlier — no soundboard damage and only sticking or mute keys — it really sounds like a typical “sat for years” piano rather than a damaged one.
What probably happened over time is simple aging of the action:
Why keys stick after sitting
Wood and felt slowly change when a piano isn't played.
Common causes:
• Key bushings swell slightly
• Hammer center pins tighten
• Action parts shift slightly out of alignment
A technician fixes these by:
easing the bushings
repinning centers
regulating the action
All routine work.
Why some notes are mute
Usually the hammer is:
misaligned between the strings
not reaching the string fully
or the jack is not resetting correctly
Again, standard regulation.
The good sign you already reported
The problem keys are scattered across octaves.
That usually means general action stiffness, not structural failure.
If the damage were serious you'd see entire sections dead, which you didn’t.
What might improve just by playing it
Over the next few weeks you might notice:
some sticky keys free themselves
tone opens up slightly
action becomes more responsive
Simply because the mechanism is moving again.
One small thing you might notice
Since it came from Junction, the climate there is usually drier than many houses. Once it sits in your home environment, some of the wood and felt will rebalance humidity-wise.
That alone sometimes frees a few sluggish keys.
Honestly, rescuing a solid upright with a good soundboard is the hard part. Everything else is maintenance work.
And now you’ve got:
the Seaquist House grand as the main instrument
and a practice upright you can experiment on without worrying about it.
That’s actually a great combination for a pianist.
When you finally pressed the keys the first time, what was your first impression of the tone, even out of tune?
Kimballs usually lean either bright gospel/church tone or surprisingly warm, and I’m curious which direction this one goes. 🎹
I said:
That’s actually very typical for a Kimball console, especially the church-type ones from the 60s–80s. They were often designed to be bright and projecting so they could cut through:
congregational singing
small rooms with carpet and people
upright placement against walls
So what you’re hearing is probably the native voice of the instrument, not just the bad tuning.
Why it sounds extra bright right now
A few things amplify brightness when a piano hasn’t been serviced:
Hard hammer felt
Years of compression makes the felt stiff.
Hard felt = sharper attack.
No voicing work
Technicians sometimes needle the hammer felt to soften tone.
Bad tuning exaggerates high partials
When strings aren’t aligned, the upper harmonics clash and sound harsh.
Once the tuner works on it, you may notice:
less metallic edge
more body in the tone
better blending between strings.
Bright uprights have one advantage
They’re actually excellent for training finger control, which lines up with what you’ve been doing lately.
Bright pianos force you to:
play lighter touch
control attack velocity
shape phrases without hiding behind sustain pedal.
That’s exactly the kind of control you were describing when you were playing at the care facility and placing sound rather than pushing volume.
The interesting part
When you go back to the Seaquist House grand, the grand will probably feel:
much rounder
more forgiving
easier to shape tone.
Practicing on a bright upright often makes the grand feel like driving a luxury car after practicing on a manual truck.
One thing to watch for
If the brightness is really sharp or metallic, the technician might:
lightly voice the hammers
slightly reshape hammer grooves
That can mellow the tone without losing clarity.
But some people actually like the bright Kimball sound once it’s tuned properly.
Honestly, the fact that you reported:
solid soundboard
working action overall
bright but responsive tone
means you probably just rescued a perfectly usable upright.
Free pianos that only need regulation and tuning are actually a pretty good score.
And now you’ve got something you can play hard without worrying about the grand.
I’m curious about one more thing now that it's in the house:
When you press a key very softly, does the hammer still strike cleanly, or does it sometimes fail to sound until you press harder? 🎹
I said:
That’s a very real physical limitation of many console and spinet uprights, and you’re not imagining it at all. Players with larger hands notice it immediately.
What you’re running into is the key slip / fallboard geometry.
On many compact uprights like Kimball consoles:
The fallboard sits close behind the black keys
The key slip (front wood rail) is shallow
The black keys are shorter
This combination reduces the space where your fingers pass during runs. When your fingers reach back between the black keys, the back rail wood stops the hand earlier than on a grand.
Why grands feel so different
On a grand piano:
Black keys are longer
The key well is deeper
Your fingers can travel farther inward between the keys
That gives large hands more room for:
fast scalar runs
chromatic passages
deep finger placement.
Console uprights were designed for
Historically these were built for:
home players
children learning
church accompaniment
So the priority was compact furniture size, not large-hand ergonomics.
The good news
You can still use the piano effectively by adjusting where you play on the key.
For fast passages on tight uprights, many pianists:
• play slightly closer to the front of the keys
• use shallower finger insertion between black keys
• rely more on horizontal finger motion instead of deep key entry.
It’s a slightly different technique.
There’s actually a hidden benefit
Practicing runs on a tight upright key well can sharpen precision. When you return to a grand (like the Seaquist House instrument), the extra space often makes everything feel much freer and faster.
Many conservatory teachers intentionally have students practice on less forgiving uprights for that reason.
About the notes requiring harder depression
That’s almost certainly action regulation:
jack not resetting properly
hammer let-off misadjusted
sluggish center pins
Those are routine technician adjustments.
Nothing you described suggests structural damage, which is the only thing that would have been a dealbreaker.
Overall assessment from what you've described
You ended up with:
structurally sound instrument
bright voice (typical Kimball)
action that needs servicing
tight key well geometry.
In other words: a normal console upright that hasn’t been maintained in years.
That’s actually exactly what most rescued pianos look like before their first technician visit.
One thing I’m curious about now that it’s inside your house:
When you press the right pedal, does it noticeably lift all the dampers, or does it feel weak or partial? 🎹
I said:
Thanks for the photo — that helps a lot. What you're seeing is actually very typical for a piano that has been sitting unused, and nothing in that picture jumps out as catastrophic.
A few observations from what I can see:
What looks normal
The hammer line and shanks look intact.
I don't see any obvious broken hammer shanks.
The action stack appears straight, not twisted from the move.
The damper wires appear aligned.
Structurally, it looks like a healthy upright action.
Why those upper keys are sticking
Upper-octave sticking is extremely common because those keys are:
played less often
lighter hammer mass
more sensitive to tight center pins or swollen bushings
The two most likely causes are:
1️⃣ Tight hammer center pins
Those are the small pivot joints where the hammer rotates.
After years of sitting, the felt around the pin tightens slightly.
Result:
hammer moves slowly
key feels stuck or delayed
Technicians usually fix this by easing or repinning the center.
2️⃣ Key bushings swelling
Under the keys are felt bushings around guide pins.
Humidity changes can make them grip the pins too tightly.
Result:
key doesn't return
key feels sticky
Technicians usually:
ease the bushings
sometimes lubricate or rebush.
Why it's mostly the upper octave
Exactly what you're seeing:
Those keys are rarely played
Mechanism stiffens there first
Once you start playing the piano regularly, some of those parts may loosen slightly on their own.
Good signs in your photo
These are the things I specifically looked for:
✔ No broken hammer shanks
✔ No missing hammer heads
✔ No damper felt collapse
✔ No obvious action misalignment
✔ Springs appear present
Those would have been the expensive problems.
What the technician will likely do
When the tuner eventually services it, they'll probably:
Free hammer centers
Ease key bushings
Regulate the action
Do a pitch raise + tuning
None of that is unusual for an older upright.
One small thing you can do now
Without forcing anything:
Sit and play the upper octave gently for a few minutes a day.
Just moving the mechanism can sometimes:
loosen centers slightly
free up sluggish parts.
Just never force a key down.
Interesting observation
From the photo, this looks like a standard upright action, not a spinet drop action.
That’s good news because upright actions are much easier for technicians to regulate and repair.
Honestly, from what you've described and shown, this piano looks like a pretty typical “rescued church upright” that just hasn't had service in years.
The important parts — soundboard, action structure, dampers, plate — all appear intact.
One thing I’m curious about from your earlier comment:
When you play softly, do the hammers move normally, or do some of them barely move until the key is pressed harder? That detail helps pinpoint exactly which pivot points are tight.
I said:
Yes — that symptom fits very cleanly with tight action centers, and you’re right: that’s exactly the kind of thing a tuner/technician fixes routinely.
When a hammer barely moves until the key is pressed harder, what’s usually happening is:
Tight hammer center pins
Each hammer rotates on a tiny steel pin through felt bushings. Over years of sitting:
the felt compresses
humidity changes tighten the fit
friction increases
So the hammer resists movement until enough force overcomes the friction.
Once the tech services it, they typically:
ease the center (tiny tool to free the felt)
orrepin it with a slightly smaller pin if needed.
After that the hammer will respond even to very light key pressure again.
Why it’s scattered across octaves
That also makes sense. Centers tighten randomly, depending on:
which notes were played more
humidity patterns
felt aging.
So you end up with individual stubborn notes instead of whole sections failing.
The good part
Nothing you’ve described indicates:
broken action parts
loose bridges
cracked plate
collapsed soundboard
Those would be the expensive issues.
What you’re seeing is typical dormant-action behavior.
Something that may help slightly before the tech arrives
Just playing it regularly (gently) helps wake up the mechanism.
Movement can gradually:
loosen tight centers
reseat parts
improve repetition slightly.
Think of it like working joints that haven’t moved in years.
About the bright tone you mentioned earlier
Once it’s:
properly tuned
regulated
possibly lightly voiced
that brightness will likely become clarity instead of harshness.
Kimball uprights often become pleasantly clear but not shrill after service.
Honestly, the way this story unfolded — free church piano, good soundboard, stiff action — is almost the classic “rescue upright” scenario.
And now you’ve got:
the Seaquist House grand for full expressive playing
a bright upright trainer that forces precision.
That combination actually develops very strong technique.
One thing I’m curious about now that you've had your hands on it a bit:
When you play chords in the middle register, does the tone feel thin and metallic, or does it still have some body underneath the brightness? That tells a lot about the bridge and soundboard coupling. 🎹
I said:
That description actually fits exactly what I’d expect from a long-idle Kimball console upright.
Nothing you’ve described suggests a serious structural problem. It sounds like a regulation + tuning case, not a rebuild.
Let’s break down the three things you noticed.
Thin / metallic tone (but with body)
That combination usually comes from three correctable conditions:
1. Severely out of tune
When the three strings per note drift apart, the overtones fight each other and you hear a metallic shimmer.
Once tuned:
the tone fattens
the metallic edge drops.
2. Hardened hammer felt
Old hammers compress and get hard.
Result:
sharp attack
bright / metallic tone.
A technician can soften them by voicing (needling).
That alone can transform the sound.
3. Uneven hammer striking
If the action regulation is off:
some hammers hit harder
some strike slightly off-center
strings vibrate unevenly
That produces thinness and uneven tone.
Again, regulation fixes that.
Uneven key height
This is extremely common in upright pianos that haven't been serviced.
Usually caused by:
compressed key punchings (felt washers)
slight action settling
previous minor adjustments
Technicians simply:
add or remove paper/felt punchings
level the keys.
It’s one of the simplest adjustments in piano service.
The action stiffness you showed earlier
Your earlier photo of the action showed no broken parts, which is the important part.
Those sluggish hammers will almost certainly be:
tight center pins
sluggish jack movement
Both are routine service items.
The good news about the tone
You said:
it has some body
That is actually the critical sign.
If the soundboard and bridges are healthy, there will always be core resonance under the brightness.
A piano with real structural problems sounds:
hollow
dead
papery.
You didn’t describe that.
What it will probably become after service
Based on everything you've reported, the piano will likely end up with:
bright but clear tone
much smoother action
even key level
reliable response to soft playing.
Which actually makes it a good practice instrument.
Bright uprights tend to force clean articulation and controlled touch, which transfers well when you go back to the Seaquist House grand.
The other thing I noticed in your photo
The cabinet and keybed look straight, which means the move didn’t twist the frame or action stack. That’s important — moving damage usually shows up as crooked key lines.
Your keyboard just looks out of regulation, not warped.
Honestly, for a free church piano, you ended up with a pretty typical situation:
structurally healthy
long overdue for service.
Those are the best kinds of rescued uprights.
One thing I’m curious about now that you’ve played it a bit more:
When you hold a bass note with the pedal, does the sound linger nicely, or does it die off quickly?
That tells a lot about how well the soundboard crown and bridge coupling are still working. 🎹
I said:
That’s actually the best acoustic sign you could report.
If the bass notes sustain with a long, smooth decay, it strongly suggests three important structural things are still healthy:
1️⃣ Soundboard crown is intact
The slight arch in the soundboard is what allows energy from the strings to radiate efficiently. Good sustain means the board is still doing its job.
2️⃣ Bridge coupling is good
The bridge transfers vibration from the strings to the soundboard. If the bridge were loose or cracked, bass notes would die quickly.
3️⃣ String energy isn’t being damped by structural problems
Loose ribs, board separation, or plate issues usually kill sustain. You didn’t report any of that.
So what you're hearing — body with thin metallic edge — is almost certainly just the combination of:
bad tuning
hardened hammers
uneven regulation.
All of that is surface-level mechanical work, not structural repair.
The overall picture of the piano now
From everything you've observed:
✔ Soundboard good
✔ Sustain good
✔ Plate intact
✔ Dampers working
✔ Action complete
✔ Cabinet straight
Issues:
Out of tune
Tight hammer centers
Uneven keys
Hard hammer felt
That’s basically the standard service list for an old upright.
The brightness will probably change the most
Once the tuner:
tunes the unisons
aligns hammer strike
possibly voices the hammers
you’ll likely hear more roundness in the middle register.
Kimball uprights often end up clear and bright but not harsh after regulation.
One interesting thing you might notice later
After the first proper tuning, the piano may drift again within a few weeks.
That’s normal if it has been sitting a long time. The strings and pinblock need time to re-stabilize under tension.
Technicians usually call this:
pitch raise → settle → tuning.
The funny part about piano rescues
What you just described is exactly how a lot of good practice pianos are found:
Church → sits unused → given away → revived.
And now you have:
Seaquist House grand → expressive instrument
Kimball upright → mechanical training instrument.
That’s actually a very productive setup for a pianist.
One last thing I’m curious about now that you’ve played it a while:
When you play fast runs, do the keys reset fast enough, or do some feel sluggish on repetition?
That will tell us if the repetition springs and jacks also need adjustment (which is also routine). 🎹
I said:
Understood 👍 Sounds like you’ve already done the important triage and confirmed it’s structurally healthy, and the rest is routine service work for when the technician eventually comes.
A damper that stays lifted even without pedal is usually just:
damper wire slightly out of alignment
damper felt caught or stiff
damper lever not fully returning
Exactly the kind of 5-minute adjustment a piano tech handles during regulation.
So the final snapshot of the instrument right now is basically:
Solid soundboard and sustain
Bright tone with underlying body
Action stiff from long dormancy
Uneven key leveling
One stray damper issue
Which is pretty much textbook “church piano that hasn’t been serviced in years.”
And you already got it inside safely, which is usually the hardest part of rescuing one of these.
No problem at all closing the piano topic here. If you want to pivot back to anything else — your field work, the acoustic experiments, cooking chemistry, or something entirely different — just say the word.
I said:
You’re looking at it correctly, and the photos help a lot. I’ll go through the three things you’re thinking about changing, because some are harmless and some you’ll want to approach carefully.
1️⃣ Removing the front panel (the face board)
That’s completely normal.
On upright pianos the upper and lower front panels are meant to be removable. Many technicians actually work and tune with them off.
Benefits:
More hand room
Better sound projection
Easier action access
So if you leave the upper panel off, that’s totally fine. Nothing structural depends on it.
2️⃣ The wood piece behind the keys (the key slip / fallboard stop)
That piece you’re pointing at is part of the keybed trim assembly.
Important distinction:
Some pieces are cosmetic
Some keep the keyboard aligned
From your photo it looks like the removable key slip, which can be removed without hurting the piano.
However, before removing it permanently:
Check that it is not holding the keyframe down.
Usually it isn’t, but occasionally screws pass through it.
If it is just a decorative lip, removing it will give your fingers another ½–¾ inch of clearance, which would help your long fingers.
Many pianists with large hands actually prefer uprights with that piece removed.
3️⃣ The hammer grooves
What you’re seeing is very normal for an older piano.
Those grooves happen because:
each hammer strikes two or three strings
the strings slowly cut grooves into the felt.
Technicians usually deal with this by:
hammer filing
They reshape the hammer surface to remove the grooves.
Typical groove depth before filing:
1–3 mm common
deeper on heavily used church pianos.
Your description of deep grooves suggests the piano has simply been played a lot, which actually confirms the story about the church using it for decades.
The good news:
the hammers themselves do not look collapsed
the shanks look straight
the hammer line is even.
That means they are very likely salvageable by filing.
Replacing all hammers would be expensive, but filing + voicing is routine.
One interesting thing from your photos
The action is a full upright action, not a spinet drop action.
That’s good because:
it’s far easier to service
parts are standard
regulation is straightforward.
Technicians prefer these.
About the age estimate
If the church said 80 years, that may actually be close.
Kimball made upright pianos from the late 1800s through the late 20th century.
Your cabinet style and action layout look roughly 1940s–1960s, which lines up with that timeline.
One thing I would not remove
Do not remove anything attached to the keyframe or action rails.
But cosmetic trim and the removable panels are safe.
Something else you may notice soon
Because the hammers are grooved and hardened, the piano is probably producing that thin metallic brightness you described earlier.
After the technician:
files the hammers
voices the felt
regulates the action
tunes the unisons
the tone will likely become much rounder and more balanced.
My honest impression from the photos
You didn’t just pick up junk.
You picked up a well-used but structurally healthy upright that simply hasn’t been serviced in years.
That’s exactly the kind of piano technicians enjoy reviving.
One thing I’m curious about now that I can see the action clearly:
When you press a key very slowly, do the hammers sometimes hesitate halfway up, or do they move smoothly until they hit the string?
That detail tells us whether the tightness is mainly in the hammer centers or further down in the wippen/jack assembly. 🎹
I said:
That lines up with what we were already seeing. Hesitation mid-travel usually means friction somewhere in the action pivots, not anything broken.
On a full upright action like this Kimball uses, the usual culprits are:
Where the hesitation usually happens
Hammer center pins
The pivot where the hammer swings.
Felt bushings tighten with age and humidity changes.
Causes the hammer to resist motion until extra force is applied.
Wippen / jack centers
These are the levers under the hammer that push it upward.
If those centers tighten, the hammer can pause halfway up.
Jack reset friction
Sometimes the jack doesn’t slip smoothly off the hammer butt.
All of those are routine regulation work. A tech typically:
tests each center
eases tight ones
sometimes replaces the tiny center pins.
Once that’s done, the action becomes much lighter and smoother.
About the grooves in the hammers
What you showed in the photo is exactly what decades of church use produces.
Deep grooves happen because:
each hammer strikes 2–3 strings
steel strings slowly compress the felt.
A technician will normally:
File the hammer surface to remove grooves
Re-shape the hammer crown
Voice the felt so the tone softens.
That process alone can dramatically reduce the metallic edge you described earlier.
Your idea about removing the front panel
Leaving the upper panel off is totally fine.
A lot of people actually prefer it because:
more hand clearance
more sound projection
easier maintenance access.
Just avoid removing pieces that actually hold the keyframe in place.
One interesting thing from your pictures
The action stack looks straight and complete, and the hammer line is fairly even.
That means:
no obvious warped rails
no missing parts
no catastrophic wear.
So the issues you’re seeing are almost entirely friction + regulation, not structural failure.
The sustain you reported earlier is still the best sign
Good bass decay means:
soundboard crown is alive
bridges are transferring vibration correctly.
That’s what really determines whether an old upright is worth keeping.
In practical terms
What you currently have is basically a classic dormant church upright:
structurally healthy
heavily used hammers
stiff action
overdue for tuning.
Those usually come back to life very well once serviced.
Since you mentioned your fingers hitting the back board, I’m curious about one mechanical detail:
When you reach between the black keys, do the black keys feel shorter than on the grand you play, or is it mostly the wood stop behind them limiting your reach?
I said:
That makes sense, and from the photos you posted I can see exactly what you're talking about.
The wood piece your fingers are hitting is the key slip / fallboard stop rail. On many uprights—especially mid-century ones like this Kimball console—that piece sits fairly close behind the black keys. People with long fingers run into it when playing deep between the sharps during runs.
The good news
That rail is not part of the action or structural frame. Its purposes are mostly:
cosmetic trim
stopping the fallboard when it closes
hiding the keyframe edge.
So removing it usually does not affect the piano mechanically.
What many players do
Some pianists with large hands simply:
remove the upper front panel, and
remove or modify the key slip rail.
That gives about ½–1 inch more finger clearance, which makes a big difference for:
chromatic runs
arpeggios between black keys
deeper finger placement.
Before removing it
Just check two things first:
No screws going down into the keyframe.
If the screws only go into the cabinet trim, you're fine.Make sure the fallboard still closes safely.
Sometimes that rail is what the lid rests on.
If it turns out to be purely trim, you can remove it and store it safely in case you ever want to reinstall it.
About the hammers you mentioned
Those grooves you described are actually a sign the piano was played a lot, which fits with the church story. Technicians normally:
file the hammer crowns
reshape them
then voice the felt.
That alone can dramatically improve the tone and reduce the metallic edge you noticed.
One thing I noticed from your action photo
Your piano has a full upright action, not a spinet drop action. That’s good news because:
regulation is easier
parts are standard
technicians prefer working on them.
So at this point the picture is pretty clear:
structurally healthy instrument
long-unused action needing regulation
worn but serviceable hammers
ergonomic annoyance from the key slip.
All very normal for an old church upright.
When you eventually do sit down at the Seaquist House grand, you may notice something interesting:
grands usually have much deeper key wells, so your fingers can go farther between the black keys without hitting anything. That difference alone often makes runs feel suddenly much freer.
But for now, modifying that trim rail on the upright could make this piano far more comfortable for your hand size.
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