Ice cream cone legs!

Fiddle back Mahogany! Beautiful!

Will you respond with questions about a piano through here?

Hey it’s me Logan from your Sunday school class

That software looks so broken lol.

Hi thanks for sharing!!! This Coinola is of the "C2" case style introduced about 1914 and built probably until they stopped making new coin pianos and orchestrions about 1930. The earlier style case is fancier than the later type from their later piano supplier, and has nice carved filigree around the openings for the art glass (glass long gone in this particular one), as well as nice carved acorn top front posts on some examples (maybe not this one, which has flat top posts). If the original bottom front panel is still there, you might notice cloverleaf-shaped holes in the top of it for letting out sound from extra instruments mounted in the bottom in some examples (like pipes, drums etc). We don't know enough yet to properly date Coinolas with certainty (although info is being sought and collected from existing pianos on the Operators Piano Co page of the "Mechanical Music Registry" on the Mechanical Music Press website). But it is believed most early Coinolas have Smith & Barnes pianos, and most later ones have the (even heavier!) piano with widely-staggered tuning pins and the serial number window at the upper right. The date of transition/changeover is not known for certain, but is believed to have occurred sometime between 1918 and 1924. This style case (made with piano backs/actions/keysets from both piano makers) came standard with three different varieties of instruments: The model "C2" orchestrion came standard with mandolin effect on the piano; plus either a set of 24 "saxola pipe tone reeds" (free reeds like a reed organ or accordion), or 24 wooden open flute pipes; plus bass drum, snare drum and cymbal. No complete C2 is known with the organ reeds (almost all have flute pipes as the solo instrument), and only two really early examples with the earliest art glass style, are known to exist. Most have the later art glass style as shown in their 1920s catalog. I know of from about a dozen to maybe 20 original C-2 models existing. Some have had tympani beaters and/or triangle, wood block and tambourine added by later restorers. The CK model has piano, mandolin, and two ranks of 24 pipes: metal violin and open wooden flute. These are also solo instruments. I only know of perhaps three CK models existing. The C2 and CK have the extra instruments mounted in the bottom of the piano case, with roll frame, stack, pump and motor above. They each use Operators "O" rolls with 66 playing notes (E-A) and have 78 actual pneumatics on the stack (E-A) to play that many notes on the piano, since the bass is octave-coupled. Finally, there was the C "reproducing" which played special "C" rolls which are extremely rare today. It also has the pump, motor, roll frame and stack all up above, but there is only a mandolin on the piano and no extra instruments. It also has a split hammer rail (separate bass/treble) and extra pneumatic devices for playing softly and loudly automatically. Very few were apparently originally sold, and I know of only two surviving in Illinois and Canada, plus one more that was sadly in such bad condition it was parted out. The C2 case is rare in any event, even gutted. The only other gutted one I have ever seen was free on Facebook Marketplace (or Craigslist?) circa 2022-2024. It was being used as a church piano in North Carolina (Virginia?) with hymnbooks piled on top of it. Also with the original art glass replaced with wooden panels. Could this be that same piano? I never found out where it went or got any more details.

I'm curious what the front of this piano looks like with all the panels put on. I bet I could identify which Coinola case model it was.

Thanks for sharing! This plate style and era of Coinola piano was made especially for them by Smith, Barnes & Strohber Co. of Chicago, (usually abbreviated by collectors as "Smith & Barnes" their earlier company name). It is the same plate, scale and back as used in several (dozen?) Smith and Barnes regular "straight" and home player piano models they made under their own name in the same time period. Operators used these pianos from probably around 1910 until maybe sometime in the late 'teens or early '20s, at which point they switched to using pianos from apparently a totally different supplier, which have the tuning pins for adjacent notes staggered up and down much further than usual. Also, in contrast with these earlier Smith & Barnes pianos like in your video, which retain the maker's own serial number in their regular series, the maker of this latter type later-era piano (the same piano shown in Nate Otto's videos of the Coinola CX he is restoring), is officially unknown, but some experts theorize it was made by the Seybold Piano Co of Elgin, IL. However I have a different theory: that the late pianos were actually by Bush & Lane! They're certainly heavy and rugged enough. In any case the maker of the later pianos didn't use their own serial numbering as did Smith & Barnes, but created a special series just for Operators (with the first number apparently starting around 278,000 or 279,000; and the last number over 283,000), making identification more difficult.

I love seeing your workmanship I wish I could see your take on a Broadwood Barless grand, maybe one day you will get one in! It's a beautiful roundness that the company that introduced iron bars to the piano designed one without

I am SO excited that your video popped up in my feed this morning. WOW! I know every single situation is different but could you give just a guess on what a restoration like this would cost? Please... Thanks in advance! (I couldn't hit the Like and Subscribe buttons fast enough!)

It’s interesting that Gould didn’t consider Baldwin when he wasn’t happy with what Steinway was producing and looked to Yamaha instead of Baldwin , who in my view at the time produced a far superior piano.

There are few pianos better than a good Mason and Hamlin!

Looks good

I am so curious of how you cleaned the wood? I was recently given an old piano and I would be so pleased as to know . Thank you .

Gorgeous!

Did you release some of the tension on the non wound strings?

Amazing sound

Beautiful! 😍 Can't wait to see the after video! We have a Schimmel & Nelson Vertigrand in our factory museum, and it's a captivating and stunningly rare piano 🎹👏 Greetings from Germany 👑

Man I have a spinet piano that says "Whitney" on the key cover and man it's too bright and tinny 😅😒 Ive been trying to make it sound like this one, except it probbaly needs to have the action removed to get the other parts of the strings, I believe it has outer rusting that can be removed, but I dont know how to remove anything. Unfortunately i can only tune the strings, reshape the hammers, and use needles

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God only knows what I'd be without your channel.

I'm so glad I found this video. It gives me even more determination to have my Mason & Hamlin grand (about 6 ft.) piano restored (many have encouraged me not to bother). It was circa dated 1935, though that seems late for the family lore. It was a gift to my late husband's grandmother from his grandfather upon the birth of their son. He was born in 1930 at the latest, though more likely around 1928. It needs a lot of help and is virtually unplayable, yet holds so much sentimental value as we fell in love while sitting at that piano as we each taught the other to play the other's style of music at parties held at his family home. Before my husband passed, we had a refurb quoted. I've been unable to do it since his passing, though I intend to. Thanks for the video as it helps me think about what parts of the piano need to be replaced and which don't (I didn't know you could keep the sharp keys and replace the others, for example.) Beautiful work. I miss that sound.

Why aren't the keys going down by themselves when the player piano plays? You want it to look like a pair of invisible hands are playing the piano.

isn't that the same piano you said was from an opera house but now you say it's an heirloom, the one in this video? kzbin.info/www/bejne/pKPNlYOLqL6mbJo

Looks Beautiful and an Amazing sound, what hammers and strings did you install and is that a renner action?????

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Just got this app to tune my new (to me) piano and I found it amazingly intuitive and helpful. The piano hadn't been played in a long while, so everything was flat by nearly an entire note. The "Lock" note mode was completely necessary when first tuning to bring everything up to the correct note, after that the "Step" mode was perfect for a hands free tuning assistant.

Hi, I was just wondering what the value of one of these piano's is? My mom has one almost identical to this one. It's actually signed and dated on the under side. I believe it says "Lars Johanson?" and the date is 29/08/1918. Unfortunately a previous owner in the 1960's decided to paint it white. For it's age it's in pretty good condition but it needs some tlc.

Very tedius work. You might be able to use super clue to make the point that you push through

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Very nice work, but still looking forward to the day when Brigham has the build date of a piano, and any tools he wants to demonstrate at hand.

Cats are the biggest reason my piano is in my bedroom. My room mate lets the cats all over his digital piano and so much dirt gets everywhere. My piano is from the 1880s and unrestored but the condition is far better and the last notes have more sustain even though it's a small strait strung one.

I think showing some before shots is a great idea.

Coś wspaniałego! @janusz_bielecki

Do you use the thin CA glue or the thicker “gap filling” options?

Great video. I really liked seeing the before and after . You should do that with the 100 year old pianos you restore. Fascinating the difference.

I find it interesting that a piano has two or three pedals, and the way they function depends on the design of the piano itself. On grand pianos, we have the una corda, the sostenuto, and the damper pedals. On most uprights, we have the soft blow, the bass only damper, and the full damper. On some uprights, we have the soft blow, the drop cloth (also for soft music), and the damper. Always the damper pedal on the right, the one mostly used to allow more expression on the music.

I have the 1905 model. These are beautiful pianos

I've have seen that style on hybird pianos and really love it, I think it has more interesting look than white.😊

So basically a capo for the bass bridge

Very cool indeed!

Would you consider that repair acceptable?

We have this EXACT same piano with an earlier serial number! My mom got it from someone who didn't want it anymore and I have been playing it since I was a kid. I have never played another piano quite like this one. Every other piano just doesn't feel as good. My teenage son wants to repair a few of the hammers and learn how to tune it.

A

im all for restoring pianos but this piano is garbage.I doubt even the soundboard is worth saving.I think the people who own it should find something else to pass on to their kids and throw this to the dumpster.

Cannot wait to see and hear this one!

This one I'm quite keen to watch our for. Please keep the progress posted if you can? I love the ones that are completely wasted to begin with. This is going to take some heavy lifting to evoke its essence and return it to happiness; can't wait.

That's interesting to learn about. Of course, I wouldn't have known the difference if not for you.

Beautiful piano! What music piece did you play in the video?

I recently learned through my genealogy work that my great-great grandfather worked for Knabe for 40 years in the mid-late 1800s. He started as a case carver and worked his way up to become supervisor of that department. He might have worked on this very piano!