I didn't mention I'm looking to replace my acoustic piano at the same time as buy a digital. But it seems to be easier to make rice pudding out of sand than find an attractive piano.

Another losing situation today. The person is advertising on Craigslist a Kawai piano, excellent condition, only used by children for Classical piano lessons. Went to see it...it's not in the house, it's been in the garage collecting dust for three years under a pile of garden tools, the mechanism on the left side where the hammers split is defective, the upper two octaves are completely out of tune, and....it's full of scratches.

That's basically been my experience so far. Owners of used pianos for sale are living in Dreamland when it comes to advertising their piano. They see their piano as they WANT to see it....not as it actually is...they definitely don't follow the "truth in advertising" statute.

Brand new, good-sounding Yamaha's and Kawai's start at about $7-$8k...too rich for my blood.

Anyone have any suggestions, or comments, about the best way to go about finding/buying a used console acoustic piano?

Mark there are some rules to follow if you are buying a used piano privately.

1-You go see the piano to see if it’s what you want.
2-Have a piano technician check the piano before buying. One customer refinished the piano he bought. I told him the piano needed $575 to bring the piano in acceptable playing condition. Another piano would not hold its tuning; major repair.

If you a looking for a bargain you must have knowledge. In the past I never bought a used car without taking it to a trusted mechanic first.

John C.

Mark,
Through the years I have owned grand pianos and uprights. I got tired of constantly spending money on them and sold them - all at a great loss. In today's world I would not buy another acoustic piano. My reasons - good ones are expensive and require constant tuning which today is not cheap. Comes time to sell them and the market for them is very slim and the value of the piano drops drastically. My last acoustic piano was donated to a church after three years of it not being sold - even though it was in very good condition.

I would look at a really good 88 key electric piano. Roland makes some really nice sounding ones. Just my 2 Cents worth.

Deane

John is absolutely right on point - If you really must have a piano, have it checked out by someone with a great deal of technical experience along those lines. Same holds true with boats - I had mine checked out by an accredited marina surveyor - saved me $12,000 on the purchase price.

Gary

Hi Mark, I see you are in the USA, like me, but I have learned a lot about pianos from this UK you tube channel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGm8Vj99T_E&t=474s.

They have an openly published price list, so you can get some idea (£1=$1.30); more importantly you can get a better appreciation of what's involved in maintaining and restoring pianos. Definitely have the piano checked over by a technician you can trust.

I wish I could find a US equivalent of this guy, Marcus, from Roberts Pianos.

One of our deceased forum members, Joe Ayala, had a beautiful, Yamaha Baby Grand when he passed. I will contact his widow to see what became of the piano. Joe told me that he had it serviced every year, tuned, cleaned, etc and had this done by a local service technician. He said it was a necessity with all pianos and was somewhat expensive for this service.

When I hear something, I will let you know,

Gary

Rest in Peace Joe Ayala miss you buddy!
here's a video of Joe playing when we were in Louisiana at the KB jam
with Don Mason..clik & download to your PC

https://app.box.com/s/urbm3zkicnopipwqe0vdwyki1wtaf9e4

My experience is that acoustic pianos hold their Value, especially Yamahas, Kawi, Baldwins and Bosendorfer, and Steinway. Most who bought quality pianos ten or more years ago are able to get more than they sold them for.

A fine pianist rarely plays an electric piano. His choice is an acoustic piano -- the touch and sound are not the same. The same can be said with electric and acoustic guitars. My Dad was a Concert piano player – my late wife studied piano at the School of performing arts (FAME) neither would play my keyboard.

My opinion, John C.

There are so many different materials that go into a piano - different types of wood for the 'body', different metals for the soundboard, strings,etc., wool felt for the hammers, etc. Etc., so it obviously makes sense that maintenance should be a major consideration ... also, depending upon the climate in which you live, you may need a dedicated humidifier/dehumidifier just for the piano ...
Sometimes the purchase price of an item is just a down payment ...

Somewhere I read that Yamaha has special, piano tuning rooms that are climate controlled to match the environment where the piano will be shipped to.

Gary