"Before" picture of H.P. Nelson Upright, taken in our shop before we started working on it. The color is a bit "clouded" because the picture was taken without flash.

"Before" picture of the left pillar and the music rest. This gave us a good idea of how the piano might look after refinishing.

1900 Nelson Upright 57"
Pictures of the Improvement Process
taken in our shop:

1 – We completely dismantled the piano, removing all panels, the keybed, the pedal board, and the legs. We took the panels to a local carpenter shop for stripping. We ordered a new set of pedals.

2 – We removed the bass strings, and shipped them to the string maker for duplication. We also installed new casters.

3 – We placed the piano action on the workbench, and removed a few hammers for the hammer supplier to use as samples in preparing a replacement set.

4 – After removing the action posts and all plate bolts, we lifted the plate out of the piano. This gave us access to the soundboard and bridges for repairs and refinishing.

5 – We cleaned and sanded the plate, then refinished it using a special "pale gold" urethane obtained from a supplier of marine paint.

6 – After re-installing the plate in the piano, we installed new understring felts and then we restrung the treble section.

7 – We installed new bass strings and pins.

8 – After restringing, we installed stringing braid.

9 – We removed the earlier finishes from all wood parts and the exterior of the cabinet.

10 – We sanded all stripped surfaces with 120 and 220 grit paper. The result: we discovered that much of the surface of this piano is solid mahogany, while some surfaces have walnut veneer. To blend various colors, we will apply a dark mahogany stain.

11 – We applied dark mahogany stain to the cabinet. We put a second coat of stain on surfaces which were lighter, to even the color.

12 – Most of the exterior surfaces of this piano have solid mahogany except for the two sides of the lid, which were veneered with walnut veneer. We applied a coat of sealer over both sides of the lid after stain.

13 – The legs, pillars, and end blocks were all solid mahogany. We stained these parts.

14 – We removed the dampers from the action, tightened all action screws, and replaced loose center pins.

15 – We cleaned the damper wires, cut off the treble damper felts, and bent the damper springs so they would be a bit stronger.

16 – We removed the original hammers which were badly worn, and installed a new set.

17 – We cleaned, polished, and rebushed the damper rail.

18 – We replaced broken regulating screws.

19 – We installed new bridle straps.

20 – We used our home-made bridle strap guage to cut them to the proper size before installing them.

21 – Bridle straps glued in place on hammer butts.

22 – Bridle straps installed.

23 – We cleaned the damper levers, replaced the treble damper felts and re-installed the dampers in the action.

24 – After rebuilding the pedal mechanisms, installing new pedals, and refinishing the pedal board, we re-installed the pedal board.

25 – While the piano was on its back, we re-installed the legs. We also installed new casters.

26 – We installed new underkey punchings and cloth.

27 – We aligned the hammers to the strings, set hammer blow distance, and aligned the backchecks to the butts.

28 – After installing new white keytops and cleaning the black keys, we set key height and levelled the keys.  Then we regulated letoff, key dip and dampers.

29 – Special springs attached to the tops of the keys are a unique feature of this piano. They improve repetition in fast playing.

30 – We attached new felt to the "soft pedal muffler bar," which is positioned between the hammers and the strings when the middle pedal is depressed, resulting in a softer tone.

31 – We installed the lower and upper panels, the pillars, and the lid. Then we tuned the piano several times until tuning stability was achieved. We purchased a piano with round legs, installed 2" extensions on the bench legs to make it high enough to accommodate the unusually high keyboard, and refinished the bench with the same finish as the piano.

32 – FINISHED! We're really proud of this project, and we're confident that it will soon attract a buyer. Close-up of left leg.

33 – Close-up of left pillar.

34 – Close-up of fallboard decal. We installed this decal under the final coat of lacquer.

35 – The lid can be opened for added projection of the loud, rich piano tone.

36 – Close-up of interior: refinished plate, new pins & strings, muffler bar with new felt, new hammers, polished hammer rail, new bridle tapes.