Red Neck Piano Moving

[Regi Hedahl]

The best way to do this job would have been to use a cube van with a lift on the back but I don't have one of those so make do with what you got which was myself, enclosed trailer, dolly, ramp, some rope and a cum-along. I also bought the piano so all I would have lost is the price I paid for the piano (which was not very much) and the fuel to get there and back. However, the move down the nearly 45 degree ramp went smoothly and the only drama was how scary it all looked.

BTW, the piano is a 1917 Bush & Lane in fairly decent shape but has not been tuned and used for years. I'm going to be doing a series of videos on getting it back into shape.

Nice woodworking on the back of the piano.  It has interesting cut off bars and the backposts are veneered.

Regi

[David Boyce]

There's some amount of nice wood in that ramp!  We will look forward to the videos, Regi.

Best regards,

David B.

[David Kroenlein]

On Tue, Mar 28, 2017 at 3:19 PM Regi Hedahl <piano...@gmail.com> wrote:

The best way to do this job would have been to use a cube van with a lift on the back but I don't have one of those so make do with what you got which was myself, enclosed trailer, dolly, ramp, some rope and a cum-along. I also bought the piano so all I would have lost is the price I paid for the piano (which was not very much) and the fuel to get there and back. However, the move down the nearly 45 degree ramp went smoothly and the only drama was how scary it all looked.

BTW, the piano is a 1917 Bush & Lane in fairly decent shape but has not been tuned and used for years. I'm going to be doing a series of videos on getting it back into shape.

😎 cool!

Nice woodworking on the back of the piano.  It has interesting cut off bars and the backposts are veneered.

Regi

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[Terry Farrell]

Yes, interesting cut off bars Regi, but I’ll up you one Z-Bar! Those old Bush and Lane’s were built like tanks. Does this one have the grand-type capo bar rather than the typical upright pressure bar in the high treble? Interesting idea, but it kinda makes it difficult to move mutes around it.

Terry Farrell

On Mar 28, 2017, at 4:18 PM, Regi Hedahl <piano...@gmail.com> wrote:

SNIP

BTW, the piano is a 1917 Bush & Lane in fairly decent shape but has not been tuned and used for years. I'm going to be doing a series of videos on getting it back into shape.

[Douglas Gregg]

Regi,

Nice move. That dolly looks very familiar. I designed one just like it and love it.  I do the same kind of moves regularly but use a 12V ATV winch with a car battery with a remote control so I can stand near the piano and maintain the balance, if need be. The only effort is pushing the button on the remote.  I also do the same going up a full flight of stairs with the piano on a skid as long as there is a door or window frame in line with the stairs or something else to rig off of. I had to do three long flights once in a loft building in Soho,NYC. Never again in NYC though. That is another story.  I have another winch on the trailer hitch to pull a big piano into the trailer if it is too heavy to push.

Keep 'em movin!

Doug Gregg

[Regi Hedahl]

Doug,
Yes, that dolly is a result of you showing me yours. I simply used a cheap Harbor Freight dolly, removed the castors and installed these pneumatic tires on the frame. There are dollies sold specifically for moving pianos with pneumatic tires but they set them up too high. The low center of gravity is a huge advantage especially when having to move a piano yourself.

I also have a remote controlled winch installed in the front of my trailer. I just never thought about using it for this move but I think it would have saved me a little time over ratcheting the piano down 1/2 in. at a time.

Regi

[Regi Hedahl]

Terry,

I like it and I bet that upright with the Z-bar soundboard was a killer sounding piano!

Yup, this piano has the grand type pressure bar as pictured. The B&L uprights I have come across did not have this. Not sure if it was only used for a few years or if it was an option. Yes it was kind of in the way but this piano was still the easiest upright I have ever tuned. All pins were consistent and very few false beats.

Regi

[Terry Farrell]

Actually, the pressure bar in the photo looks to me like a very stout - like on an S&S or a M&H - upright pressure bar. I used to service an old upright - I think it was a B&L - that had a true capo bar that was cast as part of the plate - as in a typical grand piano. Sorry, I don’t have a picture - many years ago that I last saw it.

Terry Farrell

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[Regi Hedahl]

Yes I have seen true capo bars that were cast into the plate like a grand on I believe it was a big old Baldwin upright.

Regi

[Douglas Gregg]

Regi,

Another tip to save your back when trying to get one of these big old uprights on a dolly is to use a good hand truck with pneumatic tires   to pry up one end and put a 6x6 under that end. Then go to the other end and pry up that end until the hand truck is down to the floor. That will get the piano about a foot off the floor at that end. I then sit on the hand truck and with one hand put the dolly under the piano similar to parallel parking. It does take that height to get the pneumatic tires under the piano and it is only high enough at the end that is 1 foot off the ground. I do this alone most of the time, but it is good to have someone handy to stand at the other end to prevent the 6x6 from starting to roll or slide. Obviously you have to avoid the casters when placing the 6x6 too. 

Doug Gregg

[Regi Hedahl]

Doug,
Thanks for the tip and that is pretty much what I did. However, this piano was so heavy that I was barely able to lift the piano with the handtruck. I had the strength but I'm just not heavy enough. So I ended up putting 6x6's on both sides. Then I removed the tires on one side of the dolly then put them back on once I got the dolly slid under the piano.

Regi

[Douglas Gregg]

Regi,

I have the same problem, weighing 155 lbs. I have a piece of 5/4 x 6  yellow pine decking about 5 feet long in my trailer. I have it for two reasons.  I use it to put under the toe blocks just under the pedals to keep those round bottom 1900 pianos level and so they don't fall forward on the dolly. I also use it as a "cheater" for lengthening the leverage on the hand truck. I put it between the cross bars on the hand truck so now I have a couple feet more of leverage so I can lever the piano up. Try that. 

Doug Gregg

[Joseph Garrett]

Regi,
Now that's what I call ingenuity!
Bush & Lane's are one of the heaviest in the bunch. Only one I've seen heavier is the 58" Chickering Upright. They really tried to make them unmovable!
Best,
Joe

Captain of the Tool Police
Squares R I
gpianoworks.com