Pianola Repairs & Restoration

• Do you have a pianola that has been gathering dust from decades of non-use?

• Do you have memories of pedalling away, having singalongs with family and friends?

• Do you have boxes of pianola rolls packed away?

• Perhaps it is time to look at getting your pianola restored?

Pianolas are an engineering marvel of the early 20th century. They are made up of thousands of moving parts (no electronics of course), all reliant on an air tight suction system, provided by pedaling the main bellows. When pedaled, a paper roll with tiny perforations will pass over one of the 88 openings of the tracker bar (one for each key), which sets off a series of events that plays the desired note on the keyboard. This happens almost instantaneously. Pianolas are usually very well made pianos, with full iron frames and piano actions on which their designs have not changed in over 100 years.

There are many components inside the pianola mechanism which deteriorate over time, and with use, and as such need either repairing or replacing. Rubberised cloth on the bellows, the pneumatics (88 tiny bellows for each note), the air motor which drives the roll, and many more components goes hard with age and gets small cracks which let air escape, resulting in sluggish playback, or in bad cases no notes will play at all. Often original pianolas still have lead tubing, which also deteriorates with age and needs to be replaced.

All of these common issues can be fixed!

Additional to a properly working pianola mechanism, it is crucial that the piano action, key mechanism and  tuning is at optimum-levels for the pianola to play at its best.

It is always great to see and hear a 100 odd year old pianola playing and sounding almost like the day it left the showroom!

Pianolas are quoted in 3 separate sections:

• Piano action, keys and tuning
• Pianola mechanism
• Case (finish)

At Classic Piano Restorations we provide free* quotes on repairs & restoration of pianolas, and where possible will provide a 2nd cheaper ‘B’ quote if requested.

*Metro Melbourne only