OUR COMMITMENT TO EXCELLENCE
Every pre-owned piano that enters our showroom undergoes a rigorous multi-stage preparation process—performed by our master technicians—before it earns a place on our floor. Faust Harrison Pianos has a strict filter, only servicing and selling pianos that have musical and brand-quality relevance in our current marketplace. This practice protects our company from selling pianos that won’t hold up or offer a good musical experience. If it’s on our floor, it’s protected by our warranty, and our good judgement.
Action Inspection/Regulation
Our technicians fully evaluate the action mechanism, making any adjustments or replacements necessary to bring the feel of the piano to FHP performance standards
Key Leveling & Alignment
Using precision gauges, technicians align every key to a perfectly uniform playing surface—eliminating the uneven feel that accumulates in aging instruments over decades of use.
Hammer Voicing
Using specialized needles, our technicians work the hammer felt to achieve an even, singing tone across all registers. This technique improves the dynamic range of the piano giving it maximum expression.
Concert-Grade Tuning
FHP has its own outstanding tuning division, and we apply our exacting tuning standards to our refurbished and restored pianos. Not only is the piano in tune when you purchase it, we also provide a complimentary tuning after delivery.
Cabinet Touchup/Repair
Our service department is outfitted with the equipment and expertise to repair and detail finishes to a high standard, allowing for the original beauty of the piano to shine once again. We apply this approach to all our used instruments that are destined for our showrooms.
Professional Workshop Facility
Our workshop is equipped with precision machining and woodworking tools. Custom parts are fabricated in-house—a capability that sets FHP apart from dealers who outsource all technical work. We take responsibility for our service and are directly accountable for the quality of our work. One place, one solution.
Certified 30-point Reconditioning Checklist
Getting the Most Out of Every Piano
We breathe new life into used pianos with detailed inspections, precise craftsmanship, and concert-quality tuning & prep.
OUR GUARANTEE TO YOU
In addition to selling the most sought-after used pianos, Faust Harrison backs your purchase with a highly comprehensive 2-year warranty. True quality assurance you can count on.
And we don’t sell anything we wouldn’t want to reacquire. Every qualifying piano is backed by our 10-Year Trade-Up Program, allowing you to receive the full original purchase price as trade-in credit toward a new or used piano valued at least twice the original purchase price.
(Please note that our 30-point checklist is comprehensive, with each checkpoint including multiple technical procedures and inspections.)
1) Lyre, Pedals & Trapwork
Inspect the lyre, pedals, pedal rods, lyre sticks attachment bolts and the entire trapwork assembly. Replace any missing or broken parts. Lubricate and replace felts and leathers as needed. Ensure that the entire pedal system is structurally intact and mechanically sound.
2) Legs
Inspect legs, casters, attachment bolts and locks to ensure structural integrity. Make repairs/ adjustments as needed.
3) Soundbody
Inspect keybed, pinblock, bridge, ribs and soundboard. Address critical components as warranted.
4) Verify action position
Properly position and seat the keyframe to ensure it is securely grounded within the piano. This allows the hammers to align correctly and strike the strings at the precise contact point, producing the proper tone, timbre, and maximum power from the instrument.
5) Measure hammer blow distance
Assess and measure the distance between hammers at rest to the strings to create power throughout the instrument. Adjust the height of the hammerline to the string if needed.
6) Inspect damper condition
7) Examine plate bolts and screws
Verify that each plate bolt and screw are secure and tight. Adjusting middle tension set-bolts when present. 8) Seat strings
Verify that each string is seated correctly to the bridge pin and capo bar. This ensures proper sustain of the sound as one plays.
9) Check pitch correction
Inspect pin torque and pitch on the piano’s arrival. Stretch strings to high tension and let strings ease back to assess tightness and overall sustainability potential of tuning.
10) Tighten all action screws
Eliminate loose components. Pull actions out and inspect every screw to ensure it is at the right tension and holding all components in place so that any potential buzzing is eliminated.
11) Balance key bushings
Lubricate the front rail pins and balance rail pins to ensure correct friction. Create friction, if needed, by tightening the bushings through needling and steaming if necessary. Compress, or “ease”, the bushings to remove excess friction that may be causing too much tension. Replace bushings if needed.
12) Bed the keyframe
Ensure there is no flexing or shifting of the frame under key pressure. Inspect and ensure that they keyframe is “locked in” to the bed so as to mitigate any movement or bending.
13) Key level
Make all keys even and level. This is both aesthetically important and musically important, as mis-leveled keys will affect the playability of the piano as well as the sound of the instrument itself.
14) Burn, space, and travel hammers
Align hammers vertically and laterally by applying a heat source to the wood of the hammershank and readjusting its placement. Manually space hammers by unscrewing and adjusting any hammers necessary to perfect alignment. If needed, travelling tape is applied to force correct angle for optimal hammer mechanics.
15) File hammers
Clean hammers of any debris. Use filing paper to reshape and align hammer heads with string marks to achieve ideal crown shape for optimal tone.
16) Reassess hammer blow distance
17) Adjust backcheck position and alignment
Inspect that the angle and height of backcheck matches that of the hammers itself. This ensures that the hammers will be caught correctly post-strike, stopping the hammer from continued movement at the correct time.
18) Clean and brush knuckles
Inspect for wear so that contact between the jack and knuckle can be achieved as smoothly as possible and remove any debris with a wire brush.
19) Regulate repetition spring strength
If spring tension is too strong, the action can feel bouncy. Extreme tensions can cause the hammer to double strike unwantedly. If the tension is dead, the hammer will not return to its proper position. Adjust for quick key return pushing or pulling on the spring to achieve proper tension.
20) Regulate repetition lever height
Each repetition lever is adjusted individually to a precise height relative to the jack tender and hammer knuckle. Height adjustments are usually performed via the repetition lever spring screw or regulating button. The lever is positioned so that it supports the hammer shank consistently but does not impede free movement. The technician checks repetition responsiveness by slowly pressing and releasing keys, particularly at fractional keystrokes.
21) Regulate jack alignment
The technician inspects the position of the jack under the hammer knuckle to make sure it is centered and not rubbing or drifting off to one side. Using regulating screws, the jack is adjusted so it engages the knuckle evenly and releases cleanly as the hammer nears the string. Testing is done by slowly depressing keys to ensure smooth disengagement without blocking (hammer refusing to release) or too-early let-off (loss of power).
22) Align Wippens
Ensure each repetition lever contacts the knuckle precisely by inspecting for wear or looseness in hammer flanges and repetition springs. Worn action parts are corrected or replaced before alignment is finalized. This step ensures that the player experiences consistent feel, response, and control across the entire keyboard.
23) Regulate hammer let-off
To allow the hammer to release correctly before each strike, the let-off must allow the jack to escape from under the knuckle. This is ensured by measuring the distance between hammer and string so that the jack is dropping off at the correct time.
24) Regulate drop
Tighten or loosen drop screw to control hammer fallback after let-off (mentioned above). Extreme drop can feel unpleasant to the player.
25) Check aftertouch
Ensure feel beyond key dip is present and ideal. This is assessed by playing the piano after all previous adjustments have been made. Aftertouch can be both added or reduced, depending on what is necessary.
26) Test damper up stop rail position
Confirm position and adjust to ensure height of the damper’s mechanism.
27) Check damper pedal lift and key lift
Verify when the dampers begin to lift in relation to pedal depression. The lift must begin early enough for musical phrasing but not so early that the pedal feels too shallow. The technician then checks that dampers begin to lift slightly before the hammer strikes the string when keys are played normally.
28) Regulate key up stop rail
The up-stop rail is adjusted to limit how high keys rise when not pressed. Inspect for consistency across all 88 keys, correcting any that sit higher or lower.
29) Inspect and regulate all pedals: damper, sostenuto, shift
Ensure full and even damper lift across the scale and no lingering damper buzz or flutter. Confirm that only selected dampers are held when the sostenuto pedal is engaged, and check timing so sostenuto catches the notes precisely. When engaging the shift pedal, inspect that the keyboard or action shifts slightly to one side, altering tone as intended without rubbing strings or binding action parts.
30) Tune piano
Regular piano tunings should be performed to maintain a piano’s condition.
31) Voice piano
Stabilize pitch and balance tonal character across registers.
32) Inspect hardware
Fine tune all hardware and check connections.
33) Polish furniture
Polish and refurbish furniture and polish all cabinet hardware.
When you purchase a used piano from Faust Harrison Pianos, you can be confident you are purchasing quality that lasts.
