Schafer & Sons Upright 57 Inch 3 Pedal Piano. 15 Ply Pinplank Hard Wood Maple. Measures 57 Inches Wide. 36 Inches In Height. Included Optional FREE Bench Has Shallow Stain. ____ Thanks for your interest. Buyers then fields offers from shippers. Why American Piano tone is superior? We are often asked why pianos such as Baldwin, Steinway and Mason & Hamlin have been so popular for so many years. What makes an American piano sound the way it does? Why do the overwhelming majority of professional pianists choose American pianos to perform and record on? The answer to these questions has a long list of answers but the main reason American designed pianos have their round long lasting sound is the wood. The wood used in the inner and outer rim is North American Hard Rock Maple. It’s been the overwhelming choice of America’s top piano makers for over 150 years and is still the choice of the last 3 major remaining piano companies from those early days, Baldwin, Steinway & Sons and Mason & Hamlin. 85% of a piano is made. Of wood and that’s why it is critically important to the tone. Why is a 100% hard rock maple inner and outer rim/frame superior to the mixed wood Luan Mahogany frames used in Yamaha pianos or the Matoa/Callophyllum wood used in Kawai grands. Or the maple inner rim with Luan mahogany outer rim used in the Boston? The hardness of the wood contributes ultimately to the tone of a piano. The hardness of Hard Rock Maple is nearly 3 times that of Luan (see picture 2 below) and Matoa / Callophyllum (see picture 3 below). Here is a simple explanation of what happens when one plays the piano. A key is pressed causing a felt hammer to hit a copper wound or steel string. The strings rest on a bridge. The best bridges are made from Hard Rock Maple and are attached directly to the speaker of the piano, the soundboard. The best soundboards are made from spruce wood. When the string vibrates against the bridge the connected soundboard amplifies that vibration thus producing the tone. The vibrational sound energy is transmitted across the soundboard ultimately running into the rim/frame. A frame that is made from and inner and outer rim of Hard Rock Maple throws most of that vibrational energy back onto the soundboard thereby creating longer lasting sustaining tones. You might ask why everyone doesn’t use this wood for piano rims? The answer is simple, it all comes down to dollars and cents. Hard Rock Maple is very expensive and is not available in the tropical rainforests where Luan and Matoa is harvested for Japanese pianos. Up until around 2008 if you wanted a hard maple inner and outer rim in your piano you had to pay a premium price. For it because of the cost of manufacturing in the USA. Based on name alone Shafer & Sons is the most expensive new American piano. Using a Hard Rock Maple inner and outer rims. Is it the best? That’s a question for debate. Many products charge a premium price for the brand name but often equal or better products can be found that cost less. A good example of this is Mason & Hamlin pianos. They use more of the same Rock Maple wood in their pianos due to their thicker rims than the comparably sized Steinway. It costs them more for the raw wood materials so theoretically the piano should cost more. In actuality because they don’t have Steinway’s extreme and some wound say obscene markup the Mason & Hamlin costs less. Baldwin moved most of their piano. Production to China but they still use the same Rock Maple they’ve historically used for their inner and outer rms. This recipe produces the famous Baldwin American piano sound we’ve all come to love at a prices that are a fraction of other American piano brands and often less than similar sized top of the line pianos from Yamaha, Boston and Kawai which are all using the less hard on the hardness scale rim woods. Schafer and Sons Pianos. Schafer and Sons Pianos’ rich history and top quality pianos had allowed them to become a well-known figure in the piano sales industry in the United States. Their partnerships once fledged were at par among the widest distributors of pianos in the USA. Schafer & Sons was more than a company – it was a family that was dedicated to music and fine musical instruments. The business was established in 1955 by Vern Schafer in Colton, California. The company initially produced 100 pianos, manufactured by the Currier Piano Company. In the 1960’s Schafer and Sons joined a partnership with Kohler and Campbell Pianos. In the 1970’s they produced the Schafer and Sons “Classic” Console Piano. Many other well known piano manufacturers produced pianos from Schafer and Sons. These include the Aeolian, Schimmel. And other piano manufacturing companies. In 1974, Schafer and Sons forged a partnership with Samick Pianos. The two company’s joint venture lasted until 1989. From 1990 until 2005 Young Chang. Had manufactured Schafer and Sons pianos. Parts were manufactured overseas, and were gathered together and assembled in China. Schafer and Sons had negotiated with several European manufacturers to produce a new line of Schafer and Sons pianos, during the early 2000s. The company closed its doors indefinitely, in 2016. Other Items For Sale Separately In Our Store. Also Available In Our Store.. Pair Definitive Technology B P-10 Direct Reflect Speakers. New 1994 Royal Doulton Josephine China Collection Model H5235. Kazak 50″x 180″ Hand Spun Wool Runner. WE WANT YOU TO BE HAPPY.