Repolishing and Painting
All repolishing and painting work is done at Winsome Valley, the home of Eshelby Pianos. Deon or Jacqueline are very much involved in the process, but due to time constraints the finishes are mostly completed by one of our very artistic staff members.
Repolishing
Deon has mastered re-polishing pianos to various finishes. One very popular finish at the moment is a high-gloss finish. Here is an example of Deon’s work: the photo on the right is of the piano before it was polished and the photograph below with the description is after it was polished. Note the reflection of the trees in the top panel. This C. Bechstein looks brand new!
DE 622 C. Bechstein Upright Pianoforte with stool. Serial number: 127392. This Model 8 was manufactured in Germany in 1926. This piano was re-polished to a black finish (November 2015). This is the top of the line in upright pianos, referred to by the makers as a Concert Upright. With unsurpassed quality, it is a real collectors piece. Replacement value in new would run well into the R 300 000.00 range. We do our best to acquire such pianos, but they are scarcely seen on the market. It is a gem of a piano, possibly our best. Its tone is semi-bright in being lively, but retaining the full-bodied richness of a German piano. The tone is fantastic! The piano has 88 keys, with a very smooth medium to lighter touch, and 2 pedals. The dimensions of this piano are: a height of 128 cm, a width of 156 cm and a depth of 63 cm.
Here is another example: This Welmar Piano is a clear example of why the High-Gloss Finish has become our most popular polishing style! We will be adding more details and photographs in this section soon… Take a look at the pianos that we are currently restoring listed on the Pianos Under Restoration page.
Painting
With the website currently being recreated (March 2023), this section is still under construction.
Repolishing to a high gloss finish
Achieving a high gloss finish is an arduous, laborious, and frustrating undertaking where one needs to be meticulous at every point of the slow process.
It can take weeks of tedious spraying and sanding, but the outcome is worth it! If done properly, the piano – which could very well be decades old but retain irreplaceable internal and structural craftmanship value – will appear not merely appear as new, but with a remarkable finish!
An example is the JAE 449 Kemble Upright which was spraypainted and re-polished to a high gloss white finish in September 2020. It was elegant and beautiful in structure, but a bit too scratched and thus had a shabby appearance. The piano has been revitalised!
Another example of a high gloss finish is the DE 901 Carl Ecke Grand which Eshelby Pianos finished repolishing in August 2022. The way the piano reflects the background like a mirror is awesome!
