Piano Choices; To rebuild or throw it away

     It is hard to think of a piano as something to throw away.  Enough neglect, however, can relagate a very fine piano to the dumpster.  There were once many fine American ;iano brands such as Baldwin,Mason and Hamlin, Chickering and many others.  It is true today however that the last American brand standing is Steinway.  A Steinway is a very fine piano but a medium sized grand can cost up to $100,000.  There are Asian pianos that have American sounding names designed to fool the public and the Asian makers have indeed gotten better in recent years.
     As a piano ages natural wear occurs on all the moving parts but more so in the middle of the piano that gets more use than the top and bottom.  A tuner can replace worn parts as needed but the touch becomes very uneven even with good regulation.  Parts can eventually fail causing one note to cease to play.  A rebuild is when you replace all the moving parts in the action and also the strings,tuning pins and pin block as well as refinishing the body.  When you do this you can even do things like repair cracks in the soundboard and refinish the soundboard and replace any decals on the instrument.  A good rebuild on one of these fine pianos can cost $20,000.
     Pianos are neglected for many reasons.  Often the decision maker does not realise what a rebuild is and what can be done to one of these instruments.  I have seen rebuild Baldwins that look just like they came out of the factory.  If a piano is 100 years old and I see many still functioning at that age if they have received even minimal care, with a rebuild one can expect  many years again of great service from one of these pianos.  Which then is cheaper, the new Steinway or the rebuilt Baldwin?
     I have put forth this argument many times and sometimes there is agreement but the funds are just not there and I understand that.  I also know that if a piano is not used the perception can become that it is not fixable.  I do hate seeing one of these fine instruments on the road to the dumpster and if you have influence in the displsition of one of these instruments I hope you will consider these facts.