Rare 1893 Mason & Hamlin Screw Stringer Piano Restoration | Minnesota Family Heirloom
Brigham Larson Pianos
Bringing a 130-year-old family heirloom back to life while preserving one of the most fascinating innovations in piano history.
We just finished restoring this beautiful 1893 Mason & Hamlin upright heirloom piano for a family in Minnesota, and I couldn't be happier with how it turned out!
Mason & Hamlin has always been one of the great American piano manufacturers, right up there with Steinway & Sons in terms of quality and craftsmanship. But one thing I've always admired about Mason & Hamlin is their willingness to innovate and experiment with new ideas.
This particular piano is a perfect example. It features something you rarely see today: Mason & Hamlin's patented Screw Stringer tuning system.
And after working on thousands of pianos over the years, I still think it's one of the most impressive piano engineering innovations of the 19th century.
What Is a Mason & Hamlin Screw Stringer?
Most acoustic pianos use traditional tuning pins driven into a thick wooden pinblock. The friction between the pins and the wood holds the tremendous tension of the strings in place.
The Mason & Hamlin Screw Stringer takes a completely different approach.
Instead of relying on a wooden pinblock, this system uses a specially designed metal mechanism built into the piano's cast-iron plate. Small threaded components allow the technician to adjust the tension of each string with remarkable precision.
The really interesting part is how well it works.
When tuning a traditional piano, technicians develop a very specific technique for setting the tuning pins and stabilizing string tension. It's something we do so often that it becomes second nature.
With the Screw Stringer, the adjustment is much more direct. Once you set the string tension, it tends to stay right where you put it.
In my experience, these pianos can actually be easier to tune and remarkably stable once you become familiar with the system.
So why don't we see this technology in modern pianos?
My suspicion is that the system was simply too expensive and complicated to manufacture compared to traditional tuning pins and pinblocks. Whatever the reasons, Mason & Hamlin eventually discontinued it.
It's one of those fascinating inventions that worked beautifully but never became the industry standard.
A Complete Restoration, Inside and Out
As impressive as the Screw Stringer is, the rest of this restoration deserves just as much attention.
Our goal was to preserve the craftsmanship and character of this 1893 instrument while restoring its structural integrity, musical performance, and appearance.
New Strings and Restored Cast-Iron Plate
We installed a complete set of new strings while preserving the piano's original Screw Stringer design.
The cast-iron plate was beautifully refinished, giving the interior a clean, consistent appearance that complements the historic mechanism.
Seeing the restored Screw Stringer system with all those new strings is really something special. It looks remarkably close to how it would have appeared when the piano was first built in the 1890s.
Rebuilding the Piano Action
The action is where so much of the piano's responsiveness and musical expression comes from.
For this restoration, we replaced the hammers, hammer shanks, hammer butts, and numerous other action components. We also renewed worn felts, cloth, let-off components, and other small but essential parts.
All of these details work together to give the pianist greater control, consistency, and responsiveness.
We also restored the damper system so the dampers lift together evenly and function as they should.
Restoring the Soundboard and Bridges
The soundboard is one of the most important components in determining a piano's musical character.
Over more than 130 years, the wood naturally experiences changes from age, humidity, and environmental conditions.
For this Mason & Hamlin, we restored the soundboard using carefully fitted shims and techniques designed to restore appropriate tension and structural integrity.
We also recapped the bridges, including the bass bridge and long bridge.
The bridges are responsible for transferring string vibrations into the soundboard, so restoring them properly is essential to the piano's tone and performance.
This kind of work isn't always visible once the piano is assembled, but it makes an enormous difference in the finished instrument.
Preserving the Original Beauty
Of course, we couldn't restore all that incredible craftsmanship on the inside without giving the exterior the attention it deserved.
The cabinet was beautifully refinished, bringing new life to the piano's elegant 19th-century design.
We also replated the original pedals and decorative hardware. These are the same components that were on the piano more than 130 years ago, and now they shine like new!
I especially love that we're able to preserve these original details rather than simply replace them. They are part of the piano's history.
The finished result is a beautiful combination of historic craftsmanship and renewed musical performance.
Hear This 1893 Mason & Hamlin Come Back to Life
One of my favorite moments in any restoration is finally sitting down and hearing the completed piano.
This Mason & Hamlin has a beautiful, rich bass and a wonderful sound throughout the instrument.
It's hard to believe you're listening to a piano built in 1893!
Watch the full restoration tour below, where I take you inside the piano, demonstrate the rare Screw Stringer mechanism, show the restoration details, and play the finished instrument.
Watch the 1893 Mason & Hamlin Restoration on YouTube
Preserving a Family Heirloom for Future Generations
This beautiful Mason & Hamlin will be returning home to Minnesota, ready to be enjoyed for many more years.
That's one of the things I love most about what we do here at Brigham Larson Pianos. We're not just restoring old instruments. We're preserving family history, extraordinary craftsmanship, and the musical experiences that make these pianos so meaningful.
And with an instrument as unusual as this Screw Stringer, we're also preserving a fascinating piece of American piano innovation.
Do you have an antique or family heirloom piano you'd love to bring back to life?
At Brigham Larson Pianos, we specialize in complete piano rebuilding, refinishing, and heirloom restoration for families throughout the United States. We restore pianos of all makes and ages, with nationwide pickup and delivery available.
We'd love to help you explore what's possible for your piano.
Request Your FREE Family Heirloom Piano Restoration Evaluation
Brigham Larson Pianos | Orem, Utah | Restoring Family Heirlooms Nationwide Since 1995
