Yes, Andy, I've been there.  Some years back I picked up a _free_
Howard piano from another piano technician.  It had a very fancy case,
with post on the upper front.  I wanted to install a Marantz Player in
this piano.  It had a very loose pin block.

Well, I removed everything from the case, including the keybed,
took the plate out, and examined the pin block.  It was in terrible
condition, and appeared to be loose.  With the piano case sitting there
in the floor, I took my trusty hammer and hit the pin block one good
blow.

That's when it started.  The pin block fell out of the front, the
posts fell out the back, and _both_ sides fell off of the piano.
Even the soundboard was loose.

Did I restore this piano?  Yes, I have a weak mind at times.  Sound-
board glued back, Delignite pin block installed, beveled glass
installed in the front, antique lamps hanging, and all of the rest.
I installed the Marantz unit, and it was a nice piano.

I sold it to a restaurant and financed it myself.  (See, I said I had
a weak mind at times).  He made two payments, then his telephone was
disconnected.  He had filed Chapter 13 bankruptcy!  The piano was no
longer in his possession.  I did find it at his mother's house some
years later, but the thrill was gone.

Al Pebworth
Pebworth's Player Piano Center, Home of Yesterday's Music
http://www.pebworths.com