Hello

I have a yamaha digital piano which is great for scales etc but lacks some feel to it but have just acquired a free old upright which looks to be straight strung Which I know is not preferable. Bearing in mind it was free and will be used for practise with a greater feel, will my piano tuner laugh at me, have I wasted my time. Currently finding it hard going from digital in house to grand Yamaha at teachers.

Reassurance needed

Obviously overstrung uprights are generally regarded as producing a better sound but there's no reason why you can't continue to use this one. It's free too, better than a kick in the teeth!

I had a very nice Collard and Collard once that was straight strung. Why not ask the piano tuner to have a look at it before you go to the trouble of moving it? It might be fine but it might be past its sell by date and not worth the bother.

The reason for overstringing is to get longer strings in a piano while keeping the height down. A straight-strung piano can sound excellent, and can have long bass strings if it is tall enough.

As petrat says, the main thing is to make sure that it is in reasonable condition - holds tune, action fairly even, dampers working, fast repeats possible etc., or if it is not that it can be put quickly into good shape, at reasonable cost

Having done work experience with a piano tuner, I can say that straight strung pianos can be better than some others...Plus they are actually easier to tune! But you do need to have a look at it and make sure because second hand piano given away for free can be a bit hit and miss!