Wheatstone

[Jacokotze]

Hi , what is this worth 

[David Barnert]

Too many questions. It obviously needs a lot of work. There’s no way to know how much without closer inspection. You haven’t shown us the serial number. Also, the oval badge seems to have been bolted on post-production, with no regard for preserving the text on it. Is it from the same instrument? And it looks like “MANUFACTURER” is misspelled: whether the 3rd letter is an N or a U (it’s hard to tell), it can’t be both, and the next letter is an F.

[alex_holden]

52 minutes ago, David Barnert said:

Also, the oval badge seems to have been bolted on post-production, with no regard for preserving the text on it. Is it from the same instrument? And it looks like “MANUFACTURER” is misspelled: whether the 3rd letter is an N or a U (it’s hard to tell), it can’t be both, and the next letter is an F.

 

I think the badge is probably real; I've seen another like it. The middle line says "PATENTEES&MANFACTS", and the other one I saw also had rivets obscuring the first and last letters. Not Wheatstone's best-designed badge.

[SteveS]

Peaking in through the fretwork, I think I discern a Lachenal-style action.

Another diagnostic - does the handrail have a reed symbol stamped onto it?

[seanc]

You have something that could be worth a lot.. or nothing. 
 

I think your best bet is to try to find a competent repair person and get a diagnosis.

 

You could find that fully restored it is potentially worth $x.  But paying for those repairs will cost 2x $x. At which point posting it as a best offer, fix it yourself restoration project may be your best bet to sell it without putting in a lot of money. And a repair person should be able to give you a reasonable assessment of current value, and possible options.

 

even if you go the basket case route and don’t find a repair person to assess. potential buyers will still want to know if all notes work. Is it in 440 pitch. Are the bellows reasonably tight. Cracks, holes, how many missing screws etc.

 

[Jacokotze]

[Jacokotze]

[Jacokotze]

That’s the inside ?

[Mike Acott]

What! no bushing boards?. A fair amount of work to restore to its potential,is there no sign of a serial number. 

Mike

[Oberon]

You can see the bushing board in the last photo, on the action itself, It just isn't affixed to the end plates

 

This definitely looks like a wheatstone Linota.

Edited April 1, 2023 by Oberon

[DickT]

The screw holes are there showing that there was a bushing board or that the instrument was designed to have one. The Linota stamp on the handle seems a bit rough, is this normal?

[Oberon]

DickT, as I mentioned in the comment before yours, if you carefully look at the last photo, there is a bushing board on the buttons. It seems the screws were removed for some reason and the bushing board is just held in place by the buttons and ends covering the buttons 

[DickT]

OK, I see what you mean.

[Stephen Chambers]

It looks typical for a late-1930's, middle price range No. 55, Linota with (optional-extra) nickel-plated tops.

[JimR]

What do you make of this out of focus hole? Thumbscrew?

 

 

Edited April 2, 2023 by JimR
edited for clarity

[alex_holden]

1 hour ago, JimR said:

What do you make of this out of focus hole? Thumbscrew?

 

Yes.

[Jacokotze]

19 24 ? Is what the internet says 

[Stephen Chambers]

10 hours ago, Jacokotze said:

19 24 ? Is what the internet says 

 

Better still then, I should have put my glasses on to study the out-of-focus photo of the riveted action (lever mechanism) for myself instead of accepting somebody else's assertion that it was Lachenal-style (as Wheatstone's became from the mid-1930s onwards).