Re-purposing an old piano

There was a guy on here maybe 10 years ago who did a lot of piano recycling.  I want to say he was in the LA area, named Mike.  But I may be mixing him up with someone else.  At any rate, I do remember some discussion on that subject if you can find it!

Google: How to restore a piano. Lots of stuff comes up.

On TV and the internet I've seen some projects in which an old piano was converted into a bar cabinet or a bookcase, still retaining the look of a piano without its musical function. I remember one where the piano was painted white and had LED light strips installed for dramatic effect. Not my cup of tea, but one way to repurpose an older piece.

I've read that the wood used in pianos isn't typically that valuable, often softwood pieces that serve their purpose but not a lot different from framing lumber. The soundboard might be useful for thin pieces, maybe useful in making boxes. There are 88 longish pieces of fairly good wood that transfer the finger pressure on the keys to the mechanical action. On my piano they look like maple (not much character) but seem lighter, more like poplar. They're not straight pieces because each one has to bend a little to engage the action in the right place. I've lifted these pieces out to clean under them and it was easy.

The steel frame that holds the piano strings has tons of tension stored in the strings and I don't have any knowledge of how it should be disassembled. At the very least, eye protection should be worn.

If the piano is nicely veneered, there are a few largish pieces (top, sides, and panels above and below the keyboard) that could be trimmed to size and assembled into something. Very old pianos may have carvings or fluted columns.

You Tube is your friend for this. At least 15 videos for "repurpose piano".

If you do repurpose, list the removed parts that look OK on eBay. You may connect with a piano restorer that needs them.