What does manufacturer uncrated piano mean ?

[eightyolk]

Hi all,

First of all, I would like to express my appreciation for this great forum. Its been a great resource for me as we looked into pianos for our kids. Fortunately or unfortunately, we have now reached the point where they need to graduate from the digital Clavinova to an acoustic piano.

We were at a Yamaha dealer last night and they offered us a great price on a new piano. They said the reason for it was that when they bought it from Yamaha USA, it was an uncrated piano so Yamaha USA gave them a substantial discount and that was why they could give us a discount on it vs a regular new piano.

I tried to look up what Yamaha uncrated means, but I can't find in anywhere (maybe I am not looking correctly). Is anyone familiar with manufacturer uncrated pianos and the likely reasons why they are uncrated? and more importantly, should I buy it?

Thanks so much !   

[quantum]

This may have less to do with Yamaha, and more to do with shipping methods.  This may be referring to crates used in shipping. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crate

If you google "crating piano" you will get several examples from shipping companies.

Try the piano in person.  If you like it and are considering buying it, bring your own independent tech to check out the piano.  Emphasis is on your own tech, not the tech the dealership offers you.  If all checks out you can proceed to negotiating a price.  Make sure to bring in any concerns your tech gives you within negotiations. 

Some advice: if you really like the piano, feel an attachment to it, and really want to buy it, don't reveal that to the dealer through speech or body language.  Be prepared to walk away even if your heart says not to, even if the dealer says someone else is looking at that same piano.  It is very likely it will still be there unsold for the next few days.  You may want to consider doing some negotiations, then tell the dealer you are going to walk and check out what the competition has to offer.  Return to the dealer in a day or two.