CAUT's Ethical quandary

[Les Smith]

Hi, Ed.

While I agree in principle with your statement, you still have to admit
that  there are some pretty shifty characters out there hustling pianos.
I'm reminded of the time I walked in to tune a Story and Clark grand
for an elderly gentleman, some years back. He led me to the piano, re-
moved the music desk, and proudly pointed to the plate inside. "Do you
know that this is?" he asked. To which I replied. "The plate." "And do
yuou know what it's made of?", he inquired. To which I answered. "Cast
iron."  "Correct! He said; "and do you know that Story and Clark holds
a tune better than any other piano, because they're the ONLY manufact-
urers who use cast iron plates?" He wasn't kidding. At that point his
wife came in and said that that's what the saleman had told them, and
that was why they had chosen that particular instrument. I guess it's
also why they decided that it only needed to be tuned once a decade!

Les Smith
lessmith@buffnet,net

On Sun, 16 Mar 1997 ETomlinCF3@aol.com wrote:

> John Page and list,
>
> You made a comment...We all know a salesman will tell you anything to make a
> sale.  This is part of the problem.  People make general comments that ALL
> salesman this...and All salesman that.  I have been a tech for many years now
> and have also been a top saleman with a large North West dealer.  We should
> NEVER make general comments like this.  I find most salespeople in this
> business want to deliver the best instrument someone can afford to buy.  I do
> not LIE to make a sale and wish that comments like this would cease.  No good
> can come from this type of  talk.  We need salespeople to sell and they need
> us to tune.  Working together for the common good of pianos and music is what
> we should be in the business for.  Let us not say things that devide us.
>   There are good and bad salespeople and good and bad tuners.  Be careful not
> to over generalize.
>
> Ed Tomlinson
> Tomlinson Tuning and Repair
>