Apprentice

[Gregory Torres]

Dear List,

I need some input and ideas regarding a situation that has come up.

There is someone in my area whom I don't know who has called and inquired
about the possibility of being an apprentice. I do not have very much shop
work, just an occasional rebuild, action and keytop work, etc. I also am
renting the house I am in now, with a small one car garage for a shop. I
do not have homeowners insurance.

I was wondering what, if anything, I could do for this fellow. What
liabilities, etc.  There are only 2 other tech's in the area One is not
interested at all and the other is not someone who I would send anyone to.
(If you recall a while back I posted about a "tech" who used rubber faucet
washers in place of felt and paper balance rail punchings on a "rebuild",
and this is the kind of stuff he does regularly)

I thought about recommending the Randy Potter school. Are there any other
things I could suggest? I remember when I started out 25 years ago with
really no one to help me except one technician who helped point me in the
right direction as far as basic tuning theory and listening to beat rates,
etc. I was fortunate enough to get a part time job doing floor tunings 2
days a week at a big dealership and then full time in a shop where we
rebuilt or reconditioned just about every kind of piano imaginable. I
learned a great deal in a very short while.

Just wanted to get some opinions and thoughts. I would like to help this
fellow if I can.

Thanks in advance.

Sincerely,
Greg Torres