Time to level pins, dress coils...?

[Billbrpt@AOL.COM]

In a message dated 12/8/99 5:42:05 AM Pacific Standard Time, JIMRPT@AOL.COM 
writes:

<< If you decide to go ahead and pound these puppies...do take the advice of 
 several and make sure the length of the pin will not cause problems by 
 protruding from the bottom of the block.
 
 My call would be clean this thingees up but I haven't seen how they are and 
I 
 don't know the other factors in this particular instrument/family. >>

Dear Diane,

I didn't get a chance to read much of this thread but I was up early this 
morning.  (It's really amazing how much energy I have during the season where 
my clientele *forces* me to tune 6-7 pianos a day for two months in a row!)  
My thoughts are in line with Jim's this morning.  This kind of thing used to 
drive me nuts.  Whatever problem it was, it *must* be corrected, *now*.

However, as time has marched onward for me somewhat, wiser advice from some 
of my colleagues has begun to prevail.  One of the wisest pieces of advice 
(and I have heard it from some of PTG's very finest) is to *never* bring up 
this kind of thing with the customer on your first visit.  The reason being 
that it will also probably be your *last* visit, regardless of the propriety 
of your thinking, motivation and willingness to bend over backwards to do 
what is right.

In short, take the wisest (and most efficient) advice and JUST TUNE IT!  From 
what I have read, this condition has existed for 25 years (more than you 
have, perhaps?), so you can safely bet that it has been seen and disregarded 
many times before.  I have been in many situations where I have seen a very 
bad condition when I was being asked to tune a piano for an event or 
performance.  If I brought up the problem at this critical moment, the very 
first question has always been, "Why has no other tuner, and there have been 
many of them over these many, many long years, ever said what you are saying?"

There is also a somewhat universal piece of advice for any skilled trade.  
Don't get involved trying to patch up or fix someone else's bad work.  Now, I 
don't necessarily agree with that advice but the time and place for it is not 
during what is supposed to be a routine service call for tuning during your 
busiest time of year.  You have already indicated that you were not going to 
charge extra for anything, so if you do anything other than a usual tuning 
and they never call you again, you will have wasted your time and skill on a 
customer who was not worth it at all.

In such an instance, your tuning is likely to be stable enough for these 
people even if it sounds substandard to you.  Even if they called you back 
and said that the piano player at the party said that the tuning was poor, 
this would be the time to bring up the problem.  You would not owe them a 
second tuning.  You could say that you would tune it again but only if they 
paid for the pin and coil setting, plate bolt tightening, etc.  If they say 
that there was never any problem before, your answer should be that the 
condition you found, needing a pitch raise, etc., did not reflect that 
opinion.  The reason no one else ever said anything was the same reason you 
did not, no one asked your opinion of the condition, only to tune it.

In this case, the cat is already out of the bag.  But you may be able to do 
some good if you provide only a regular tuning and make an appointment with 
them for sometime in January to reset the coils and pins (if you determine 
that this will actually help the situation).  Plan for an entire day, have 
them let you in before they go to work and pound away while they are out.  
The action probably is a mess too, so fix it all up in whatever you can do in 
a day.  Your fee should be the same, at least, as if you had done 4 or 5 
tunings.  If they don't want to pay it, advise them to get a second opinion 
and call you back if they change their minds.

In the future, if you encounter such a situation, wait until they call you 
again before you bring up the problem and make your proposal to do the 
repairs then, unless they call you at Christmas time again and just do the 
same thing again but this time, tell them that you will need to come back for 
a full day in January.  If you want some repair business during a slower 
time, send the customer a detailed and clearly stated letter that explains 
the problem and your proposal to remedy it.  You may still get the same, "No 
other tuner ever said..." but if you do, you have not put yourself out for 
nothing and still may be able to persuade them to have you do the work.

Good luck and have a joyous and prosperous season.

Bill Bremmer RPT
Madison, Wisconsin