Grey Market

[Anthony G Caught]

Keith,

At present I am in the middle of Australia, 1,500 K's from home, been
travelling over dirt roads that have been washed out and ran into a giant
lizard that smashed my spotlights.

Yes I missread you post about the relevant bit, I jumped onto the Yamaha
site and read it all about these nasty imported pianos. Then I carried on
reading about how if you buy one of these pianos you won't be able to get
parts for it becaue Yahaha make so many pianos that these parts are
unavailable in America. I think that was how it read.

On reading that I said to my self "no respectable piano tuner would believe
that, pianos come in different sizes 108 CM  112 CM  118 CM  121 CM  131 CM
and thats the uprights. All the parts are standard to their respective
model.  What is it  ? three action sizes with variations on the wippens and
Capstains.

How can they come out with a statement like that and be believable ?.

Am not privy to any information on what other manufacturers do but I figure
that if they did make them for different climatic conditions their slaes
teams would be telling us all about it.

As for 4 & 5 as far as I am concerned, the quality of the Yamaha piano for
the Japanese market is as good if not better than those made for export.
Its just that Yamaha USA is knocking Yamaha Japan without proper
explanation.

The grey market thingie has been going on in this country for some time and
Yamaha Australia have said "These used Yamaha pianos that are coming into
our country are not imported by us and will not be imported by us because
they are an inferior product to the pianos that are imported by us. They are
made for the local market and as the Japanese people do not want old pianos
(Japanese trade in their pianos every 10 to 15 years) they are not made to
last."

Now I for one don't believe that an if thats not starting a rumor what is
it. ?

Keith, this thingo about Grey Market pianos has been on the list so much and
so often and the questions and answers have been so confusing that I guess I
jumped too much and too hard when I read Yamaha's thingie that you pointed
us to. To me that just confused the plot even further.

Tony Caught
Australia
caute@optusnet.com.au
----- Original Message -----
From: <kam544@flash.net>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Thursday, February 08, 2001 6:23 AM
Subject: Re: Grey Market


> Tony, List,
>
> >There is nothing worse than believing what you read in SALES PROMOTION
> >MATERIAL and saying that it is true.
> >Tony Caught
>
> What I said, Tony, is, "Here is one of their web sites with relevant
info:"
> [Relevant means: Having a bearing on or connection with the matter at
hand.]
>
> >...Keith, read between the lines, then tell me that
> >1. You do not have a climatic condition somewere in the USA that is not
the
> >same as the Japanese climate ?
>
> Of course, on the surface of things, it would be easy for an individual to
> assume such a thing.  But aside from that, Yamaha has stated reasons to
> support geographical marketing based on past experiences which are
> perfectly reasonable to me.  Just consider the enormous undertaking to
make
> such an alteration in manufacturing on strictly a marketing whim.
> Personally, I can't buy into that.
>
> >3. Why is it that all the other piano manufacturers don't make pianos for
> >different climates.
>
> I really don't know that some of them don't.  Are you privy to such
> information otherwise?
>
> As to your number 4 & 5 comments, I just can't go along with this
> incongruous reasoning based on Yamaha's past record and their continued
> demonstration in the piano industry.  For me they are a class act, and
> there is no getting around it.
>
> Keith McGavern
> Registered Piano Technician
> Oklahoma Chapter 731
> Piano Technicians Guild
> USA
>
>