Also check to see if the pins are sufficiently tight, and that the coils are neat with no gaps. Check the bridges for large cracks and so on to make certain that the problem is not structural. Where is the piano located in the house? Is it next to a heat register or up against a window? Was the piano recently restrung? (that's a pretty unlilkely one). Of course, as some have stated, it could simply be a less than solid tuning. I ALWAYS use solid, firm test blows to fully render/equalize and set each and every string; don't be afraid to do this, as it will help to assure better, longer lasting results. You also must know how to set a tuning pin so it WILL NOT move. Knowledge is one thing; technique is another. Both can be learned. When I first started in this business, my mentor said: "on average, a newbie needs to tune about 1,000 pianos until he/she is proficient." Seems like a lot, but basically the longer your at it, the better you'll get, providing you have the will and basic skills to build on Terry Peterson ----Original Message Follows---- From: "David Love" <davidlovepianos@comcast.net> Reply-To: Pianotech <pianotech@ptg.org> To: "'Pianotech'" <pianotech@ptg.org> Subject: RE: Help with "bad" tuning...need help Date: Mon, 13 Dec 2004 20:06:13 -0800 Since you are a new tuner (and even if you weren’t), you should go back and find out what is at issue. Schedule it at your convenience but don’t wait too long. You need to find out if the problem is yours, not setting solid unisons, or one of the piano continuing to drift off pitch from a large pitch raise. If you have an ETD you will be able to measure the pitch drift if you set the pitch at A440. A piano that is ¼ step flat is significantly out of tune and may not stabilize even after a pitch raise and fine tuning. Check to be sure that the piano is not sitting over a heater vent or is otherwise in an unstable room in the house. If the problem is yours fix it. If the pitch is still drifting tell them that you should have explained that after a significant pitch raise the piano may not achieve stability right away and sometimes requires another tuning sooner than it would otherwise. If that is the case, suggest that the piano sit for another couple of weeks and schedule another tuning for which they will have to pay full fee. If the problem is yours--unstable unisons--tell them that more frequent tunings will help insure greater stability between tunings and try and schedule the next appointment. Above all, be relaxed and confident. David Love davidlovepianos@comcast.net -----Original Message----- From: pianotech-bounces@ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org] On Behalf Of Doug Renz Piano Tuning Sent: Monday, December 13, 2004 5:52 PM To: pianotech@ptg.org Subject: Help with "bad" tuning...need help As a new piano tuner, I am learning a lot as I go and tune different piano’s and typically I am tuning the older piano’s and some new/better ones. This past Sat. I tuned a piano for a home that had a console that had never been tuned ‘in a long time’. I warned them that I might break strings and that it will go out of tune quickly because of the condition of the strings and the piano itself. Well I was called back by the customer saying ‘the piano is still out of tune and you must not have checked it before you left’. Before I left I told him, ‘your piano is most likely going to go flat somewhat because it has not been tuned at all in such a long time (20+ yrs) and that it should tuned every 6 months. The piano was old and recently had some action work, but the strings looked old and dirty. I was careful not to break any strings and when I left it sounded good and the funny thing was the customer said it sounded good after I finished. It was not that out of tune, A440 sounded like it was between g-sharp and a, but not an entire half/step off. So, what do I do now? Has anyone been in my shoes before? Go back and do a ‘free’ fix it up tuning, or tell him, he has to pay for a 2nd tuning. Is this going to risk my reputation? He had the action done by another local PTG member and I am afraid that if I don’t go back and ‘fix’ this, I am going to get that reputation and the other PTG member might tell others about the ‘part time’ tooner, which I do not want to be and this is why I joined the PTG, to get better. Any thoughts on this would be greatly appreciated. I thought the tuning was good, inspite of the condition of the piano and the strings. It sounded alot better, but I knew it was going to need another tuning soon. Any advice, thoughts? Thanks. Doug Renz Associate PTG member, Rochester, NY
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