How to explain a pitch adjustment

[Sid Blum]

>The guy who taight me, (third generation Danish family of piano 
>people), remembers the concept "you can't tune it if it is not in 
>tune".


Sid

>I remember reading a quote (which is probably paraphrased): "A piano 
>can be fined tuned ONLY if it's almost in tune". If anyone knows the 
>actual quote, please correct me.
>
>Terry Peterson
>
>
>
>----Original Message Follows----
>From: Conrad Hoffsommer <hoffsoco@luther.edu>
>Reply-To: Pianotech <pianotech@ptg.org>
>To: Pianotech <pianotech@ptg.org>
>Subject: Re: How to explain a pitch adjustment
>Date: Tue, 20 Dec 2005 18:39:52 -0600
>
>At 14:44 12/20/2005, you wrote:
>>Greetings all --
>>
>>Many pianos need a pitch adjustment prior to tuning. Usually 
>>because it hasn't been touched in five years. Therefore, like many 
>>of you I'm sure, I frequently find myself having to explain to 
>>customers what a pitch adjustment is, and why their piano needs one 
>>prior to tuning. I have found that car analogies often help when 
>>explaining things but I have not been able to come up with one that 
>>would help with a pitch adjustment. Even after explaining, as 
>>simply as I know how, the relationship of the incredible string 
>>tension across the plate and why it needs to be equalized before a 
>>fine tuning will hold, I often feel like I'm coming off trying to 
>>sell them something bogus. How do you people explain pitch 
>>adjustments to your customers whose piano needs it so that they not 
>>only understand what it is but why it's important that their piano 
>>gets one prior to tuning?
>>
>>-- Geoff Sykes
>>-- Assoc. Los Angeles
>
>
>Most of the folks I tune for still know about sagging clotheslines. 
>I say something about "you know how when you pull that first line up 
>to the right height. Then you pull up the second. What happens? The 
>first one drops, right?  You're only dealing with 6-8 lines, there. 
>This piano has ____(fill in the blank with an appropriate number) 
>lines.  For things to look right and sound right, you have to first 
>get them all close to where they should be."
>
>
>
>
>
>Conrad Hoffsommer
>You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say will be 
>misquoted, then used against you.
>
>
>
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>
>
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-- 
Sid Blum
sid@sover.net