[pianotech] Is this the work of an RPT?

[Duaine Hechler]

On 08/30/2011 03:09 PM, Bill Fritz wrote:
> We all know the PTG pushes the general public to only use “RPT’s” for piano work.If a potential customer finds the 
> www.ptg.org <http://www.ptg.org/> website, they can enter their zip code and will see (only) RPT’s who live close to 
> them...but how can the PTG condone the RPT work shown in the attached photos?
> If the PTG is only going to push market “qualified technicians” to the general public AND have the general public 
> appreciate the professionalism of the PTG, then the RPT label needs to be associated w/ quality, and NOT be 
> represented by the work in the attached pics… and yet it is, and more regularly than one might like or think.
> Similar to other professions (Engineers, etc), the PTG needs to have ongoing qualification of those w/ the RPT 
> “label”. Passing a test 30-40 years ago and hoping they will retire soon is not a strategy that ensures professionalism.
> On the contrary, being a Piano Technician is an excellent way to “semi-retire”...and I doubt many Piano Technicians 
> would dream of quitting at the age of 65 or earlier.My guess (which is somewhat confirmed by my father who finally 
> retired at the age of 86) is that these RPT’s will continue to tune & repair & regulate.(In fact, the RPT who did the 
> attached work is my age – 61 – and will only quit when his physical being prohibits him from continuing, and not 
> before.)Saying that the older tested Craftsmen or RPT’s will retire is wishful thinking… and ignores the elephant in 
> the room.
> So... does the PTG NOT care about those RPT’s they promoted who don’t live up to that status, years later?
> It doesn’t seem so...see the quote taken from an RPT’s webpage:“The most important thing the Piano Technicians Guild 
> does is to qualify technicians as Registered Piano Technicians to assure quality piano service by requiring that a 
> technician pass a rigorous set of examinations.”PSThis particular RPT hasn’t been to a Convention for many years… and 
> has only been to one local Chapter meeting in the past 15 years.
> I would have thought that “the most important thing the PTG does” is to increase & improve the knowledge & capability 
> of their members.The ptg.org website only words it slightly different:The most important thing that the PTG does is 
> “to promote the highest possible service and technical standards among piano tuners and technicians.”
> Would you call the work shown in the attached photos “high quality service”?Maybe this Technician (sample work 
> attached) once had that ability, but it appears to be gone now.
> How about requiring RPT’s to pass a reduced, rigorous set of tests every 10 years or less... perhaps at a PTG 
> Convention, in order to maintain their RPT status. (That would kill 2 birds w/ one stone… that of also getting RPT’s 
> to show up to a Convention at least once every 10 years.) If they fail, they get 1 year to re-test... and after a 2^nd 
> failure they can no longer legally use the RPT label.
> The PTG needs some type of “Continuing Education and/or Testing” requirement for continued RPT status.
> The PTG should not a “Club” or “Union”, where one gets thru an “initiation” and then cannot be thrown out or fired.
> We need to make the RPT status mean something at ANY given point in time, not just initial testing (especially long 
> ago)…otherwise, the general public will not only NOT care about an RPT label, they won’t even care if ANY of us are 
> PTG members.
> Bill Fritz, Associate, St Louis
> PS  I know this subject matter probably should reside in the ptg-l email threads, but this one gets much more exposure 
> & interest.
>
WOW, like Bill and to a lot of you members, I'm just a lowly Associate too, and I would not dare do work like this. So 
in this case, the status of RPT does not amount to a hill of beans. And, furthermore, out of all my customers, I've been 
only asked ONCE what an RPT is. Plus, the tests don't prove nothing - it's the work that's the proof of the pudding.

Regards,
Duaine

-- 
Duaine Hechler
Piano, Player Piano, Pump Organ
Tuning, Servicing&  Rebuilding
Reed Organ Society Member
Florissant, MO 63034
(314) 838-5587
dahechler at att.net
www.hechlerpianoandorgan.com
--
Home&  Business user of Linux - 11 years