Victor console

[Clyde Hollinger]

Stephen,

Fascinating that you got a lot more response about being in a different time
zone than to your questions.  The one response you did get was from another tech
in New Zealand.  It may be that few of us in the rest of the world have run into
Victor pianos; I know I've never seen one.  By the way it sounds I hope I never
do!  :-)

As to the overtight tuning pins, does anyone have an answer for this?  I hope
so; I would like to know, too.  That is, short of removing them all and reaming
the holes or something like that.

I think I would have done what you did, Steve.  At the very least I would have
had a heart-to-heart talk with the owner before proceeding, pointing out that
even if I try to tune the piano, I would need to charge more for the time
involved and the results may not be all that satisfactory.  There is also the
danger of shearing off some pins, and the client would need to pay for the
repair, since the problem is caused by the piano, not your error.  One last
suggestion -- even though the dealer is out of business, can the manufacturer be
contacted for suggestions?

I hate walking away from a piano leaving a problem unresolved.  Last November I
tuned 1961 Starck console that popped TWO single-wound strings for no obvious
reasons.  No strings had torn before, and the piano has received annual service
from me since 1990.  I really am afraid of the dumb thing and don't want to ever
see it again, but I feel a certain loyalty to the clients.  Rightly or wrongly,
I sidestepped the issue by not calling the client and moving the record card to
November, 2000.

Got to get showered and go take care of some pianos.  Good day, Stephen and
everyone.

Regards,
Clyde Hollinger, RPT
Lititz, PA, USA
3151

Stephen Powell wrote:

> Hello List
>
> Would appreciate comments on the following situation that I found myself in
> yesterday:  New client with about a 6 yr old Victor (Korean or Indonesian,
> I'm not sure) that she has owned for 4 yrs and not had tuned.  Piano was
> bought from a dealer who is no longer in business.  This horrible little
> piano was about 15 cents flat.  Tone and overall quality of the instrument
> leaves a lot to be desired.  Anyway, I soon discovered that the pins were so
> tight that I could barely turn them and so pin flex was extreme.  After
> attempting to tune for about 10 minutes, I decided that I had two options:
>     1. Wrestle with the piano for several hours and walk away feeling
> uncomfortable with the quality of the tuning and the likely stability, with
> a sore arm!;
>     2. Tidy up some of the unisons so the piano would sound a little better,
> take care of some misc. problems, and advise the client to trade the piano
> in for a better one.
>
> I chose option 2.  The client was disappointed to here about the problems
> with the piano, but seemed to value my advise, and is looking at trading it
> in.  Thankfully she wasn't too keen on the look of the piano in this huge
> house (pots of money!)
>
> Q. Do you think I did the right thing or should I have worked harder to
> improve the PSO?  What if the piano had belonged to less affluent owners?
> Q. Why are these  Asian (not Japanese) pianos coming out with such tight
> tuning pins?  I just don't think the pins need to be nearly that tight.  Is
> there an easy fix for over tight pins?  Thoughts?
>
> Thanks in advance,
>
> Stephen Powell RPT
> Auckland, NZ
>
> P.S.  Owners dog jumped all over me when she opened the front door.  I
> really hate that.  Later damn dog grabbed something from my case and ran and
> hid under a bed!  They wrestled a packet of voicing needles out of it's
> mouth.  I was wishing it would swallow them and leave me alone!! (I like
> animals really!).