Al, The customer is understandably upset at having the piano tuned and then discovering that it is unusable. Furthermore, he or she has no way of knowing what to expect of either pianos or technicians. Your idea of soliciting opinions and presenting them to the customer is a good one. In addition, I would present the closest thing to a PTG position on the question, which is the PTG Technical Bulletin #1 on Pitch Raising published by the home office. I always carry all six bulletins with me in a folder and hand them to my customer to read whenever any of them applies. In this case the Bulletin cautions the customer on the possibility of broken strings, depending upon the condition of the piano, but never of failing rib joints. The problem is so unforseeable that it is not even mentioned. If the customer wishes to pay for a complete inspection (preferably before buying), it is reasonable to expect the problem to be detected. Furthermore, if the ribs were already buzzing when you started your tuning, I agree that it is reasonable to expect you to report it. But the situation which you describe, where the added tension on the piano was enough to cause the already fragile rib joints to come apart, is so rare and unusual that it can only be described as bad luck. As for the other technician, you are getting your customer's interpretation of what the person said. He or she may have merely expressed the same incredulity that any of us has for such an unusual occurance. He or she may have said something like, " I guess it's possible...but that's very unusual..." It is, however, always appropriate for the customer to compare credentials. Paul S. Larudee, RPT Richmond, CA
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