No Subject

[Tvak@AOL.COM]

I got a call from a lady this week.  She had a 1923 Wurlitzer player piano.  
She informed me that the piano needed new bridle straps, and that many of the 
hammer butt springs were not in place,but she wanted to do the work herself 
and asked me if I would sell her some bridle straps, and if there was a tool 
she could buy to get the butt springs back in place.  Also, there were also 
several keys that she could not depress or play, and needed someone to fix 
them for her.  So I made an appointment to come out and fix the "frozen" 
keys.  
I found it unusual that a client would know the correct terminology for 
various parts of the action.  When I came to look at the piano, I found she 
had a copy of the REBLITZ book on piano repair. She was absolutely correct in 
that the piano needed new bridle straps and that several hammer butt springs 
were not in place.  I repositioned the hammer butt springs for her.  The 
"frozen" keys were a result of the jacks being lodged under the hammer butts 
(she had removed and then replaced the action with many broken bridle straps, 
resulting in the jacks being lodged there) so I tripped them out into their 
correct position, thereby "fixing" them.  I then quoted her a price on 
replacing the bridle straps, but she was very interested in doing the bridle 
straps herself.  So I decided to sell her a set of bridle straps, and showed 
her how to go about removing the old bridle straps and install a new set of 
cork-tipped bridle straps.  I charged her for the work I had done and for the 
set of bridle straps and went home.  (She had also, by the way, replaced the 
old felt front key rail punchings with new felt purchased at a fabric store, 
cutting them into circles and punching holes in them herself!  Quite the 
self-starter.)

My question regards the ethics of this situation.  Having only been in the 
newsgroup about 3 months now, I have come to respect the opinions of so many 
of you---what is your collective take on this situation?  Should I have 
refused to supply her with the bridle straps?  She could easily break a 
wippen flange, or a jack.  Then again, she'd call me to come fix it for her.  
I don't know...I'm just curious as to what any of you might have done in this 
situation.

Tom S.
Chicago Area