Bad Pianos Are Good Pianos

[Farrell]

Well, actually the wrecker work went at about $42 per hour, and the good
piano work worked out to about $30 per hour. Plus, yes, I do not have work
coming out of my ears. The bottom line was two tunings on both days. Decent
money one day, home with a kinda-thin wallet the other. Just an observation.
Part of it also is that I am not real fast yet. An average tuning still
takes me a good 90 minutes by the time I program my SAT, checking the
tuning, two pass tunings, bill the client, pet the dog, listen to Susie play
Jingle Bells, etc. Figuring in driving also, I would still schedule simple
tunings two hours apart. So that is also partly why simple clean tunings do
not make me as much money. I know if you can be in and out of a house in an
hour, and schedule three tunings on the block, you can do pretty well. I'm
not there yet. And if I keep developing my experience with belly and action
work, I may just get too busy with profitable shop work to get there! Who
knows? Your point is well taken.

Terry Farrell

----- Original Message -----
From: "Clyde Hollinger" <cedel@supernet.com>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Tuesday, August 28, 2001 1:33 PM
Subject: Re: Bad Pianos Are Good Pianos


> Terry,
>
> This is your old spoilsport speaking.  If you're short of work, sure I can
see
> your point, but on a per-hour basis of actual work, the two days weren't
all
> that different, were they?  When I schedule five tunings per day (usually
a
> four-day work week), I'm really not all that excited about unexpected
work, but
> it's not real big problem, either.  I do what I can within the allotted
time and
> schedule another appointment to finish the work.
>
> Regards, Clyde
>
> Farrell wrote:
>
> > Last Thursday I had two tuning appointments. I serviced a BAD 100 year
old
> > Kimball grand. The lady wanted it tuned, but it also needed keys and
dampers
> > fixed just so that I could tune the darn thing. Four and a half hours
later
> > it was tuned. Then I went to tune a NEW Baldwin Hamilton. Flat, had to
align
> > many hammers because they were not hitting the strings, some hammers
loose
> > from shanks, keys not level, etc. Three hours later tuned. I made $380
that
> > day.
> >
> > Yesterday I had two tuning appointments. I had tuned both within the
last
> > year (newer Yamaha grand and an as-good-as-it-gets Kimball grand). Both
> > within 4 cents of A440. Two pass tunings. Four and a half hours later
> > (drive, tune, drive, tune, etc.) I had $150.
> >
> > I take back everything I have said about junk pianos. I LOVE THEM!!!!
> >
> > Terry Farrell
>
>
>