Price of Ivory

[Farrell]

I guess than the real question is do I want to do this work for some very low figure, or should I just quote my fee and if the piano owner doesn't wish to pay it, they will simply not have the work done. As long as you are reasonably busy, I would suggest the latter route, otherwise you are doing yourself an injustice.

Terry Farrell
  
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Dave Nereson" <davner@kaosol.net>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Friday, June 13, 2003 3:03 AM
Subject: Re: Price of Ivory


Wim said: "The charge for the ivory twice what you paid for it..". I can
live with that.<G> ",plus a few bucks to put them on." This I can't live
with!
To properly Replace an Ivory head/tail, it takes appoximately 1 hour to do
the job right, IMO. So....., you should charge a retail price for the Ivory
Head or Tail, Plus one hour of your "Shop Rate". If you are simply regluing
a "recent" ivory "fall off", then, at least 1/2 hour would be required. (And
no charge for the Ivory.


Say your hourly rate is only $50.  Then just the labor to reglue an ivory is $25, if it takes a half hour, and that's if the the ivory wasn't missing.  I can think of very very few piano owners that would pay that much for just one key.  Maybe the people with nice grands that have almost-pristine ivories.  Everybody else would just say, "Forget it; I'll stick it on myself with Crazy Glue!"
    What one should charge and what people will pay are two different things.  
    --David Nereson, RPT