Lawsuits: Broken Plate

[Maxpiano@aol.com]

Marcel -

If your friend has opportunity to return for inspection to bolster his
defense, I suggest asking, is there any rust on part of the break in the
plate?  This would indicate a pre-existing crack.

I was once given the opportunity to take anything I wanted from an upright
with a broken plate (Another technician had raised the pitch, apparently
without inspecting for flaws first), and where the tenor-treble strut let go,
the outside portion was rusty, deeper in was fresh gray.  Obviously it had
been cracked for some time.

(Someone mentioned "dust" in an earlier post - could that have been a typo?)

I am wondering if there is any body of evidence that will stand up in court,
that bears out the experience of all of us, that plates are designed to
withstand tensions well in excess of that incurred in tuning to A=440; and if
one fails it is the fault of the plate or its installation.  I have not had
one break in 40+ years of tuning, though I have done probably thousands of
pitch raises, and gone somewhat gingerly over tuning where I saw cracks in
the plate.

And $2000 for an Anne Onimous er- no name- upright?  Was this in Hawaii where
they get S&S prices for Betsy Ross spinets?

Bill Maxim, RPT