Time to level pins, dress coils...?

[Ward & Probst]

Newton,
Not a flame, just an observation. I have had three pianos in the last 18
months that I have dressed the coils and leveled the pins. All were victims
of poor stringing jobs- Steinway O, Yamaha G2, Starr 5' Grand.  All three
were unstable prior to the work and have held well since. I averaged about a
day on each- tuning included with some regulation, voicing etc. thrown in.
Couple of tips- a blunt screwdriver blade can be used in tight spaces as a
string lifter and return the tuning lever to approximately the same position
it was in before you let the tension down. It will not be at pitch but will
be close. I start at A0 and work to C8, get those big strings out of the way
while fresh. I also wear weightlifters gloves to relieve a little stress on
the hands. Hope this helps.
By the way, we will have stringing classes in Arlington: one by Greg Hulme
and Kent Webb will teach on restringing Baldwin pianos with AccuJust hitch
pins. Also, hands on stringing skills classes.

Couldn't help myself,
Dale

Dale Probst
Institute Director
PTG Annual Convention
Arlington, VA--July 5-9,2000
wardprobst@cst.net
(940)691-3682 voice
(940) 691-6843 fax




-----Original Message-----
From: owner-pianotech@ptg.org [mailto:owner-pianotech@ptg.org]On Behalf
Of Newton Hunt
Sent: Tuesday, December 07, 1999 10:28 AM
To: pianotech@ptg.org
Subject: Re: Time to level pins, dress coils...?


Dear Diane,

You raise a valuable question so I am going to start a flame worthy
thread with it.  Please do not take this too personally, I intend no
denigration of you.  (Original quote is below.)

The question arises, did you do this to satisfy your desire for a
pretty and sightly arrangement of the pins and coils or did you do it
for the immediate benefit of the piano and the customer.

Yes nice coils are nice but the piano had stood in a semblance of tune
for 25 years so the question becomes will the piano stay substantially
longer in tune after the work as it would have before the work?

Doing work for our professional esthetic is great when we are doing an
original stringing (in this example) where the time investment is
small relative to the whole job.  Doing pin and coil work on a new
piano does have a customer benefit, appearance AND tuning stability
because the strings are new, the pins are new so there is no corrosion
to help keep them in place.

With an older piano the benefit may well be moot.

Doing work just to satisfy your personal reasons does not necessarily
benefit the customer and charging full price for it may well be doing
the customer a disservice.

Where does the line reside?  _I_ cannot say because I do not know.
But somewhere between our desire to do perfect work, our wallet, and
the benefit to the piano and customer based upon the overall condition
of the instrument, the uses of the piano, the capabilities of the
players, the value of the instrument, our reputation and the
durability of the piano.  These and other factors need to be
considered before even SUGGESTING the choices of benefits of the work
to the customer.  Convincing a customer is sales hype.  Providing a
range of choices, the advantages and disadvantages of each allows the
customer the opportunity to choose what or what not to do.

Charge her for half your time investment.

Forgive me Diane.

		Newton  (Flame suit is on.)

Diane Hofstetter wrote:
>
> Dear list;
>
>   Was called to tune a 1973 Story & Clark grand just before Thanksgiving
for
> a party.  Found the tuning pins at all different heights and the coils
were
> a mess.  Customer insisted parents bought the piano new in 1973 and it had
> never been restrung, so I guess it came from the factory that way? The
piano
> was grossly flat and it turned out the party wasn't until Dec. 11 so I
> talked them into having me straighten the coils and level the pins.  I
> couldn't figure out what to charge them, but since I was just about to
> string a piano, thought that I would know in a few days.
>
>   Turns out I don't string that way at all, but dress the coils after
every
> few pins and level after each section, so don't know how long it will
take!
> I would guess about 2-3 hours??  Anyone have any input on this for me?
>
>   Thanks!
>   Diane
>
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