<!doctype html public "-//w3c//dtd html 4.0 transitional//en"> <html> <body bgcolor="#FFFFFF"> Geeshh... thats right.... you're in Vegas.... Gawd... think of tuning for all those casinos... I hope they turn off the aural bubble bath for the time it takes you to tune. Must be fun Robert. Cheers RicB Robert Goodale wrote: <blockquote TYPE=CITE><style></style> More obvious than not the constant  "close to 100% humidity" compounded with salt air is causing major havoc on these pianos.  They would probably require at least a day's work every six months to remain simi-playable.  Their attitude toward maintenance sounds verbatim of what it's like in Las Vegas hotels.  Spend a billion dollars on a hotel/casino, by a piano, forget about it until the legs fall off.  They get regular tuning, sometimes twice a week, but could care less how many spilled drinks and cigarette ashes are in them, how flat the hammers are, how out of regulation they are, how beat up they are from constant moving, etc.  Sometimes they give you an opportunity to do SOME work only if the pianist regularly complains and begs, but pulling the action and taking it to the shop for a few days is out of the question. The MGM is the worst, (that I am currently aware of).  The policy is that they will not replace any durable good unless their accountants can ascertain that the item will pay for itself within a five year period, (i.e. the profits gained from it's use must be able to cover the replacement cost in five years), few exceptions.  Just a hint: The current pianos are now about 8+ years old and terrible. I think your only hope in this case is to professionally present yourself to the company's entertainment department chief and detail your findings.  Present a rehearsed argument as to why the work is necessary given the replacement cost of the instrument, (and when it comes down to it, longevity and replacement costs are what they are most interested in).  If you can present them with some long term expense figures, possibly even some maintenance recommendations in a letter directly from Steinway, you might be able to wedge a crowbar into their wallets. Good luck, Rob Goodale, RPTLas Vegas, NV  <major snip> <blockquote dir=ltr style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">What I can't understand is how a piano can get to 4 years old in a situation where it is played constantly and still not be stable in the above area. What have I missed. No I did not do the other pianos or do more work on the main one, reason, they only want the pianos tuned and that's all they will pay for. Doing the extra was for my benefit. Still learning. But, I am annoyed that I can't do my job as I want to. Regards  Tony Caught Darwin Australia</blockquote> </blockquote> -- Richard Brekne RPT, N.P.T.F. UiB, Bergen, Norway <A HREF="mailto:rbrekne@broadpark.no">mailto:rbrekne@broadpark.no</A> <A HREF="http://home.broadpark.no/~rbrekne/ricmain.html">http://home.broadpark.no/~rbrekne/ricmain.html</A>   </body> </html>