<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; = charset=iso-8859-1"> <META content="MSHTML 5.50.4522.1800" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV>I disagree. The previous situation with the poor rebuilding I = pursued a bit. I asked around without mentioning the situation and found out that = the guy had retired and was not in the business of rebuilding anymore. Case = closed in my opinion. I dropped it at that point.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Giving a value of a piano upon request is something most of = us, or at least I, do regularly. My estimate for current value appears in the = correct range. My estimate for new value today does indeed appear low, but I = made it clear to her I was not real sure of that and I would check (hence, my = post). I don't really think this makes me "the one guilty of bad business = practices", not by a long shot.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>"If she volunteered the amount she paid and you thought it may be excessive, avoiding the issue with remarks about how nice of a piano it = is would have been a much better thing to say."</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>If you had read my original post and understood it, you would know = that she specifically asked me what my opinion of its current worth would be. And = I answered her with my best effort. Answering with "it's a nice piano" = would be unprofessional, IMHO.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Terry Farrell <SPAN = id=__#Ath#SignaturePos__></SPAN> </DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; = BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV> <DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: = black"><B>From:</B> <A title=Billbrpt@AOL.COM = href="mailto:Billbrpt@AOL.COM">Billbrpt@AOL.COM</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A = title=pianotech@ptg.org href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">pianotech@ptg.org</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Thursday, October 11, = 2001 2:42 PM</DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: Piano Fiasco</DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica><FONT size=2>In a = message dated 10/11/01 1:19:19 PM Central Daylight Time, <A href="mailto:mfarrel2@tampabay.rr.com">mfarrel2@tampabay.rr.com</A> = (Farrell) writes: <BR><BR><BR> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px = solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px" TYPE="CITE">There are a few people in this business that are just = plain garbage. I <BR>really have quite a few more colorful words at the = tip of my tongue, but <BR>I'll leave it at that. <BR></BLOCKQUOTE></FONT><FONT = lang=0 face=Arial color=#000000 size=3 = FAMILY="SANSSERIF"><BR><BR>Terry, <BR><BR>It seems to me that you often get way too caught up in things that are = really none of your business and by doing so, you can really get into trouble = or at least harm your own business.  Not too long ago you were very = concerned about what to do about a rebuilding job that you thought was very = poor.  While you may have been entirely correct about your assessment, = getting involved with it could have been a very bad mistake. <BR><BR>Now this. =  Giving a free, off the cuff value to any piano should not be = done.  Your figure for what you think a new C3 would go for seems = pretty low, so your statements may have been misinformation. In that case, you = would be , not the dealer.  If you had answered the question about what you *thought* the piano was worth with, "I'm not sure without doing a = little research" and followed by offering to do a professional (for a fee) = appraisal, she probably would have dropped the matter then and there. <BR><BR>If = she volunteered the amount she paid and you thought it may be excessive, = avoiding the issue with remarks about how nice of a piano it is would have been = a much better thing to say.  Instead, you have a very upset customer and = your *opinion* may get back to that dealer.  You'll have nothing to = gain for your trouble but trouble itself. <BR><BR></FONT><FONT lang=0 = face=Arial color=#000000 size=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF">Bill Bremmer RPT = <BR>Madison, Wisconsin</FONT> </FONT></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>