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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Hi David,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>It seems in the US that the 2 pedals =
lyra instead
of 3 is a clue to determine if one piano is from the grey market or
not.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I'm in France, and I've worked 3 years =
for a dealer
that sells grey market Yamaha and Kawai, and I've often seen Yamaha or =
Kawai
grands with 3 pedals.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Jere:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>When checking at an upright to see if =
it is grey
market or not, I would check:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>-The hammer heads: sometimes the felt =
unglues from
the wooden core, just behind the staple</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>-The hammer shanks: some pianos had =
their hammer
heads changed, and you can see the marks left by the hammer head =
extractor on
the shanks (that are the original shanks)</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>-The bridle straps : they are often =
totally
ruined</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>-The bass strings : they are often =
tubby, they
don't sound at all</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>-The butt catcher skin: are usually =
showing a huge
wear, as well as the backcheck felt.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Sometimes you can have only a few =
symptoms on a
single piano, and sometimes you can have all of this at the same
time.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>And very rarely, the piano looks just =
fine, but it
is an exception, then.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Bye,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Quentin</FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>