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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Tom:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> You have done your duty.
Let the dealer/factory take care of the problem. You can inform the
customer of your discovery, but you need to let it go. Don't make the
dealer/factory the bad guy. YOU will be the one to lose because one day
you may need their help. In my town, there has been a lot of bad blood on
both sides. Some technicians have been blackballed from every dealer in
town, and won't get any referrals from anybody. Some technicians won't
work for any dealers either. And be careful what you say about a certain
brand of piano. You can be held for libel if you say things that aren't
true, just as you would be held responsible for saying things about a person
that are false or accusitory. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> If you choose to burn your
bridges, you may be sorry later. Don't be labelled a troublemaker, but try
to help the situation if you can. Don't take sides against the dealer, but
try to work with them. Your reputation could be sullied by the dealer if
you side against them. After all, they refer people to technicians
all the time, and if they like you, and respect you, you may be the one they
recommend. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> We have our opinions about these
situations, and we may not like to have to deal with them, but making enemies of
our dealers isn't the way we should be going. I am the head technician at
our store, so I get to try to solve problems as they arise. Believe me, it
isn't my cup of tea to cover for the factory defects I see and make sure the
customer is happy. I've found myself in hot water many times for making
the wrong comments to customers about problems I've found. My advice
(FWIW) is to try to be a hero and help both sides. So far, I think you've
done the right thing. You informed the dealer, they are taking steps, you
haven't alarmed the customer, and let whatever may happen. Who
knows? Maybe the dealer will pay you to fix it. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> Believe me, if you take sides,
you won't win. Been there...</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> JMHO,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> Paul McCloud, RPT</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> San Diego</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> The Piano Exchange</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
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<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=tvaktvak@sbcglobal.net href="mailto:tvaktvak@sbcglobal.net">Tom
Sivak</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=pianotech@ptg.org
href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">pianotech</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Friday, December 29, 2006 11:31
AM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> ethics question</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>List</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>What to do, what to do...</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>A client has a new Essex grand, purchased less than a year ago. The
local Steinway dealer assigned me the freebie first tuning on the piano
which I performed almost 6 months ago. At this point, the client is now
mine.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>At that first tuning I was alarmed to find that most of the tuning pins
were way too loose. I'm not being picky here; I wasn't sure if the piano
would even hold the tuning when I left. So I called the head of the tech
dept. at the dealer to inform him about the loose pins. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>He told me that I needed to measure the torque with a torque wrench so
that they had some concrete figures to back up my assertion. He wanted
me to get some measurements without alarming the client, which I was able to
do. He seemed to indicate that he would have the piano replaced if the
torque readings were unacceptable.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>All the pins measure less than 25 pounds of torque. Many were less
than 15 pounds. I reported back to the head techie at the dealer and did
not hear of any further developements. I did not share any of this with
the owner. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Last week the owner of the piano called to get it tuned again, so I went
yesterday and retuned the piano. My last tuning actually held
just fine. The piano was about 10 to 15 cents low, not at all unusual at
this time of year, let alone on a new piano with stretching strings.
</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>The pins are just as loose as ever. You can't overpull a string
and ease it back down, because it'll just slip all the way down a half
step or so. You have to pull it up to pitch and let go V
E R Y
G E N T L Y.
This is a technique that we have all perfected after years of working on
75 year old Gulbransens, not pianos less than a year old.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>So my ethical dilemma is this: Should I tell the client that the
tuning pins are too loose for a new piano? The dealer may have given me
the client, but the client is mine now. I feel that I owe them my honest
opinions on things, and my opinion is that this piano is defective. Of
course, no one has actually asked for my opinion about the piano, so I'd be
the one who started all this trouble if it comes to that. (I don't
really do much work for the dealer any more, so I don't think I have that much
to risk, personally, business-wise, but of course, I'd rather not alienate the
only Steinway dealer in Chicagoland!)</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>And after all, the piano is fine right now. It will hold a tuning,
even if I have to be a little careful while doing it. How many years
will it be before these loose pins become so loose that it won't hold a
tune? I don't know, but certainly much sooner than any new piano
should. It seems unethical to allow the client to be blissfully unaware
that in a year, or two or ten, this piano may need a new pinblock. They
have a warranty now, and since this situation is only marginally acceptable
now and will only get worse, they should take care of it sooner rather than
later.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>There is a new head of the tech department at the dealer. I have
called him twice and he hasn't returned my calls yet. Of course, I won't
do anything until I talk to him, but in the meantime, the ethics of the
situation seemed worthy of discussion.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>What do you all think? What would you do? </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I look forward to your sage advice,</DIV>
<DIV>Tom Sivak</DIV>
<DIV>Chicago<BR></DIV>
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