<html> <head> <style> .hmmessage P { margin:0px; padding:0px } body.hmmessage { FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY:Tahoma } </style> </head> <body class='hmmessage'> <<Why in the world <pre>would anyone put 3/0 pins in a new block???>> From what I gather, the "technician" who did the "rebuild" probably was just too lazy to order smaller pins, or was grossly under-prepared and that's the smallest sozed pins he had at the moment. Or...because there might be less "flagpolling" since Steinway grands don't have tuning pin bushings. </pre> Terry Peterson > Date: Mon, 3 Dec 2007 23:36:35 -0600 > From: rnossaman@cox.net > To: l-bartlett@sbcglobal.net; pianotech@ptg.org > Subject: Re: stumped > > Leslie Bartlett wrote: > > I tuned (no I really didn't) for "Dennis" today- and old Howard (sn > > 220***- for which I didn't find a reasonable match in Pierce's). The > > retired engineer had married a Russian lady, young enough to be his > > daughter- and nicely I made that mistake. Bass strings were dead, > > multiple bridge cracks, the strings painted gold, several replaced, > > about six pins in the center where a tiny amount of counterclockwise > > pressure sent the string a half or whole tone flat. They also popped > > loudly when they let loose- like Baldwin, only it was virtually no > > useful tension on the pin. There were a couple pins up around note 80 > > which were the same way. Hammer 88 was within 1mm of having the felt > > open up at the bottom of the grooves on the flat-topped hammers. > > Problem was, the man had bought this as a birthday present for this wife > > who is a HIGH level concert player while she was out of the country. > > I was there over four hours, so mad that they guy had gotten screwed (I > > believe the damage was done before prior owner sold it to him- she > > wasn't a player, so bought it mostly as furniture), and that I couldn't > > make a decent tuning. The Russian asked if I had ever tuned a piano > > like this before………………………. I pulled the action and went through > > everything with him, and he seemed more than satisfied that little if > > anything could be done- but the wife- I think she wanted me dead. > > > > When and HOW does one just give up on a POS when nothing works? This > > really bothered me. I've tuned Howards before and hated them, but got > > them tuned. Nothing rendered decently, nothing stayed stable for me. > > I've never had anything quite like this before, and hope I never do again. > > > > They can't afford another piano, though their house was probably valued > > at twice mine, and they had two rather new cars (Honda an Buick) I > > think. I'm coming off a week of three Houston Symphony Tunings, > > another major Hall, two tunings of the most expensive piano in town, and > > directing two performances of the opera Amahl and the Night Visitors. > > I know I was tired……… But I had just done quite ok on a Petrof for one > > of my really persnickety customers, so I haven't completely lost my > > "tuning mind". I'm mad they got screwed, mad she can't play musically > > on this pos, but still feel somehow I should have been able to do > > something to make it work. Sorry to be kind of nuts here, but I'm > > feeling kind of lost. > > > > les bartlett > > > > It doesn't matter what they just did, or someone else just > did, or what anyone's intentions and expectations may be. The > bottom line is the current condition of the piano and what can > be done with it at what price to meet performance > expectations. That's it. It doesn't realistically get any more > complicated than that without your sanction. > > Case in point: Some months ago, I looked at a piano (Steinway > L) that had been "rebuilt", but had a number of insupportable > problems which prompted the call to me to look at it. I find > touch weights in the mid 70s, and one of the more dramatic and > extensive killer octave manifestation I've seen in all the > years I've been in business. The soundboard is, of course, > original and "repaired". > > The plate seems to have been dipped in a glaringly copper > colored goo, which is flaking off in large chunks. The > thinnest loose chunk I found was 0.75mm thick. > > Downbearing was from 1°+ in the tenor, to -2.5° in the high > treble, with negative crown through the top half of the scale. > > The pinblock was new, with new 3/0 pins! Why in the world > would anyone put 3/0 pins in a new block??? > > Bottom line is that the money they spent on the previous > rebuild was not only wasted, but actually did damage. This > instrument is the source of evening therapy for the owner, and > hasn't delivered anything but misery since it was "rebuilt". > To finally get around to where this is going, I could have > done a grand or two worth of regulation and voicing to try and > minimize the wretchedness of this piano, but would have just > further screwed the poor guy in doing so, in my estimation. > Sure, I felt sorry for him, but there wasn't anything real I > could do to help without buying the problem myself. So I did > the hard thing and told and showed him (as I could) in painful > detail what was done, what wasn't done, what should have > minimally been done, and what was possible. He ultimately went > for what was possible, and the piano came in today for a > redesign and remanufacture. After all the misery, and all the > money wasted, I hope and fully expect to supply him with a > happy ending. I intend to give it my best shot. > > So here's the deal. The situation that was set up before you > became involved isn't your fault or problem. It's also not > your problem to come up with a fix that's contrary to reality. > If it takes doing over, that's what it takes. If the customer > won't accept that, they are free to put themselves on the > plate of the next bottom feeder in line. There are plenty to > accommodate. Meanwhile, you maintain supportable standards and > credibility, and minimize losing projects. > > Ain't no free lunch. > > Ron N <hr />Your smile counts. The more smiles you share, the more we donate. <a href='www.windowslive.com/smile?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_Wave2_oprsmilewlhmtagline' target='_new'>Join in!</a></body> </html>