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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Well, for those interested, I was back =
with the
customer whose piano went horribly out of tune over night. (For anyone =
not
remembering the story, I pasted it at the bottom).</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Playing up the keyboard, it sounded =
just as bad as
it did over the phone. Since the tone was fairly consistant, I ruled out =
bridge
problems and removed the bottom panel to confirm my worst fear. Broken =
plate.
There was a crack through the width of the plate strut that separates =
the treble
section, just below the shelf tab that supports the action. The crack =
was gaping
slightly and was about 1 1/4 inches deep into the strut. Since the piano =
sounded
great after tuning and for the rest of the evening, it must have given =
way
during the night.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Both the husband a wife were home. I =
showed them
the crack and explained how it was probably either defective or weakened =
with
age, possibly even damaged during the move and that the pitch raise and =
tune was
more than it could take. Since the piano had been worth about $700, I =
advised
them to look for another piano. They were very understanding and at no =
time
during our conversation even hinted at the possibility that I was in any =
way
responsible for the damage. Nor did they ask for a refund on the tuning =
and
pitch raise fee. In fact, when I was leaving today, she pulls out her =
check book
to pay me for the bad news. Technically speaking, since none of this was =
my
fault I could justify charges at each visit but this one I declined. I =
also told
them that I would be glad to help them find a replacement. These =
customers I
want to hang on to.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Dave Bunch</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>>Well, in twenty years this is a new =
one for
me.</FONT> <FONT face=Arial><FONT size=-1>Yesterday I did a 1/4 =
step pitch
raise and tune on a Kimball "spinsole" that a >couple had just moved =
here
(Des Moines) from California. Nothing appeared out of the ordinary and
everything went just fine. >When I was done they loved how much =
better it
sounded and considering the piano, I thought it came out better than
>expected.</FONT></FONT> <FONT face=Arial><FONT =
size=-1>Today I get a
call from them that the piano sounded great yesterday, but when they =
played it
this morning, it >sounded so out of tune that they thought that they =
were
playing the wrong keys. I thought she was exagerating until I had her =
>play
it over the phone. It is clear that something catastrophic occured =
during the
night. Either a broken plate or bridge, I would
>say.</FONT></FONT> <FONT face=Arial><FONT size=-1>I'm going =
over in a
few days to see whats going on. They seem like nice folks but I got to =
wondering
if they are going to >blame this on me. While bringing it up to pitch =
may
have pushed something over the edge, everything I did was standard
>procedure. Has anyone been charged with piano slaughter? I'm trying =
to think
of how to put the best spin on a bad =
>situation.</FONT></FONT> <FONT
face=Arial><FONT size=-1>Dave =
Bunch</FONT></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>