<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><HTML><FONT SIZE=2 PTSIZE=10 FAMILY= ="SANSSERIF" FACE="Arial" LANG="0">I usually spend 8 to 10 hours on th= e new pianos on the dealer's floor.  These retail for $40,000 or more.&= nbsp; The dealer picks up all of the cost and also pays for the tech to do t= he first tuning and any regulation and voicing on the first visit.  I a= ctually don't think this is really a dealer problem from my perspective. It = really is a manufacturing problem.  It is not the dealer's problem when= the manufacturer uses crappy materials or does a poor job of regulating in = the factory or misses very obvious problems before crating.  The dealer= I work for is doing the best they can to prep the pianos for the floor.&nbs= p; I do feel however that many of the manufacturers just don't have a way to= sift through the complaints from techs.  They see most of the complain= ts as just a sea of problems that they can't prioritize.  They often do= not admit to problems when they see them and have a hard time correcting in= a complicated factory situation.  I used to just go ballistic when I s= aw really stupid problems from the manufacturers.  Now I just open up a= really poorly made piano and equate it with a truck payment, weekend at the= beach or college tuition for the kids. I'm happier that way.  TP</FONT= ></HTML>