<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; = charset=iso-8859-1"> <META content="MSHTML 6.00.2800.1141" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Hi Sy:</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I had trouble with my hammer head = loose, for years. It was very annoying. It sounded like styrofoam rubbed across the blackboard.  A couple of years ago, for some unknown reason, it = tightened itself. It's beautiful! I think it is because we are doing beautiful = work. </FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Kenny Finlayson, RPT</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV>Last Saturday I was tuning along in my shop when MY TUNING HAMMER BROKE.<BR>The extension shaft broke right at the threads where it screws = into the<BR>lever head.<BR><BR>Then on Tuesday, three days later, I was = tuning with another hammer when the<BR>NO. 2 STAR TIP BROKE IN TWO. One half flaked = off and other half popped off<BR> the threads when I pushed on it with my = finger. I couldn't believe it.<BR><BR>It's probably unlikely that either of these = tools would break in a lifetime.<BR>What are<BR>the odds that both would break = for one person in a three day period. I<BR>wondered<BR>if it was some mystic = message for me. Maybe I should stay home for few days.<BR><BR>This Hale rosewood = tuning hammer was given to me in 1970 after another tuner<BR>had died. So I've = used it or 32 years and I don't know how long he used it.<BR>I can only guess it = broke because of "metal fatigue".<BR><BR>I'm estimating this hammer visited = probably 7 or 8 million pins and then<BR>this one<BR>pin on a Kimball blew it away. = It's like it had a heart attack and died.<BR><BR>Just when you think you've = seen it all . . . you haven't.<BR><BR>Sy Zabrocki--RPT<BR>Billings, MT</DIV></BODY></HTML>