Oh, that happens even when you're not in a hurry Dave. A couple of years ago for me, I did the same thing but this time, mine snapped off a hammer. Some things just can't be avoided. I do find though that, many of the accidents take place during conversations with the customers while working on the piano. Distractions you seeeeeeeeee.

Yeah Diane, break neck speed for Dave and flying tuning hammers, mutes, maybe even screw drivers and music racks! And, hehehe, if Dave doesn't satisfy you, I'll be most happy to come over and touch it up in about 30 seconds! I'll even leave my tools in the car! Yep, sounds good byeee!

I have a Hale nylon handle hammer that's got roughly 30-35K pianos on it. It's my 2nd Hale. the first one died in a store front church deep in the Chicago hood on a Baldwin spinet new circa 1975 or so. Pins were so tight I twisted the head right off. Still have the stem. Baldwin bought me the 2nd one, "guarnteed for life" which is meaningless since I've outlived Hale!

I run into lots of ornery pinblocks. Most tuners with lots of experiance are broad in the shoulders from wrestling pins. (Broad in the spare tire and keester too, but that's another story.) I've not met a pinblock I couldn't work with. Met several I left with colorful names though.

When, you're working 30 minutes from home, like today, with a giant hole in your schedule that no matter what, it just doesn't work for anybody to have you on this particular day?

I remember once chipping an ivory on a keyboard that the owner said was absolutely original. Of course, I repaired it better than the other ivories that were replaced on it.

A story from several years back...

We were having the piano tuned. We had been having difficulty finding a tuner, and a friend had suggested that we call Bluthner in London. So this was the Bluthner tuner's first visit. He was tuning in the living room, we were in the kitchen having a cup of tea. Suddenly - an enormous crash resounded through the house!!! I rushed to see what had happened, and found the tuner ignominiously picking himself up off the floor, the piano stool having disintegrated under him. He was, it must be said, a very large gentleman! I don't know if he or we were more embarrassed.

When, you're driving down the highway, trying to be on time, you see traffic slowing down, realize way in advance that the right lane is closed and pull into the left lane and watch everyone else try to sneak around you and pull in at the last second again, watching everyone letting them in causing a huge traffic jam down to a dead stop. Now, what WAS on time, just became 15 minutes late.

And, the following day, when you get into the same traffic congestion, driving 3 MPH up to where they're working on the road and watch 1 person working while 5 others are standing there talking and laughing. The traffic stopped for that? 15 minutes late again.

Don't you hate it when...

So today piano #4 is a Baldwin concert grand with a block so tight it might as well have come from the factory. I am in the zone though and I've found just the right tug to hit the sweet spot-the pins are snappin' and poppin' like Orville Redenbacker's finest.

152 pins in and I find the one pin about as tight as as a 70 year old Wurlitzer spinet. Good thing the stringing box was in the trunk.

So it's almost midnight and as you can see, and I can't sleep!

Why? Because my technician is coming here tomorrow and all I can think about is a "chunk" out of the shiny black fallboard!

All I can say is, "Don't you hate it when . . . technicians tell you "way" too many things that can go wrong!

And Dave and Jerry, be sure to sleep with one eye open! I know where you guys live!

Sleepless in Western Canada!

Jerry's speechless! Now that's a first!

Don't worry Jerry, I really wouldn't really track you down, but you might just want to check your tools! Some might be missing!

Don't you hate it when . . . the customer steals all your best tools! When you're asleep!

Dave, maybe check yours too!

Speechless? Heck no! I'm in hiding now for fear of my life! Diane's a coming! :p

Hey, you said your tuner was coming today? What did he ruin???

when you be a good guy and adjust that unually large amount of lost motion on the old spinet, shift over with your knee under the keybed and the bed slides up and down because the side is loose!

when you have a noisy grand buzz traced to a soundboard button 1/2 inch from the belly rail in the extreme treble with NO clearance for any offset screw driver God ever made and NO leverage to break the damn thing off.

Diane,

My tools are squarely in the trunk, the best one being my axe, which I keep finely honed for fresh polyester

He ruined the reputation that some Tuners crack, break, and damage things!

So yes, my technician was here and he did an amazing job! He's pure Gold! But as soon as he held the fallboard up with one hand!, I left the room! He was here for 3 1/2 hours and worked on both my pianos!

I have such an appreciation for what you fellows do! Working in small areas with tools, lifting heavy parts, and adjusting this and that, takes muscles, . . . and brains! You guys make it look easy, but I can see that it's not!

So . . . let me just thank you Jerry and Dave for the offer to work on my piano by letting me buy you both a drink! Just promise you won't let anyone else taste it first!

See ya!

...when you're very hungry and you're offered softdrinks.

Yaaaa! Cyanide city at Diane's house! YIPES!

DAVE, she's all yours!!!!!! Scratches n all...

Whennnn, you go to turn sideways on the bench, or slide on the piano bench and the tops of your knee's drag across the bottom of the key bed taking in all sorts of little bitty slivers ruining your pants along the way.

I hear ya, Jerry. I run into this more than once. I think what takes the cake though is the little old lady that's afraid to pass the construction zone or the workmen putting out the cones. She sits and stares at them while there is absolutely nothing ahead of her for miles, and the police are waving her on and horns are blasting at her.

John

Ya, John, I'd love to have one of those little dart guns then hehehe. POP... oh myyy. Hmmmm, my tire went flat, I'll have to pull off the road. hehehe.

When... you do a concert tuning and get a call the following morning that the pianist broken B-6 string. Go in, replace it and the winding curls upwards over top of the Beckett, instead of under. So, you rip it out, and redo it right.

Boy, is THAT ever frustrating! But, I gotta say, both Beckett's came out perfectly with the surrounding ones though.

Happy ending? One of the maintenance crew came in and said, hey, if you have any extra left over piano wire, I'd love to have it. I just looked at him. He said, nooooo, really, it makes for a great fishing tool. I looked at him again.... He giggled and said, nooo, I mean, I can make a hook out of it and fish things from behind stuff when it something falls behind it. It's strong and stays bent.

OHhhhh, now I get it!! HERE You can have this nice first fresh piece that didn't come out right! GREAT, THANKS MAN! He said! You becha! Now, I don't have to throw it away either.

On the list of "Dont ya hate it when..."
Not first but waaay up there.

Mowing the yard on April 10th (Tooo early in the year) cause it's already butt high on a bulldog...when you really wanna be out on the lake paddlin a kayak. I'm in the market for a herd of goats, if anyone has a herd for sale.

Ron I have a wife for that job. Don't need no goats. We have an agreement: She keeps the 3 acres mowed and trimmed and I keep all the equipment running. I don't know how many times I working in my shop and she comes thundering up on a lawn tractor and says "this damn thing is going chuchunk ka chunk, ka chunk and don't work anymore. fix it."

I used to ask her "what did you hit this time" but found questioning not good for my health.

Sam, I have found trying to get mine to mow is not good for my health. Some wild creatures can be tamed and trained, others...well, ya just never seem to get a "bridle strap" on 'em...hehehe

I just hate it when you have a nice concert grand and the sound guys make it sound like a bad spinet.

I know what you mean. LOL

Yeah when the tape mikes, run cables, lay metal switching boxes on the board, snake those helpinstiles under the dampers and then say, "Hey tuner, there a buzz coming thru on the mike. What's wrong with the piano?"

when you're customer has brand new wood floor, a vertical piano and loose board buttons buzzing away. Who wants to mark up the floor?

Oh man, I had to pull out a Kawai from the wall on a beautiful brand new hard oak floor. This person happens to be my own lawyer so, I laughed at him and said, hey, screw you buddy. Pull the piano out and sue yourself instead of me when you scratch your floor. He laughed and pulled it out so I could flip it and tighten the bottom board screws and fix the castor's. But, only after we put down nice soft fuzzy blankets to help prevent scratching.

Had an Acro today with board pulled away at the bottom treble side. Had to lift the piano out far enough to get my 225lbs back there, epoxe and lift the bugger back again. Gotta knock off those Big Macs...

I hate it when I voice my thumb...especially when the customer has brand new hammers and a white carpet.

When, you drop your rubber mute between the strings and harp on a grand and (of course) it falls sideways landing where you can't grab it so, you have to fish it out little by little all the way down the sounding board to an open area without scratching the sounding board thinking "oh, golly, gee wiz" the whole time.