5 January 2016
5 January 2016
Wichita Chapter PTG officers
President Joe Wisner
Vice President Gary Telleen
Secretary David Norman
Treasurer Marty Hess
Newsletter Editor Roy Howard (with assistance from Kent Willis)
Next Meeting Thursday, January 14 (Tools sharing)
For previous chapter newsletters see INDEX
The January 14th meeting will be held at Roy Howard's home, 4749 N Hillcrest St. Bel Aire, Kansas 67220
Happy New Year!
Hello everyone!
It has been a very busy holiday season for us all, and I hope a good one with lots of pleasant memories made. It always amazes me how fast a month goes by. And it is time for another meeting! Make your plans for next Thursday January 14, at 7:00. We will be meeting at the home of Roy Howard --- 4749 N Hillcrest in Bel Aire (northeast Wichita).
At the last meeting, J.D. suggested we bring tools that we have, but seldom use. I might suggest tools that were not useful until they were modified somehow. Another suggestion would be to bring a tool that you (almost) never would use but are glad you have it for those very unusual jobs or repairs. This could be an interesting evening.
See you soon.
Joe Wisner
TIP at the December meeting - Use a dowel and elastics to control the drop stickers during spinet action removal (Video)
Tips for measuring a missing pedal lyre rod (Video)
Joe Wisner and others discussed lightly brushing hammers with a brass wire brush as part of your tuning routine as a way to improve piano sound for your clients.
A discussion of regulations related to the limitations of using ivory key coverings in our repair or rebuilding activities. Also noted were the new regulations passed into law in the state of Washington.
Joe Wisner reported on the October 15 & 16th training session in Oklahoma. Ann Fell and Alan Crane assisted staff running the sessions.
You are all welcome to invite non members to our meetings and activities, as that is how they learn that they can participate. We hope that they enjoy the experience and want to become members.
Please submit articles and tips for the newsletter and the meetings.
Last year was Great. This year will be Swell. May your pedals not squeek. Stay Tuned
We appreciate our perennial December host, Marty Hess for once again welcoming us to his beautiful home. Plates and good fellowship brimmed over.
Don't miss the January technical at Roy's house.
Key Bushing Cauls
Erwin's Piano Restoration Spurlock Specialty Tools has sold the bushing caul business to Erwin's Piano Restoration Inc. Enter password "tech2015" for technician's pricing on the Erwin website.
Piano Wire
James Arledge has been making piano strings for 40 years and has determined why new replacement strings sometimes fall short of expectations. The key information is in a series of short videos accessible from the link.
"Piano String Library"
Marketing
NEWS
Renew Membership for 2016
Update Your PTG Contact Info Journal Survey
Mario Igrec has released a list of corrections to be made on the second printing of his book Pianos Inside Out.
www.PTGWestPac.org
March 31 - April 3, 2016
Piano Technicians Guild, Western and Pacific Northwest Region
Piano Technicians Guild, Seattle 2016 WestPac VI
Online Registration Now Open!
Exceptional All-Day Seminars
Special Guest and Premier Instructors
Food and Beverage Every Day
Breakfast Buffet • Breaks • Lunch Buffet
Fine Food and Entertainment Evenings
National Exhibitors and Vendors
4,000 Sq. Ft. • Over 30 Booths
www.PTGNEECSO.org
Online Registration Now Open!
PTG National
Howard Piano Industries has a valuable discussion page - Forum
PianoTek Tek-Letter
Piano Technicians Journal Media on YouTube
For PTG member resources go to www.my.ptg.org
To answer questions about player pianos go to Player Care.com
The Journal has started a new series called Chapter Technical, and we are looking for articles from you. This is a great opportunity for you to share interesting and meaningful technical programs you have conducted that can be reproduced by other chapters.
Yamaha G1 –
Register with TuningAndRepair.com for free. They offer a premium service for Professional Members.
Dues invoices for 2016 were mailed November 1. Use the Pay Online feature at www.ptg.org to pay your invoice securely and quickly 24/7. If you haven't received your invoice yet, please contact Sandy Roady (sandy@ptg.org.) It's important to pay your dues before December 31 to ensure that there are no interruptions in your Journal subscription and other member benefits.
•www.ptg.org - Click on "View My Profile" in the left menu. Some of this information is viewable by the public and includes things like services you offer, as well as your contact information.
You may have noticed in the November and December issues of the Piano Technicians Journal that we are seeking information about how you use the Journal. If you haven't already responded, there are numerous ways to respond to the survey located on the last page of each issue.
1. Use the QR code on the page to go directly to the online survey.
2. Simply circle your responses and mail the completed page to the office. Piano Technicians Guild, 4444 Forest Ave., Kansas City, KS 66106.
3. Go online: http://ptg.org/journal/survey
April 14 - April 17, 2016
Piano Technicians Guild, New England Eastern Canada Seminar Organization
Piano Technicians Guild, Nashua 2016 NEECSO
Exceptional All-Day Seminars
Special Guest and Premier Instructors
Food and Beverage Every Day
Breakfast Buffet • Breaks • Lunch Buffet
Fine Food and Entertainment Evenings
National Exhibitors and Vendors
4,000 Sq. Ft. • Over 30 Booths
These are some of the guidelines that make for a good article.
- 400 to 800 words of text: This will produce an article that fills one or two pages in the Journal.
- Include several clear, high-resolution pictures: Newer-generation phones take great pictures, as do iPads or Tablets
- Try to feature hands-on technicals: Pictures showing members doing something hands-on is are more interesting to look at than pictures of them sitting in chairs watching a speaker.
Don't be shy...This is a great opportunity to share your ideas with readers all over the world!
Send your articles and pictures to:
John Parham
john440@me.com
828-244-2487
If you have questions about what kind of articles the Journal is looking for, call or email John. He tunes pianos full-time, so leave a message if he doesn't answer.
Pianos for Sale
Kawai GX-A $65,000
high gloss ebony- restrung, reconditioned the action, cleaned it up to look like new
$6500 moving, matching bench and tuning
(Marty Hess)
Square Grand. Owner in Plevna, KS is asking $5000. It is tuneable but needs 20 custom keys made to finish the restoration. (Stephen Francis)
Are You a Professional?
How you look, talk, write, act and work determines whether you are a professional or an amateur. Society does not emphasize the importance of professionalism, so people tend to believe that amateur work is normal. Many businesses accept less-than-good results.
Schools graduate students who cannot read. You can miss 15% of the driving-test answers and still get a driver license. "Just getting by" is an attitude many people accept. But it is the attitude of amateurs.
"Don't ever do anything as though you were an amateur.
"Anything you do, do it as a Professional to Professional standards.
"If you have the idea about anything you do that you just dabble in it, you will wind up with a dabble life. There'll be no satisfaction in it because there will be no real production you can be proud of.
"Develop the frame of mind that whatever you do, you are doing it as a professional and move up to professional standards in it.
"Never let it be said of you that you lived an amateur life.
"Professionals see situations and they handle what they see. They are not amateur dabblers.
PVC Fogging Chamber"
Trimming Hammer Shanks as shown in the Piano Technicians Journal, April 2012 Issue
2015 Council of The Piano Technicians Guild resolved to add the following to the Council Book of Resolutions:
The PTG supports efforts to end international trade in illegal ivory. The PTG supports efforts to update and clarify domestic and international protocols to address this ongoing crisis.
Furthermore:
a. The PTG has an interest in preserving legally obtained and installed ivory on pianos.
b. The PTG requests that any new regulations include a protocol whereby RPT’s can issue a statement which can be used to verify that the transport or sale of existing ivory on a specific piano is permitted under any proposed certification process.
The Executive Board shall select one or more duly authorized representatives of PTG to engage in the public comment period for any proposed ivory regulations. Any statement by PTG which claims to represent official PTG policy regarding proposed ivory regulations must include all resolutions on the subject passed by 2015 Council.
The Council of the Piano Technicians Guild recommends that the Board create a special (or ad hoc) committee for the purpose of formulating a coherent statement of the organization’s position, with regard to current efforts by Federal and State governments to establish and implement effective measures to curtail distribution of illegally obtained elephant ivory.
In addressing the complexity of this issue, the resulting committee recommendations should reflect the diversity of views to be found among the organization’s membership. This objective would be best served by ensuring that such diversity be adequately represented in the composition of such a committee.