Are there standards in the piano industry that rebuilders are held to?
Unfortunately, NO! Unlike most other industries (automobile, food, home building, etc.) where there are standards or codes that must be followed in order to ensure quality, the piano industry has none. There is a Piano Technicians Guild that, to some extent, ensures competent piano tuners, (however, you can become an associate member simply by paying a fee, which alot of people do to get the PTG logo on thier business cards). Anybody and everybody can call themselves rebuilders ; from weekend tuner hobbyists to piano dealers looking to increase their bottom line. Whenever the job is farmed out to another person (which is the case for both of the above mentioned parties), corners will be cut. Keep in mind that there are over 12,000 parts in a piano (9,000 or so you can t see!), and EVERY STEP along the way the rebuilder has opportunities to save money by using less expensive parts. I don t mean to cast aspursions on anyone in particular; it is just a matter of simple ecomonics. When you
