Hi All, 

Maybe Don Teach and I should see if we can work out 
some details about listing these player actions that he 
and others don't want. I get emails on a regular basis 
asking me where they can find player actions for their 
gutted players. So far, keeping an inventory which 
includes manufacturer, scale design, asking price, etc., 
has proven to be time consuming and unprofitable. 

I've stated for years that the quest for returning a gutted 
player to a working player is 2-3 times more expensive 
than starting with a unit that is intact. So, those who have 
asked are already aware of the cost factors involved. If a 
network of people who own these orphaned player 
mechanisms could it all get together, perhaps that cost 
factor could be reduced to 1-2 times more expensive, and 
we'd still make a profit.

Naturally, shipping is always a problem and an expense. 
I recently had a box made for a Duo-Art stack that would 
insure its safe travel across the US. The cost was over $300.
Also, when added to the weight of the stack, the total weight 
came to over 113 pounds. Point is that some sort of an 
arrangement would have to be made such that the buyer 
could rent the shipping container and then return it empty. 

Here's another twist to this thread. The owner of a piano store 
called last month and asked if I'd be interested in buying a few 
of the non-working, fully-intact players she has in her store. Like 
Robbie indicated in his most recent editorial comment, piano 
technicians are often intimidated by the presence of a player 
mechanism, and she was having no luck selling the units. I 
reminded her that underneath every player piano is a regular 
piano, and that in a worse case scenario she could always 
remove the mechanism and sell the unit as a regular piano. 

In my opinion, there is no way an intact player piano can be 
less valuable than a gutted unit unless the person selling it 
makes it sound less valuable to the customer. And, if the 
customer really likes the look of the instrument but is scared 
off by the presence of the player mechanism, the mechanism 
could be removed for a small fee of less than $50.00. It takes 
less than 20 minutes to remove all of the major components.

Although the page has been inactive for some time, I do have 
a webpage that lists some used parts. For a nominal fee I 
will act as a broker if we can figure out some of the other 
problems like pricing, shipping, insurance, payment and 
guarantees. Let us not forget the old saying, "One man's trash 
is another man's treasure." And if you don't believe that, explain 
to me why every junk yard owner is a rich person!! The key to 
the game is keeping good records, establishing a fair pricing 
structure and having a network of interested parties.

Musically,

John A. Tuttle