Flügelbauer Piano Supply®

FlugelPower—Flugelbauer

2009-08-22T22:36:00.000-07:00

Recently I have had the wonderful opportunity to learn some valuable business lessons—dealing with recent opposition to my company Flugelbauer Piano Supply. If you are planning on starting a business, especially a partnership, you will find the following tips very valuable:

Put Your Business In Writing

It may seem difficult, but put all of your ideas, and especially your agreements, in writing—even if it is as simple as hand-writing on a napkin

Protect Your Business Names And Marks

Register your business name with the United States Patent Office to ensure that you control ownership, and register your business with state and local authorities to ensure that you have legal control of your business

Get A Good Accountant

A good accountant is worth top-dollar not only because of the money they will save you on your taxes, but also because of the protection they can provide against the IRS and other accounting legal matters

Also, get a good accounting software (I recommend Quick Books) to keep track of your business expenses—this will keep your accounting bill down

Don't try and do your own business taxes—this will come back to haunt you

Get Legal Advice From An Attorney

Be careful when it comes to attorneys, they will do anything you pay them to, but what they may suggest might not be in your best interest—do your own homework and make sure that you are doing the right thing

Legal action is expensive and troublesome—make sure your attorney is clear about what you want to accomplish

Dr. Flugel's Action Caddie

2009-07-30T15:10:00.001-07:00

Coming soon

Many of you have asked about the Flugelbauer grand-action caddie, which (FYI) is the grand piano action cart, designed to support a grand piano action out of the piano during a service.

The Flugelbauer action caddie also folds up for easy storage and includes a nylon case for easy transport.

The Flugelbauer action caddie enables you to set let-off outside the piano. The simulating-dip set-screws (located on the action caddie under the balance rail) can be adjusted to duplicate the same key travel as in the piano.

This is a must-have tool for any in-home, professional piano technician.

Good News!--The action caddie is on its way.

Flugelbauer, Flugelbauer, & More Flugelbauer

2009-07-29T20:42:00.001-07:00

Thank you to all of the faithful Flugelbauer customers and fans. Flugelbauer would not be possible without the support of discriminating professionals. Flugelbauer started as a need to find a better tool, and with your help we hope to make Flugelbauer the number one stop for piano voicing tools and supplies.

Flugelbauer will also soon be offering action rebuilding, piano rebuilding, and a new piano line, which will be debuted this Spring.

Again, we here at Flugelbauer thank you for your help and support, your input and suggestions. We look forward to producing the finest piano products and services for generations to come.

A New Day For Flugelbauer

2009-07-28T13:18:00.001-07:00

If you are looking for a Registered Piano Technician with the Piano Technicians Guild (PTG) follow the links. Finding a technician to service your piano is fairly easy with the easy search provided by the PTG

Flugelbauer Piano Supply is getting ready to launch a new line of products and services. Keep up with us as we journey into a whole new realm.

2009-07-24T22:59:00.001-07:00

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2009-07-24T22:57:00.000-07:00

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Flugelbauer Google Group

2009-07-24T10:02:00.000-07:00

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PTG Southeast Regional Conference (SERC)

2009-07-24T09:38:00.000-07:00

Piano Technicians Guild
Southeast Regional Conference
October 1-4, 2009
Charlotte, North Carolina
"Committed to Growth"

John Ross Wilson RPT, Flugelbauer Piano Supply®, will be teaching and exhibiting at the Southeast Regional Conference. Can't wait to see you there.

Tone Regulation—Flugelbauer® Style (1 ½ hours)
Instructor: John Ross Wilson RPT

Beginning with a discussion on piano tone (vocabulary and ideals), this class will walk through the necessary procedures of quality, piano-tone building, and end with a demonstration on needling hammers. This class will include some hands-on, so come prepared to try a few things.

Removing A Fitted Pinblock

2009-07-20T12:57:00.000-07:00

This year I have had the opportunity to replace ten pinblocks, and I have learned a few tricks along the way. One of the most valuable suggestions I would give to another technician is "use the right tool for the job." In the case of removing fitted pinblocks, use a jamb saw.

A jamb saw is a circular, flush-cut saw that is used for cutting the jamb and casing out of a door without marring the floor. A jamb saw allows you to get right down flush with what you are cutting without worry of nicking the surface you are cutting against.

When removing a fitted pinblock with a jamb saw, I would suggest the following steps:

1. Drill out the vertical dowels in the far right and left sides of the block
2. Clamp a stout guide above the stretcher (letting it overhang 1/8") that the jamb saw will follow--make sure your clams do not hang under the block in the path of the saw
3. Set the jamb saw 1/8" from flush
4. Cut the pinblock along the stretcher
5. Finish the corner cuts (along the stretcher) with a hand saw
6. Use a chisel to pop the under sides of the block along the case
7. Save the block (corners still in tact) as a reference
8. Smile, pat yourself on the back, wonder why you haven't thought of that before, and take a break--five minutes of hard work and you deserve it!

John Ross Wilson RPT
Flugelbauer® Piano Supply
aka Dr. Flugel

Flugelbauer Piano Supply PTG National Convention

2009-07-20T09:22:00.000-07:00

I would like to thank all of you who came out to Grand Rapids, MI, to attend the National PTG Convention. I had a great time visiting with so many wonderful people. What a great opportunity it is for us to get together, share our knowledge, and support each other in our individual endeavors.

If you stopped by the Flugelbauer Piano Supply booth, you were able to see our current products. I am working on a few new products and services, so keep up with us.

Thanks again, and I'll see you in Charlotte, NC, in October.

Cheers,

John Ross Wilson RPT
AKA Dr. Flugel

Flugelbauer Sanding Paddles (piano repair and service tool)

2009-05-20T13:40:00.002-07:00

Flugelbauer Voicing Needles--Dr Flugel's Deluxe Pemium Golds

2009-05-20T13:40:00.001-07:00

Flugelbauer Chopstick (piano voicing tool)

2009-05-20T13:39:00.001-07:00

Flugelbauer Sugar Coater

2009-05-18T23:27:00.000-07:00

Flugelbauer KF Tool

2009-05-18T23:18:00.001-07:00

Flugelbauer Drop-Screw Regulator

2009-05-18T23:15:00.001-07:00

Flugelbauer Four-Needle Voicing Tool

2009-05-18T00:18:00.000-07:00

Flugelbauer Requests

2009-05-18T00:15:00.000-07:00

If there is something associated with piano technology that you would like to see demonstrated please suggest it. I am currently working on a short video clip for all of the Flugelbauer tools that are currently offered. Check back for more updates and please ask for something you would like to see demonstrated.

Flugelbauer Piano Supply

Dr. Flugel

www.flugelbauer.com

Flugelbauer Voicing Kit

2009-05-17T22:24:00.000-07:00

What is Flugelbauer

2009-05-17T15:00:00.000-07:00

Many people have asked me where I came up with the name for my piano supply company, Flugelbauer. Flugelbauer is a very old German word with not much of a current meaning. Flugel means wing, and bauer means builder or farmer.

A grand piano is referred to as a flugel, or wing, because of its shape. So Flugelbauer translates as wing farmer or piano builder. Flugel also refers specifically to a grand piano, as opposed to a klavier or vertical piano. So, Flugelbauer can translate to mean grand piano builder.

Flugelbauer, as a word, is currently rarely used--except in reference to Flugelbauer Piano Supply or Flugelbauer Voicing Tools in association with the piano technical industry.

There are very few grand piano builders, flugelbauers, left in the world. As a result, few Germans would know what a flugelbauer is. That makes flugelbauer even more unique and valuable as a trademark, distinguishing itself apart from other typical, normal, modern, piano tool companies.

John Wilson, Dr. Flugel

Flugelbauer And LaRoy Edwards Team-Up

2008-03-16T13:37:00.000-07:00

During the Pacific Northwest Convention for the PTG, I had the opportunity to sit down with LaRoy Edwards to discuss the changes we will be making to the Action Caddie. The caddie is such a useful piano tool, and I am excited that LaRoy is generous enough to allow Flugelbauer to produce and sell it.

I'm not sure when Flugelbauer will be offering the caddie, but we have made a great deal of progress on the project. There are only a few changes that LaRoy suggested we make.

LaRoy also showed me his mini piano regulating kit, which we are going to produce—I am calling it the Subway Kit.

The future is looking bright for Flugelbauer.

Finding the right Piano Technician

2007-11-13T00:32:00.000-08:00

If you are searching for someone to work on your piano who knows what they're doing you may want to read on. I know this can be a difficult task as you cannot always be sure that the guy in the phone book really knows what he is doing. So what is the best way to insure that your next piano technician will be able to fix that squeaky pedal or better yet give your piano a real makeover. The kind of makeover you may have been dreaming about giving yourself every time you thought about going to the spa or spending a few days just pampering yourself.

First, a baseline requirement should be a Registered Piano Technician (RPT). This is a technician who has at least passed the minimum requirements to be considered a professional in the piano technical industry. An RPT may or may not be able to solve all of your problems or even offer you that great service that you may be hoping for, but we are really talking about a minimum competency here.

Next, you should consider what services a technician is willing to offer you. A technician who says you only need your piano tuned regularly is one to steer far and clear from. Look for a piano technician who is willing to offer you a full service and can explain to you what their approach is. For example, I like to tell my customers that I offer a half-day or full-day service which includes a comprehensive set of procedures. I don't differentiate between your piano and the $150k concert grand I service up the street. I approach them basically the same way, starting with tightening screws, lubricating and aligning moving parts, regulating, tuning, and voicing. There are roughly 50 steps I like to go over on my list and I start with step one and continue until I run out of time. I almost always run out of time and rarely get through my list completely due to the usual lack of maintenance which has been done on most pianos. That having been said, a day or two is usually enough on a newer instrument to get through most everything at least once, depending on how refined you want to get.

To continue, don't always think you will be saving anything by price shopping your piano technician that is unless you are looking for the most expensive guy out there and even that can be dangerous as there are a few who have figured out that they can sucker people in by jacking up there price, knowing that you will naturally think they are the best. BE CAREFUL! Some of the best technicians I know are somewhere in between on their price point. They are typically not the least or most expensive but are always worth every last penny.

Last but not least, don't be afraid to ask the piano technician you are talking to for a referral. A confident technician will usually give you the names of some of the better technicians in the area without hesitating. A really good piano technician doesn't need every customer they can get. They are usually booked out in advance and aren't scraping around looking for new clients. After giving you that great referral for their competition a superbly gifted and humble piano technician, who has any brains, should conclude by selling themselves as being the best at what they do whether that is tuning, service, voicing etc. They should sell you on their strengths and educate you on their abilities allowing you to make the ultimate decision as to what you want and need. And after all of that if you still haven't found who you're looking for call me! I'd me happy to help!

Piano Tone Regulation

2007-11-09T10:29:00.000-08:00

There is nothing like taking a piano that needs a great deal of service, doing the work that needs done, and witnessing the changes take place in tone, color and timbre. It is as if you can begin to quantify the change that each turn of the screw has on the focus and power, control evenness and sustain that is waiting to be revealed.

Every instrument starts with a true potential. No matter what is done, aside from changing parts or redesigning things, only what the instrument is capable of achieving will be possible. That having been said, the possibilities are nearly endless as to what can be accomplished with any instrument given enough time and effort.

First comes foundation. A piano must have a solid foundation on which the player can rely. A player can sense this foundation throughout the dynamic range, and a good player can quickly learn where the piano's limitations lie.

For example, a pianist may play quietly and find it difficult to control this end of the dynamic range, or play fortissimo and get less than is to be expected. These feelings translate into the player not getting out of the piano as much as is being put in.

My job as a piano technician is to "get the instrument out of the artist's way." If the player is thinking mechanism; i.e., the pedal is squeaking or this note feels different than its neighbor, then concentration is being taken away from the performance and musicality and is being applied to a distraction.

On the other hand, if a player is getting out of the piano exactly what is being put in then the piano begs for more and more as if seducing or coaxing the player to go farther than ever before.

The foundation of the piano is literally the connection between the player's fingers and the earth. Any flexibility or elasticity between these two points is sensed by the player and affects the transfer of energy from the players finger through the mechanism and into the air. There are so many parts to a good piano foundation that with fear of missing some I will only name a few.

In no particular order I divide the piano into four distinct parts:

The case
The action
The tonal center, which includes the soundboard, bridge, plate, pin-block, and strings,
The lyre and back action, or damper system.

To Be Continued.