Re: [Harp-L] Re: Harp tech gurus

[George Miklas <harmonicat@xxxxxxxxx>]

Excellent!  Excellent Post !!!

And I concur "Quality takes time."

*George Miklas,* Harmonica Performing Artist and
Entertainer<http://harmonicagallery.com/>

*THE HARMONICA WIZARD MARCH* by John Philip
Sousa<http://harmonicagallery.com/sousa>
-  *Harmonica Repair* Done Right by George<http://harmonicagallery.com/repair>
-  *HOHNER <http://us.playhohner.com/>* *Harmonicas*<http://us.playhohner.com/>
*...Just Breathe* <http://us.playhohner.com/>
*SPAH *- Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica,
<http://spah.org/>a non-profit, membership organization dedicated to
serving the harmonica community. <http://spah.org/>




On Mon, Jun 3, 2013 at 6:04 PM, <diachrome@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

>
> Somewhere between 2000 and 2002 I wrote a long winded post to harpl with
> the idea of finding a way to
> offer certification for harp techs so customers know the guy that is
> working on their harps is qualified. Then as now anybody with a how to book
> and a few tools can call themselves a harp tech or customizer without
> having gone through the process of knowing exactly what they are doing. I
> feel now as I did then that you should have a thorough knowledge of repairs
> before even attempting to customize. The background as a repair tech should
> precede being able to call oneself a customizer. At the time I refused to
> repair any custom harps with the exception of Pat Missin's or Brendan's US
> and Canada customers. I felt if you can't fix it you shouldn't be selling
> it.
>
>
> I did not get favorable feedback at the time. Most of the backlash came
> from other techs who eventually didn't make it past the 5 years mark.
>
>
> I have bent my rule and have a working relationship with at least one
> customizer whose work I admire a lot. But that is a rare exception.
>
>
> Now Hohner has it's own form of certification program. The only hitch with
> that is you can't work on other brand harps once you become a recognized
> Hohner customizer. I think this only relates to diatonic customizers.
>
>
> Evolution has a way of weeding out the weak and the same is true with
> techs. The ones that treat it like a Craft have the fortitude to persevere.
> Those looking for easy income don't last very long.
>
>
> Of the 5 points below I feel "D)' should rarely be an issue when you are
> dealing with knowledgeable techs.
> Quality takes time. No short cut around it. If someone offers fast
> turnaround times and will take as many repairs as you can ship at once,
> that would be a red flag in my book. They are just looking to horde
> business away from other techs and creating unrealistic deadlines for
> themselves. In that instance both the tech and customer have diluted
> expectations.
>
>
> mike
> www.harmonicarepair.com
>
>
>
>
> Message: 5
> Date: Sun, 2 Jun 2013 17:21:07 -0700 (PDT)
> From: Larry Sandy <slyou65@xxxxxxxxx>
> Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Harp Tech Gurus
> To: Harp-L <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>, Eric Miller <miller.eric.t@xxxxxxxxx>
> Message-ID:
> <1370218867.63236.YahooMailClassic@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
>
>
> Hi Eric,
>
> Great idea to publish the who's who of harp repair and customizing.
>
> It would be very interesting and potentially valuable to Harp-L citizens
> to evaluate various customizers and repair persons, both domestic and
> abroad. There are several outstanding service providers on our great Harp-L
> list and this would be a great opportunity to honor those who deserve our
> recognition and appreciation publicly.
>
> Of course there are a few that it may be prudent to avoid entrusting a
> favorite or expensive harmonica with, and it would be great to know who
> these are. Who doesn't recall the many victims of Harrison a few years ago?
>
> I would suggest evaluations based on the following criteria: Feel free to
> add to /delete from this list.
> A) Satisfaction with completed harmonica based on requested services.
> B) Changes you would consider on your next order.
> C) Quality of communication.
> D) Speed of completed harmonica.
> E) Probability of using and recommending the same person again.
>
> The primary purpose of this exercise is to pay recognition and recommend
> our favorite specialists. Off list communication may be appropriate in some
> cases.
>
> Lockjaw Larry
> Wondering who are the best, daily
>
>