Hi, Eric:
Welcome to the list.
Tools are a kind of catch-22. You can buy a tool and not use it, or you can "not" buy the tool and need it tomorrow.
I used to spend lots of time drooling over the tools in the catalogs, wondering if I would need such and such tool. I was lucky to be able to work full time in a store, so I could buy a tool and test it out. I have a large box of tools I purchased that I've never used or found didn't work well for me. If you get a chance to look into an old tuner's tool box, you'll always find odd tools which he probably made himself, or which are no longer made (because they probably didn't work well even when they were new).
The most important tool will be your tuning hammer (wrench, actually). The important consideration is the stiffness, which you will find in most of the professional offerings in the catalogs. Some exotic hammers are available with carbon-fiber shafts, titanium tips and such. They are meant to be extremely light and stiff, which helps prevent too much wear-and-tear on your joints. The extension hammers offered in the Schaff, Pianotek, Pacific Piano and other supply houses are not expensive, but are heavier. I used one for 20+ years, until I purchased a nice hammer from Charles Faulk which is very light and stiff. Exotic wood handle, and about $165.
Many of the tools you'll buy will require some modification to work optimally, even if you get them from the supply houses. Some will work better than others for the same job, and some will work better for you than someone else, or not work for you but work great in someone else's hands.
Randy Potter's course is excellent, and he certainly knows which tools you'll need to get started. Piano tuners tend to be tool junkies, so you're in good company! It would be very good for you to join the Guild if you haven't already. There is good comraderie in chapter meetings and in conventions where you can ask questions about the best way to do something, get advice on just about anything piano related. Randy is very keen on recommending his students join the Guild as soon as possible.
Yes, buying quality is always good. Some tools are very expensive, like special pliers you can purchase from Renner for different purposes. Whether you will need them right away is a question. Some basic regulating tools are included in the course, and for now they are probably good enough to learn with. If you decline his offerings, that's fine, you can order a set of basic regulating tools, a good extension hammer, some mutes and felt temperament strip, and get started. It's not likely in the beginning that you would need the exotic expensive stuff and be rebuilding and regulating pianos, so just start picking up tools as you need them. You could also scour the internet, Craigslist, Ebay, etc. for tools left behind by a tuner who passed away. Sometimes chapter meetings have an auction for tools that techs want to get rid of, etc.
I hope this helps. Good luck in your new endeavor.
Paul McCloud
Original Message------
Hi!
I'm a retired engineer with lots of mechanical, woodworking, and musical experience looking into training
as a piano tech. My tech--the guy who tunes my piano--recommended the Randy Potter course as a starting
point.
It looks like if you buy the course it includes a set of tools, supplies, etc. My question is: are these good
quality tools, or would I be better off buying my own. (I love tools, so I don't mind spending $$$ for the good
stuff).
Thanks in advance!
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Eric Schell
Austin TX
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