Comments on: I KNOW what’s wrong with my trumpet!

By: Kaye

Kaye — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 17:58:17 +0000

mbhunter: Funny comment about the “I’m better than you” My husband is a trumpet player and he and I both can appreciate the stereotype. =)

By: Neo

Neo — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 14:53:52 +0000

He may not have been in the business of selling parts, but at least he could have made a couple of dollars in the deal. In buying from ebay, you would have shipping charges and a wait time to deal with. Buying directly from a local business likely saves you time and money.

Additionally, it was clear that you were not going to bring in the horn and have him do the repair on it, so he lost all possibility of making any money off of you. If he had just sold you the part you were looking for, he could have made something. He may not be a parts dealer, but doing a one off “favor” like this could win him a future customer on a more expensive repair, or even a new instrument. You’re probably less likely to shop at his store after the experience you have, than if you had gotten what you were looking for.

By: Money Blue Book

Money Blue Book — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:56:05 +0000

MBH
Wow…that’s exactly what happened to me when I got my oil change. I asked the fella how much it would cost for labor only to replace a set of break pads if I bought the break pads on my own online. The guy started going into this long winded speech to dissuade me and said they didn’t do that and that I would be best served letting them provide the “genuine parts” for me. I eventually gave up and went elsewhere. I guess everyone always wants to make the sale. Except they’ll likely alienate customers in the process.

By: pete @ biblemoneymatters

pete @ biblemoneymatters — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:19:01 +0000

I’ve got an old violin that was cracked and needed some repairs. The violin wasn’t a particularly nice one, but had some sentimental value. When I brought it in to get checked, I found that to have it fixed would cost just about as much as to get a new one. Needless to say I won’t be getting it fixed.

By: Jesse

Jesse — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 16:32:20 +0000

Wow no joke I had a similar experience with my trombone. Having a slide is one of the more treacherous things to have on an instrument and lends itself to being bent, dented, etc etc. In any case repair is one thing that I never skimp on, thats for sure. I should have added that to my “things not to skimp on” article probably

By: The Debt Eliminator

The Debt Eliminator — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 08:52:58 +0000

Mbhunet – Hopefully, you got a good repair guy. I too find a good repair guy for my watch. He does service for less cost than others and do it very well, but rarely i fail to get some much variety or standard spares from him (Like straps, case and dial).

By: Meg from All About Appearances

Meg from All About Appearances — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 07:30:50 +0000

Yeah, I actually got that ; )

And yes, great joke.

By: mbhunter

mbhunter — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 06:33:07 +0000

Meg, I was talking about myself

Q: How do you know if you’re talking to a trumpet player?

A: He shook your hand and said, “I’m better than you.”

By: Meg from All About Appearances

Meg from All About Appearances — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 05:17:27 +0000

LOL! The funny thing is that it does sound like a trumpet player attitude! We saxophonists are a bit more laid back… or so the stereotype goes.

Of course, if he does turn out to be a jerk, then please rant away.

By: mbhunter

mbhunter — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 05:06:08 +0000

Meg: Maybe I’m shortchanging what this guy would do. It might have been exactly like your experience with your repair guy. Maybe it’s a trumpet player thing.