I gotta vent...

[Kevin Lightner]

A person brings me a Minimoog D for restoration.
The synth has two screws holding the panel on, the fuse is blown, the power supply blown, the mod section is shoved into the wood and EVERY sealed pot is drilled in the back with a large diameter drill.
The whole thing is loose, beat up, dented, etc.

It's a horrible Mini to restore because so much needs attention and I tell the client this.

He then says it was "perfectly in tune with super stable tuning" before he brought to me and declares me a moron and liar.

Merely tapping on the vco board makes the vcos sail out of tune.
The trimmers are shot.
One can't even adjust the front panel tuning adjustments to a zero beat and have it stay there for more than a few seconds.
No matter what I say, he can't fathom that his Mini could be anything like I've described.
Not only that, but it must be my fault as well.

I'm astounded because this guy restores Rhodes and we talked shop about all the many problems each unit can have and how often clients think their instruments need little attention and then he turns around does exactly the same thing.

I took pics and video of this thing and many of these problems.
Should I post them?
It shows exactly what's wrong and why.
Anyone with half a melon on their shoulders can see and hear these problems.
Most of the tuning problems are due to all the bad pots and trimmers, but he blames me instead because he's sure those parts can't cause tuning problems.

I never asked for a cent from this guy or charged him anything.
I can't believe some people.
Because his mini was once in tune years ago and thousands of miles away, I'm an idiot because now it isn't?

[EricK]

"I reserve the right to refuse any business for any reason."



lololol man some people.

[ikazlar]

Just give the Mini back.

[Sweep]

I'd expect your reputation can easily stand anything this guy says.

I'd let him have his Mini back if he wants, and if he starts slandering you publicly then challenge him with the photos and so on.

Did he personally hand you the Mini in that state, or did it arrive from someone else? Did he know for sure what state it was in, or just believe it to be better than it was on someone else's say so or a brief examination?

If I had a Mini in that state I'd be delighted to have you work on it. I'd expect a lot of other people would as well. People in the business who could choose anyone have been coming to you for years and you've even had to close yourself to new business because of the amount of stuff coming in if I recall rightly? I'd call that a very strong vote of confidence in your ability and your judgment.

[Kevin Lightner]

Thanks for the comments.
I appreciate them very much.

It's getting sent back.

What astounds me is that he brought the synth here, saying that I was the only one he wanted working on it because of my "expertise."
Then after I gave him my expert opinion, I'm suddenly an idiot.
What happened to whatever originally caused him to think I was an expert in the first place?
Do you generally say to someone "any price is fine with me" based upon a guess or hunch they know what they're doing?

It seems some people really want someone's advice... as long as it's good news or what they agree with.


My wife had a theory too and it's supported by more than one bit of evidence....

What if he tried to fix his own mini, drilled up the pots himself, sprayed in whatever he did, then put the cover back on with two screws to check it out?
The power supply died most likely because the back panel was loose and allowed to short against the heatsinks.
With this scenario, he'd wind up with a bad synth, power supply blown and looking for expert help at this point.
And when the expert said it was ruined, he had no one else to blame because he himself caused the problems.

Curiously, I mentioned these drilled up pots several times to him and he never said anything other than ask what it would cost to replace them.
He didn't blame anyone or ask any questions at all, which is odd taken in retrospect.
He seemed to accept that they were ruined.
It really does appear that he did this himself and screwed up his own synth.

Anyways, I know the tech who worked on this unit previously and sent him an email last night. He replied today that he didn't know who the guy was and even if did work on it, it was at least 6 years ago and very likely needed service now.

I think my wife might be right.
He probably screwed up his own synth and is upset he has nowhere to go now.

Thanks,
Kevin

[thewaag]

Kevin,

I have had stuff like this happen in my own (not synth related) business. It is so outlandish and so unbelievable that you have a tendancy to dwell on it because the guys claims are so incredible. Sometimes you even start to question yourself because nobody could be that far offbase--thoughts of you "must have done something wrong" starts to creep into your brain.

It took me years to finally accept that you just cut your losses and give the guy his crap back. If you can't get along BEFORE you even work on the item, there is no way that you will get along AFTER the work is done. Price would undoubtably become an issue, even though you clearly talked about price before any work was done. This guys needs you one Hell of a lot more than you need him. You did the right thing by giving him his Mini back.

I think that your reputation as a tech supercedes any claims that this idiot might have. Forget about it.

[MC]

SYNTHFOOL LABOR RATES

• standard $50/hr (not to be construed as Kevin's actual rate)
  if you watch $75/hr
  if you point $100/hr
  if you brought it here because you tried to fix it yourself $150/hr
  if you brought it here because you let your girlfriend fix it $300/hr plus one week with the girlfriend
  if you question my expertise $500/hr
  if you complain about the repair bill $700/hr
  if you touch anything on my work bench MANDATORY EJECTION DUE TO INSURANCE REGULATIONS

[Kevin Lightner]

Waag: You're spot-on. Thanks a bunch.
I know I didn't do anything wrong to the synth.
It came in totally down and at least it's making noise now.
No deposit paid. Nothing charged (yet!)
I'd say he was ahead of the game as it was.
Tech note: the rectifier board that I repaired has 8 parts. I replaced 7.

MC: ROFL!
I've seen signs like that in actual service centers and they aren't always kidding.
Also the classic "You can have it quick, cheap or done right. Pick any two."

[Sweep]

Kevin, I think your wife should be a psychologist or a detective - or both. That's some very sharp deduction, and I'd guess she's right in every detail.

[Christopher J. Boylan]

Kevin worked on my MemoryMoog some years back. I’m in NJ, he’s in CA. You know that just shipping the thing cost a pretty penny. I don’t even remember when my MM was built – sometime in the mid 80’s if I’m right. It was probably 80% functional, but really starting to go and in need of some serious attention. My friend Doug Slocum used to work on the units back in the day, but no longer. He contacted Bob Moog who recommended Kevin PERSONALLY as being the best man to do the job.

It took a very long time for Kevin to finish the job. He was in contact with me constantly throughout the job informing me of every step of the complete restoration that my MemoryMoog badly needed. In case you’re not in the know, a MemoryMoog takes up quite a bit of bench space when it’s completely disassembled, space that could have easily been occupied by smaller, faster paying jobs.

Bottom line: Kevin did an excellent job. There were no surprises – I was kept well informed. What was a lot of money to me at the time was in no way anywhere near what I should have been charged. He honored an estimated price never knowing that it would take so long. He couldn‘t find it in his heart to charge me anymore than he did. I believe that as a result of working on such a monster for so long for so little that Kevin probably developed a nervous tic that goes off every time anyone says the word, “MemoryMoog”.

Kevin performed his service with integrity, expertise, and all around good business. As far as I’m concerned, there is no other person on the planet more qualified and dedicated to the repairing of these old relics.

[museslave]

Kevin, I don't know why you're sweating it.
I think it is the conclusion of everyone here that the guy is an idiot, and your word is solid. All you needed to say is what he said, and I think everyone here... people who've employed you and people who haven't... immediately know that the guy is a moron.

Incidentally, thank you for your advice concerning my Minimoog... you probably don't remember, but I had a loose pot, and your advice did exactly the trick. I, and I'm sure everyone else, know that your advice is valuable, and I appreciate it.

[EricK]

See I told you to write a book!

[moogmaniac]

Kevin,

I say post the pics. Not in an attempt to make this person look bad, but to let us know (visually) the condition of this mini. The pics will also give us
some insite as to what you sometimes have to deal with. Kind of like...
"welcome to my nightmare"

Even if you decide not to post the pics here I'd still like to see them, my
curiosity is getting the best of me. Shoot me an email. Thanks.

Best Wishes,
Harry

[Kevin Lightner]

Thanks for all the kind words.

I'm not really sweating it all that much.
I'm more perplexed than anything.
This client is a tech himself and we spoke at length about instruments, problems, clients, etc.
He was the last person I thought would cop such an attitude.

So like a person that goes through life feeling like they're learning and making progress, I felt like I was hit broadside by someone I trusted and can't foresee such events in the future.
Makes me wary.

Anyways, here's a pic below.
I have videos, but they need to be edited and spliced together and I'm really not into dwelling on this.

Some background, btw:

Minis used many military type pots that were sealed.
(very early Minis used ALL sealed pots, btw- later ones didn't.)
To clean a pot in a traditional manner, one sprays some solvent in them and exercises the shaft.
But since these are sealed, there's no way to get the solvent in.
So holes are drilled to gain access.
Problem is, the metal bits from drilling fall inside.
When the solvent is sprayed, it forms a small lake in the bottom of the pot because down there, the pot is still sealed.
Then when the tech rotates the shaft, the metal bits floating around are allowed to grind into the resistive element and wiper, causing abrasion and scratches.
The trick DOES work temporarily. The solvent cleans things up and there's not enough abrasive damage done yet to cause noticeable problems.
But later this damage continues to get worse and the pot becomes ruined.
Some techs think this is great because the client picks up the unit, pays for it and they can demonstrate right there it's working.
They're absolved from blame because.. you know... "you saw it working on my bench!"
Many techs even think this is a good practice because they never see what problems it causes.
They drill, spray and can honestly believe it improved the problem because that's all they ever saw.
The unit leaves, they think all is well and that they cured the problem.

http://www.minimoog.net/potholes.jpg

I guess if you work on roads, you remove potholes and if you work on Rhodes, you add 'em?

[museslave]

I agree with EricK.

I found your description of the pot hole problem fascinating, and I realize that I would excitedly read a book about such things.

Wow, Moog geeks are so geeky, we would thrill at reading Moog repair stories! You've got a market, Kevin!