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The following will answer many of your questions about purchasing a Raffin organ. If I've missed anything drop me a note and I'll reply as soon as possible.
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About Hal O’Rourke
I became interested in small organs while serving in the U.S. Air Force stationed in Germany. I began attending festivals and quickly decided that I had to have one of these wonderful instruments. After considering the wide variety of organs being produced throughout Europe and England I finally bought a Raffin in 1985. I still own this organ and other than occasional tuning its received no maintenance and still sounds great. During the remainder of my stay in Germany I developed a friendship with Mr. Raffin and his family.

Upon returning to the U.S. in 1988 I began acting as his U.S. agent. Raffin organs are not mass-produced, but in the large majority of cases are built to specifications for a particular individual. I provide the following services to make your purchase a pleasant, trouble free experience. I have many satisfied customers and will provide references if you desire.

When placing an order with me you will receive:

The same price you would pay if you traveled to Germany and purchased at the factory. I do not add a markup, I help you purchase at the factory direct price
Knowledgeable assistance in selecting your organ from the variety of models available and the benefit of my personal relationship with Mr. Raffin
Guaranteed pricing in U.S. dollars at the time you place your order if you desire
Instructions in English on how to tune and maintain your organ
Assistance in obtaining parts should it become necessary
Tape recordings of the music rolls so you can hear the music before you buy
Periodic updates on new music as it becomes available from Mr. Raffin and other lesser known sources in England, Holland and the U.S.

Why are my prices quoted in EUROs?
The organ prices are set in EUROs. I am frequently asked why I don't simply list prices in U.S. dollars and save a lot of confusion. The answer is that currency exchange rates fluctuate daily (and sometimes hourly) similar to stock market prices. The changes are usually small, but occasionally can be 10% or more in only one day. If I were to quote my prices in dollars I would have to build in a cushion to protect myself against an unfavorable shift and also change prices constantly to compensate. This would be unmanageable. This arrangement works out better for both of us. I'm protected from loss and you get the current price based on the exchange rate when your organ is ready to be shipped. If you don't care to gamble on the money market, your price can be set at the time you order.

How do I know the currency exchange rate?
The following link will take you to a yahoo page listing minute by minute exchange rates. Remember that the rate you or I can actually get from a bank will be less by about .05. Don't forget to use your browser “BACK” button to return here: RATE

Download Complete Price List
The complete price list of all organs and all options in an MS Excel spreadsheet file can be downloaded. If you successfully download and use this handy page just plug in the exchange rate it will tell you all the dollar prices. DOWNLOAD NOW!

Ballpark prices
If you're not able to use the above here are prices of the standard organ of each type with no options. It does not include shipping costs discussed elsewhere.

Organ Model	Price: EURO

R20/31	5100
R20/31 "mini"	4790
20/67	9750
31/84	11000
31/103 Trumpet Organ	14500

Decoration
Each organ is made individually by hand and each is decorated differently. Most are hand painted in the "tole painting" style typical of southern Germany and Switzerland. Limited editions and wood inlay are available at extra cost. Other types of decorations are possible on request. Your preferences are discussed when ordering using photographs for reference and met as far as possible.

Availability
There are very occasionally organs available here in the U.S. or at the factory for immediate delivery. Generally they are built to order and waiting time is usually 2-3 months from receipt of order and deposit. If you are interested in a particular model just let me know and let you know the situation.

Terms
At least $1000 deposit is required at the time of your order. If you elect to “lock-in” your U.S. dollar price more may be required and will be discussed individually. If the organ is to be shipped directly to you the balance of the purchase price is due upon notification that organ is ready to ship. If I will be receiving the organ for subsequent delivery to you personally, a total deposit of 50% of the total cost is required prior to shipment. Other terms are possible by prior arrangement.

Shipping
The R20/31 “mini” organ and 20/40Z reed organ are small enough to ship via UPS directly to your door at a total cost of approximately $300.

Larger organs must be shipped by air freight. I've been using a freight forwarding company located in Atlanta for about 10 years without a problem. They arrange for pick-up at the factory, air shipment, and customs clearance if desired. These arrangements are dependent on the size of the organ ordered and your location, and are best discussed individually. Rates for air freight vary with the seasons as do airline passenger tickets and are unpredictable. I will bill you for shipping at actual cost. To give you a general idea, the total cost of several recent shipments were:

R20/31 alone $378
R31/103 with all the options including organ cart $769

I thought of another question! I want more information!
If you are interested in ordering or getting more information about a particular model, please write or call for personal service. A 60 minute sample cassette tape containing tunes played by each model is available for $3.00 postpaid. I also sell other tapes and videos.

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