New X175 Manhattan Special with (no longer) a bit of an issue

[Gonzo]

I decided to take the plunge with a blue X175 Manhattan Special. All the reviews I'd seen seemed pretty good, and I really like the look. My only other experience of a full size / fully hollow Guild is a NS Capri that I bought new and still gets a lot of play - so very positive.

The only issue was that there's not many of them around in the UK to try out, and the cheapest (even with the import tax added) was from Thomann in Germany. I ordered it anyway.

It has arrived, and while it plays & looks great, it has one of those annoying little issues that could mean it might be on its way back to Germany.

The D tuner hasn't been installed properly. It works just fine, but the metal barrel that the tuner sits inside hasn't been pushed all the way down so that it's flush with the headstock.

It feels like it should be pretty straightforward to sort out, but it's a new guitar so I really shouldn't have to.

Anyone have experience of this type of fix?

 

[freddyfingers]

Never got a guitar shipped to me like that, and i have only installed tuners a few times. Not sure how long it would take to ship it back and forth, or if they would send another as a replacement, but it should be simple enough to repair assuming its just not pushed in all the way. Loosen the string, and using fingers try and push it back in. If it wont go, then maybe something inside is bent or the hole is not properly cut. If thats the case, see if they would pay top have a local shop repair it. I know its frustrating to have issues with a new guitar. My first two new guilds both had issues that required them being sent back. The waiting is the hardest part.

 

[Stefan Eff]

I don‘t think that’s a shipping damage, it‘s obviously even not a damage.
Take those cheap old strings off and push the bushing into place. Check for any other issue. If there’s nothing you’ll be fine!
If the bushing won’t fit flip it out and enlarge the hole carefully with a reamer. The bushing should slide in with finger pressure.

Send the pictures to Thomann and ask for a relevant refund. Nice guitar by the way!

 

[Gonzo]

I've unloosened the string right down, and it's still not budging with finger pressure. I'm going to take the string & tuner off completely so I can get at it properly. Slightly worried that I'll damage the headstock if I apply too much pressure, but I'd rather sort it out myself than wait for the end of lockdown and take it down Denmark Street ...

 

[Uke]

Unfortunately, this is the world we now live in. The big companies send out half-done product probably knowing that the customer just doesn't want to mess with sending it back and will "just fix it themselves." I'm guilty of doing this because it really is not worth the hassle much of the time. Hope you can get it where it needs to be.

 

[The Guilds of Grot]

The Guild NS QC guy posts on facebook, send a photo to him!

 

[SFIV1967]

I don't really know how this can happen as usually it is press fit and once strings are installed it should not come out. Plus usually every single guitar goes from the factory in Korea to Guild in Oxnard for Quality control and from there to the dealers worldwide. So I wonder why this passed two quality control steps...I would also definitely send a picture to Guild/Cordoba Music Group. I will send you a private message with the Guild / CMG European Sales Manager's E-Mail address (he is located in Germany) who should be responsible for shipments to Thomann and needs to see this. And he can forward it to their Quality Manager in California.

Ralf

 

[Gonzo]

All sorted.

It was pretty stuck in place, but a gentle tap with a rubber mallet knocked it into shape. Doesn't seem like there's anything particularly wrong with the size of the hole (or anything else for that matter) - the bushing has popped up at some point after it was strung and somehow got a bit stuck. Never replaced the tuners on anything I've owned so had no idea it would be so easy. Would have been embarrassing to send it back to Germany for this.

Here's a proper pic ...

 

[The Guilds of Grot]

All's well that ends well!

 

[Stuball48]

Beautiful guitar Gonzo. Enjoy!

 

[walrus]

Beautiful blue!

walrus

 

[GAD]

While that's unfortunate, it's an easy fix as you discovered and there's no permanent issue. Well done!

 

[shihan]

So now that that’s sorted, how do you like it?

 

[Gonzo]

I like it a lot.

I have a couple of other NS Guilds (an Aristocrat and a Capri) and this immediately feels like a little step up in quality. It's possibly just down to the finish. The finishes on the other two are a bit thick & ... gloopy, if you know what I mean. I've not had much playing time on it yet, but the neck is very comfortable and it's sounding great through my little Supro.

I bought it mostly off the back of that RJ Ronquillo demo, and so far (3 days in) it's delivering what I was looking for.

 

[Stefan Eff]

I like it a lot.

I have a couple of other NS Guilds (an Aristocrat and a Capri) and this immediately feels like a little step up in quality. It's possibly just down to the finish. The finishes on the other two are a bit thick & ... gloopy, if you know what I mean. I've not had much playing time on it yet, but the neck is very comfortable and it's sounding great through my little Supro.

I bought it mostly off the back of that RJ Ronquillo demo, and so far (3 days in) it's delivering what I was looking for.

Congrats! I‘m happy for you, she‘s a beauty. The urethane finish on my (Goldtop) Aristocrat is incredibly thin as well as on my Manhattan, maybe it differs sometimes.

 

[shihan]

Good deal; glad you like it. It’s certainly a looker. The finish on my NS X-175 is pretty well done, not too thick. I guess they vary by year. You’re lucky to have a Capri, they’re kind of hard to come by. Enjoy your new guitar!