Fender is not honoring older Guild lifetime warranties.

hideglue · May 24, 2011

twocorgis said:
hideglue said:

Sandy, there may be a lot old guitars out there that live on w/out a reset, but that doesn't necessarily mean it isn't needed.
Doggedly overbuilt acoustics are an exception, but that's not what we're talking about for this purpose.

Click to expand...

But isn't that what most Westerly Guilds were? My D50 is an absolute tank with the early '70s bracing scheme. Weighs about as much as my 12 string, and what feels like twice as much as my Martin or Bourgeois.

Hi Sandy,
Of course Guild is notorious for being built like a tank, but still reasonable relative to battleship imports.
And while some may handle it "better", they're not reset-proof. Reset-resistant, maybe.
Bottom line is that the finer the instrument, the more delicate the build & finish.

Cheers!

...and not to dismiss or completely veer from gordon's initial topic: I wouldn't put it past some of the scum at FMIC to refuse legitimate warranty work.

twocorgis · May 24, 2011

hideglue said:
Of course Guild is notorious for being built like a tank, but still reasonable relative to battleship imports.
And while some may handle it "better", they're not reset-proof. Reset-resistant, maybe.
Bottom line is that the finer the instrument, the more delicate the build & finish.

That's particularly true with my Bourgeois Jumbo OM. It's cedar over mahogany, and light as a feather despite the fact that it's near dread size. The bracing is so delicate that I dubbed it the "Birdcage Maserati". I'm really glad it has a bolt-on neck. 8)

hideglue said:
...and not to dismiss or completely veer from gordon's initial topic: I wouldn't put it past some of the scum at FMIC to refuse legitimate warranty work.

It's a shame what they've done to our beloved brand. There's still massive room for improvement as far as I'm concerned. I'm hopeful though; bring on LMG2!

kitniyatran · May 24, 2011

Just came from Mandolin Cafe, where a forumite posted that Fender informed him they're closing the Tennessee repair facility, instead of doing the warranty work on his Tacoma mandolin.
Following is an excerpt:

I had recalled that the Tacoma facility had actually closed prior to Tacoma being bought by Fender because of a series of finish failures that ended up looking like an epidemic. So, I went back to my purchase info and discovered the "Limited Lifetime Warranty" for original owners. That being me, I contacted Fender and they agreed to do a total refinish of the mando.

Off it went to Fender in January with an estimated completion date of mid May. So I waited and last Friday I got a call from Fender Customer Service telling me, not that my Tacoma M3E was ready to ship back to me, but rather that Fender was closing it's repair facility doors and the decision to do so came with approximately 40 instruments waiting in the wings and mine was one of them.

To their credit, Fender assigned one Customer Service guy to arrange for resolution of the fate of the last 40 repair jobs. Actual repair at a Fender facility was not an option because there wouldn't be any such facility for the foreseeable future. My guess is that they will eventually work out some option for repair of Gretsch and Guild guitars, but, for the moment, there are no such options.

Here's the link to the thread:
http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/s...essee-repair-facility-last-act-was-to-turn-my
Good ole FMIC.

twocorgis · May 24, 2011

MandoSquirrel said:
Just came from Mandolin Cafe, where a forumite posted that Fender informed him they're closing the Tennessee repair facility, instead of doing the warranty work on his Tacoma mandolin.
Here's the link to the thread:
http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/s...essee-repair-facility-last-act-was-to-turn-my
Good ole FMIC.

They're a loyal bunch... :roll:

Dr. Spivey · May 24, 2011

This just came across the desk:

FMIC announces that all production will be relocated to Bizarro World, where management has resided for years.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bizarro_World

dreadnut · May 24, 2011

My D-25M has it's 35th birthday this year, and I bought it new. As soon as I have a warranty issue, I'll let you guys know! :lol:

adorshki · May 25, 2011

dreadnut said:
My D-25M has it's 35th birthday this year, and I bought it new. As soon as I have a warranty issue, I'll let you guys know! :lol:

THAT'S what I'm talkin 'bout! I'm hopin' my '96 lasts the same way, even if it IS one o' them "featherweights".

BUT...leave us not forget that the Nashville repair shop was originally THE GUILD CUSTOM SHOP and was probably a cheap and easy facillity for FMIC to "morph over" when Westerly closed. It was there, with equipment, they already owned it, and there could be some very reasonable reasons for teh closure. We HOPE!
It is somewhat disturbing that no one's mentioned being advised by FMIC as to how to get their warranty honored. THAT is a string of small claims suits waiting to happen, if in fact they're intending to withdraw the support. Or maybe they're going to franchise local guys as authorized repair facilities and will reiburse for waaranty work, just like car makers do.
Just tryin' to look for a bright side until someone proves me wrong. 8)

hideglue · May 25, 2011

adorshki said:
It is somewhat disturbing that no one's mentioned being advised by FMIC as to how to get their warranty honored. THAT is a string of small claims suits waiting to happen, if in fact they're intending to withdraw the support. Or maybe they're going to franchise local guys as authorized repair facilities and will reiburse for waaranty work...

Authorized repair has been in place for quite some time... much like any other manufacturer's policy.
And I'm actually shocked that Nashville was in business with shipped repairs when you could just drive it over to your local, competent repairman.

adorshki · May 25, 2011

hideglue said:
adorshki said:

It is somewhat disturbing that no one's mentioned being advised by FMIC as to how to get their warranty honored. THAT is a string of small claims suits waiting to happen, if in fact they're intending to withdraw the support. Or maybe they're going to franchise local guys as authorized repair facilities and will reiburse for warranty work...

Click to expand...

Authorized repair has been in place for quite some time... much like any other manufacturer's policy.
And I'm actually shocked that Nashville was in business with shipped repairs when you could just drive it over to your local, competent repairman.

The local authorized guy may not be able to handle certain stuff. Or there may not be someone truly "close". Remember I'm talking warranty work specifically. The way I read it the pool of those providers is restricted to those listed on Guild's website.
I took my F-65ce to CB Perkins, for a second opinion about a possible bridge lifting problem. They're a LONG time authorized warranty repair facility (like since the '60's at least) but they can't do things like re-finish for example. Due to state clean air regs in that particular case. But at least I could get a "pre-authorization" inspection from them as to the properly maintained condition of the guitar, if they (I) did want to send it back to Fender for some reason.

hideglue · May 25, 2011

adorshki said:
They're a LONG time authorized warranty repair facility (like since the '60's at least) but they can't do things like re-finish for example.

Ahh, understood, that's a dicey area for the independent guy.

adorshki · May 25, 2011

hideglue said:
adorshki said:

They're a LONG time authorized warranty repair facility (like since the '60's at least) but they can't do things like re-finish for example.

Click to expand...

Ahh, understood, that's a dicey area for the independent guy.

Right. And another guy told me he DECLINED to continue as a Fender electric warranty provider because the reimbursement schedule was too low and the spare parts stocking requirement was ridiculous. Ya gotta sympathize especially if you want him to survive. :wink:

chazmo · May 25, 2011

Was that recent, Al?

adorshki · May 25, 2011

Chazmo said:
Was that recent, Al?

Lessee, got my D25 refretted in Aug. '09, Keith Holland's Guitar Hospital, EXCELLENT job. He was the guy who said he declined to continue as a Fender electric warranty service provider. That would have been within 5 years of him telling me that, we were getting acquainted at that moment. His was the first opinion about the bridge lift on the F65ce, but since he wasn't an authorized warranty shop he would have had to charge me for the work. I think it was early 2010 that I took it to Perkins, the authorized GUILD Warranty shop, for their second opinion. Which was basically: "Let's just watch and monitor, we don't think it's actually broke yet. Beautiful axe BTW" He even called his dad out to see the rara avis.

Bikerdoc · May 26, 2011

I personally think it's all damn shameful to:
Go thru a number of manufacturer's locations to find a tec rep who will do repairs.
To hear that lifetime warranties are meaningless.
To have to wait 6 months or more for repair work to be done (Is Fender making such crappy guitars these days that they are swamped with repairs?)

It's all well and good that there are people in Nashville who will listen and are easier to deal with, but the whole pain in the butt scenario to get results is a crock of *&%$ and should not be the least bit stressful to the customer.

Peace

fronobulax · May 26, 2011

Bikerdoc said:
To hear that lifetime warranties are meaningless.

That, unfortunately is a fact of life in America when companies get sold, acquired or go bankrupt. It strikes me as unfair to single out Fender/Guild in this regard. People would be much less upset and feel less deceived if they understood that it is the lifetime of the manufacturing company (or company offering the warranty) that matters and not the lifetime of the original purchaser or the product.

chazmo · May 26, 2011

fronobulax said:
Bikerdoc said:

To hear that lifetime warranties are meaningless.

Click to expand...

That, unfortunately is a fact of life in America when companies get sold, acquired or go bankrupt. It strikes me as unfair to single out Fender/Guild in this regard. People would be much less upset and feel less deceived if they understood that it is the lifetime of the manufacturing company (or company offering the warranty) that matters and not the lifetime of the original purchaser or the product.

Thing is, frono, you have to look at the competition too. Martin and especially Taylor have outstanding customer service. Taylor sets an incredible standard in this regard. You buy a Taylor, even a used one for goodness sake, and the company stands behind you. It's a fact. IMO, Guild can't just drop the ball on the lifetime warrantee without serious blowback. Just my opinion.

That said, I think we're working on a very small sample size of dissatisfaction right now. Doc's friend and that newbie are the only two I've heard about (Guild issues, that is) in quite a long time. As I mentioned, this is in transition; don't give up hope.

Bikerdoc · May 26, 2011

So, if I were to softsoap the warranty thing I still do not understand why repairs take so long.

Peace

fronobulax · May 26, 2011

Chazmo said:
Thing is, frono, you have to look at the competition too.

All I'm asking is what happens if/when Martin or Taylor goes bankrupt or gets sold?

Perhaps the fact that I am only talking about Guild warranties for instruments made and sold prior to Fender's acquisition of Guild got lost somewhere?

If you, or anyone else, is saying that the warranty on new instruments, as posted here is not being honored then that is a completely different issue and probably one for the lawyers.

If you are saying that Fender should voluntarily accept liabilities for pre-Fender Guilds then I can agree that might be a relavent marketing strategy, especially given the corporate history of the competition, but I not sure I would want you running any company that I had invested in :wink:

This is the classic type of discussion that occurs when there is a sizable gap between what is "legal" and what seems to be "right" or "fair". For better or worse, "legal" is usually all that matters until enough folks get together and change what is "legal" to what they believe is "right" or "fair" or whatever other standard is being invoked.

fronobulax · May 26, 2011

Bikerdoc said:
So, if I were to softsoap the warranty thing I still do not understand why repairs take so long.

Peace

Violent agreement on that one. A case could be made that warranty repairs should go to the head of the queue in a customer focused organization.

chazmo · May 26, 2011

fronobulax said:
[[ ... ]
If you are saying that Fender should voluntarily accept liabilities for pre-Fender Guilds then I can agree that might be a relavent marketing strategy, especially given the corporate history of the competition, but I not sure I would want you running any company that I had invested in :wink:

Actually, frono, that *is* what I'm saying. Because of competition this "pre-Fender" distinction is brain-damaged. The competition precludes it. Martin has been around and independent since the 1800s, and Taylor's ownership of Taylor goes back to 1977 or so... Fender ain't making a reasonable move to restrict lifetime warranties to those from 1995 and onward! Just my opinion.

By the way, do we have official confirmation of this "policy"? I'm not certain if we're working on rumor here or not.

And, it's OK... I'm pretty sure no one would let me run their company, let alone my own house. :wink: :wink:

Fender is not honoring older Guild lifetime warranties.

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