Guitar maker scratched my Guild GAD-50E

[richardp69]

Might be anble to be buffed out.

 

[davismanLV]

The repair person needs to know the damage that was caused by them. No doubt about it. They need to know. I'd see what their reaction is, and then decide if you trust them to help you resolve the problem. Repair should be free. Or the work they did discounted. If they think their surface is perfectly smooth and adequate, they'll continue to damage guitars. So they need to know about this. It's a very pretty guitar!! Sorry this happened to you!!

 

[adorshki]

That is really lousy! But I don't know what a good resolution would be. I guess at least let the luthier know and see if he suggests anything.

Luthiers who I've taken my guitars to generally take good care, but it's not unheard of to have a problem. When I went to pick up my F50R after a setup, I was told one of the emeralds on the bridge pins had been lost, and they couldn't find it anywhere. They were super apologetic, but that was about it - no discount or anything. I later found a same-size emerald on ebay (only cost a few bucks) and glued it on. Good as new!

That's BS in my opinion, and a true pro wouldn't leave it at that.

When I got my first re-fret and bone nut/saddle upgrade on on the D25, the first nut was actually cut incorrectly with a center-to-center spacing error. Found out it was actually done by the guy's apprentice when I'd been under the impression Mark Brown himself (the shop owner and actual former equipment tech for the Doobie Brothers, in fact, with quite a rep here in SJ) would do the work.

Although I've always been a bit miffed about that (and later realized the fretwork itself had some flaws), to his credit he replaced the nut no charge, no hassle. As it should be. This was about spring '98.

 

[dreadnut]

I'm guessing he will deny damaging it...

I think you can just polish them out and move along.

 

[Guildedagain]

Definitely polish not refinish, just superficial scratches.

It's pointless to bother the tech with it.

Why is pointless to bother the tech with it?

Because he's obviously sloppy, tragically covered workbench etc, I've seen guys like this, they can't usually find all of your pickguard screws they just removed, etc, etc. By comparison I never use any power drivers of any kind around a guitar and I keep screws in order while removed, always.

A fussy person would never do anything like this, someone who cared in the first place.

Even on cars, I clean and polish while I work in the engine bay, etc.

It's an attitude.

You either have it, or you don't.

 

[dreadnut]

Like my buddy told me about my old D25M: "It ain't no frickin' Stradivarius!"

 

[ParadiseSeeker]

I'm guessing he will deny damaging it...

Apparently, he also damaged the pins. At least the material is chipped, since he inserted them without regard to the guide groove.

And there seems to be some liquid underneath the clear pickguard. I better don‘t look so closely.

 

[Cougar]

Like my buddy told me about my old D25M: "It ain't no frickin' Stradivarius!"

Yeah, but ParadiseSeeker's guitar was in mint condition. I can sympathize -- I like to get guitars in mint condition and like to keep them that way.

 

[davismanLV]

To me, even if you decide you don't want the guilty party to repair or fix..... to let them know. So they know their sloppy workmanship cost them a customer. And you can leave reviews on local or country websites letting people know. THEY NEED TO KNOW what they did, and THEY NEED TO KNOW that you're not happy about it. This whole, "Well guitars get dings and such so whatever..." crap is bull puckey!! It's like the physicians credo.... "Do No Harm". Even if you can't save it, it's shouldn't be worse for having been in your care!! That's my opinion!!

 

[davismanLV]

AND remember there's a difference between when a person dings their own guitar, and someone else does it. If it was a beater and just for playing out, then fine. But that's not the case here. It was pristine, and now it's not BECAUSE of the sloppy habits of the repair person!!

 

[walrus]

What Tom said. You have to let them know to at least try to avoid having this happen to someone else.

walrus

 

[adorshki]

Apparently, he also damaged the pins. At least the material is chipped, since he inserted them without regard to the guide groove.

And there seems to be some liquid underneath the clear pickguard. Better I don‘t look so closely.

That's incredible, if he did that (put on the strings) himself.

This is a guy to be cautious of. Don't think I'd want him to get his hands back on my guitar either, but I'd at least call and give him one last chance to explain. Maybe ask him "Who put on the strings?" before revealing the bad job.

I'm sure you'll be able to decide then whether it's even worth risking his re-work.

 

[ParadiseSeeker]

I think I'm afraid that, as a guitar beginner, I won't be taken seriously with my concerns and quality demands. I often hear "What do you want with three guitars?" or "Why do you need such a good guitar?"

I already know this from my restored Jeep CJ7. When I've been upset that the mechanic used the wrong bolts, installed the stainless gauge cover improperly, or made scratches in the hood, I've been literally laughed at. "This is a Jeep, scratches and dents are part of the deal. Otherwise, you'd better buy a luxury SUV."

 

[bobouz]

I think I'm just afraid that as a guitar beginner I won't be taken seriously with my concerns and quality demands. I often hear "What do you want with three guitars?" or "Why do you need such a good guitar?"
I already know this from my restored Jeep CJ7. When I've been upset that the mechanic just used the wrong bolts, installed the cockpit sheet metal improperly, or made scratches in the hood, I've been literally laughed at. "This is a Jeep, scratches and dents are part of the deal. Otherwise, you'd better buy a luxury SUV."

We all have our own standards when it comes to aesthetic issues and our prized possessions. Your standards are totally valid, and should not be dismissed for any reason by someone else, whether you're talking about a guitar or a car. In the matter of your guitar, I would take it into the shop & tell them you purchased the guitar new, and it had no scratches when you brought it in for repair. Ask them if they can put it back to essentially like-new, and if they say yes, ask them how they will do it. Does what they say sound like a logical approach? If not, walk away. Additionally, if their attitude is not respectful or remorseful, walk away. Then look for a luthier that understands your concerns and is verbally willing to meet your expectations up front.

Same with your Jeep. It's your vehicle, and your standards are what the shop should be considering when working on it, not the other way around. Search for a new mechanic, and again, let them know up front that careful attention to the vehicle's appearance is very important to you, and if they don't seem to respect that, walk away.

I'm as picky as they come regarding these exact issues, and believe me, you can and must set the expected standard before the work is done. If I don't get the right feel from a business, I'm going to be walking out the door. I simply refuse to be held hostage by a disrespectful shop owner, even if it means traveling to another town to have the work done properly.

Best of luck in getting this resolved to your satisfaction!

 

[GardMan]

Is it just me... or does the saddle look like it's backwards to anyone else? That's a pretty strong ramp for the front of the saddle, and doesn't look like typical compensation (thought the image would show... but you have to click the link) ...

 

[adorshki]

I think I'm afraid that, as a guitar beginner, I won't be taken seriously with my concerns and quality demands. I often hear "What do you want with three guitars?" or "Why do you need such a good guitar?"

I already know this from my restored Jeep CJ7. When I've been upset that the mechanic used the wrong bolts, installed the stainless gauge cover improperly, or made scratches in the hood, I've been literally laughed at. "This is a Jeep, scratches and dents are part of the deal. Otherwise, you'd better buy a luxury SUV."

Again, a hacker's attitude, a fulla s--t attitude.

That's fine if they want to be that way about their property , but not to inflict on somebody else's property without their prior consent or full disclosure. That's just a BS attempt to evade making compensation or correction.

You can tell how seriously I take this, and I've been a service provider. If there was going to be risk associated with a repair I'd let 'em know right up front so they could decide whether to proceed with full awareness of potential pitfalls.

Still, because I have been in the biz and believe ethical craftsmen outnumber the bad ones, I still recommend giving the guy one chance to explain himself without putting him under duress, that'll tell you all you need to know. Right along the lines of @bobouz 's post.

And while I'm not real big on social media, I have trashed a couple of sleazebags in Yelp reviews.

 

[adorshki]

Is it just me... or does the saddle look like it's backwards to anyone else? That's a pretty strong ramp for the front of the saddle, and doesn't look like typical compensation (thought the image would show... but you have to click the link) ...

Nah, even if it was "backwards" then it'd be way too low on bass end and way too high on treble. It's definitely way too low on treble end whether "backward" or not.

 

[ParadiseSeeker]

Is it just me... or does the saddle look like it's backwards to anyone else? That's a pretty strong ramp for the front of the saddle, and doesn't look like typical compensation.

 

[adorshki]

@GardMan and @ParadiseSeeker
Ahhhh......interesting. I believe I confused yours with a pic of another guitar showing a direct overhead angle view of the saddle from the treble side and the saddle did appear to be exceedingly low on the treble side. Am I losing it?

Ahh, Runner's question about shaving a bridge thread, here:

Shave the bridge or reset

1977 Guild D35, the action is actually pretty good, but the saddle on the high e side is flush to the bridge. I have opinions from 2 luthiers that shaving the saddle will do the trick, obviously much cheaper than a reset. I do understand that the resale value suffers if the bridge is sanded...

letstalkguild.com

Yep, I'm losin' it. Sorry guys.

That saddle looks to have adequate height, but it looks to me like if it was reversed so the longer ramp was on the pins side, the break angle would be slightly reduced. But pics can be deceptive.

One way to confirm is that the saddle's profile radius is supposed to match the fretboard radius.
Also just realized it's brand New Old Stock, right?

So would be surprised if it was actually in "backwards".

 

[GardMan]

So would be surprised if it was actually in "backwards".

Saddle removed during setup, and replaced backwards? I've done it before... I have even re-strung a guitar w/o a saddle a couple times, because I forgot to put it back in!