Classified descriptions vs reality

fastonebaz

All my guitars are Immaculate.  I take pride in cleaning them.  I can't imagine letting my own guitars get full of crud let alone selling them like that. 

PhilKing

When I used to work in music retail, we would take in a lot of guitars in part-ex.  All of them would be cleaned and set up with new strings.  If you want to sell it, no matter what the price, you need to do this.  We would have guitars which were really not worth much in those days (Top Twenty models spring to mind), but someone would want it, perhaps as a first guitar, and if you do ensure it's the best it can be, the chances of getting another sale later, when perhaps they have more money, is really increased.

In the days of internet sales or private classified, the next sale probably doesn't occur to people, but for me, not ensuring the guitar is the best it can be is just something that I would not feel comfortable without doing.   What the OP has described is really amazing, though neck relief is something that can change in shipping, probably more in the States, where I live, than in the UK, but tweaking the truss rod wouldn't bother me.  DOA could be the way it was handled in shipping, but the other stuff, with a nut that doesn't fit and badly worn frets, is pretty dodgy not to disclose.

pjf

drofluf said:

OK, I’m getting nervous. Got my first guitar purchase from the classifieds here arriving today

Good luck! Would like to emphasise again that I’ve had some great experiences on here and am really grateful for the Classifieds section. 

I should have the guitars back at the weekend so I’ll ask the tech to list all the works carried out on each guitar (which came from two different sellers, by the way). Maybe the sellers will contribute if I explain what needed doing - again, not so much from my subjective perspective as a player, but from the tech’s in terms of fretwork, electronics, etc. 

guitars4you

PhilKing said:

When I used to work in music retail, we would take in a lot of guitars in part-ex.  All of them would be cleaned and set up with new strings.  If you want to sell it, no matter what the price, you need to do this.  We would have guitars which were really not worth much in those days (Top Twenty models spring to mind), but someone would want it, perhaps as a first guitar, and if you do ensure it's the best it can be, the chances of getting another sale later, when perhaps they have more money, is really increased.

In the days of internet sales or private classified, the next sale probably doesn't occur to people, but for me, not ensuring the guitar is the best it can be is just something that I would not feel comfortable without doing.   What the OP has described is really amazing, though neck relief is something that can change in shipping, probably more in the States, where I live, than in the UK, but tweaking the truss rod wouldn't bother me.  DOA could be the way it was handled in shipping, but the other stuff, with a nut that doesn't fit and badly worn frets, is pretty dodgy not to disclose.

agree Phil especially 'ensure it's the best it can be' and that is regardless of the make/model/price - A kid spending £100 on his first electric, after saving hard, deserves the same respect as a lawyer spending 5K or more

shaunm

stonevibe said:

Smells like butter

I can’t believe it’s not butter

prowla

shaunm said:

stonevibe said:

Smells like butter

I can’t believe it’s not butter

Don't spread it about!

sunshinewelly

Name and shame 

Barnezy

I've had the same on one I bought. I was told the frets were good, guitar arrived and it was like playing on square frets. Feline did a great job sorting it, but the seller should have either done it before selling or been honest and discounted it accordingly. I later found a discussion he had started regarding re-fretting a maple fret board, a few weeks before it went up for sale. 

Anyway I actually feel like I've got the best Tele ever made.... so not too fussed in the end. 

Ultimately people should either ship as they would wish to receive it or be honest and open when selling. no one cares if it needs a setup of fret dress, if the cost is priced in. 

hassleham

If you're not happy and it's not your fault then you should send the guitars back or ask for a contribution to the work that needs doing. 

I've bought guitars on eBay before that were not as described and in one instance I returned it for a full refund (only thanks to PayPal because the seller was a cowboy) and the other one the seller was happy to cover the cost of a fret dress as his ad said the frets were absolutely fine when they quite clearly weren't. Obviously didn't have his glasses on when he listed it!

munckee

drofluf said:

OK, I’m getting nervous. Got my first guitar purchase from the classifieds here arriving today

I’ve bought guitars from the board and never had any issues I have found everyone I’ve dealt with on here for amps and pedals also to be great. 

JezWynd

Have you raised the issues with the sellers? If the guitars are as you describe then they should be returned or a part refund negotiated.

midlifecrisis

i have been castigated in the past as i refuse to sell guitars by post. i know i limit potential buyers and it seems lazy and selfish but i want the buyer to see and check what they are buying  and dont want to deal with any problems relating to not what they expected. im not a dealer and just move on the occasional no longer wanted guitar so i understand dealers may want to be more flexible about posting.

skullfunkerry

merciful-evans said:

I once bought a 80s guitar on ebay that was as described. What was not described was the problem. The frets were uncrowned and too low for remedial crowning. In other words, a refret would be ideally needed. However it plays fine and I dont notice intonation issues.

The worst thing was that the thing reeked. I'm not fussy about a bit of tobacco smell, but this came wrapped in brown bubble wrap. It was once clear bubble wrap that had become caked in tobacco residue. It took a whole year of periodic cleaning to fumigate it. 

You just cant foresee every problem...

I bought a guitar from eBay & collected it from the seller's flat; it was obvious as soon as I got there that he enjoyed a few recreational spliffs... the guitar smelt of weed for weeks after I got it home. Not enough to permeate my room, but enough that I got a big noseful every time I played it  

riffpowers

I’ve been on both sides .

I’d sold a set of speakers in here that unknown to me had an issue , I’m afraid to say I wasn’t that helpful initially as I’d misunderstood the code of conduct for selling , but the buyer put me straight on how to behave and we sorted it out . 

I bought a lunchbox amp on here that had sustained a dent in transit . Very disappointed and the seller was not behaving as I would have liked, which took a lot of effort on my part and no result at the end of it .


So i do I agree with you . I regret not acting better and sooner as the seller , and doubly regret not being treat right as a buyer . 
I’d be asking the seller to fix it , and my advice to the seller is fix it , or you might end up feeling bad and wishing you’d done better , like I did .

HandwrittenHero

skullfunkerry said:

merciful-evans said:

I once bought a 80s guitar on ebay that was as described. What was not described was the problem. The frets were uncrowned and too low for remedial crowning. In other words, a refret would be ideally needed. However it plays fine and I dont notice intonation issues.

The worst thing was that the thing reeked. I'm not fussy about a bit of tobacco smell, but this came wrapped in brown bubble wrap. It was once clear bubble wrap that had become caked in tobacco residue. It took a whole year of periodic cleaning to fumigate it. 

You just cant foresee every problem...

I bought a guitar from eBay & collected it from the seller's flat; it was obvious as soon as I got there that he enjoyed a few recreational spliffs... the guitar smelt of weed for weeks after I got it home. Not enough to permeate my room, but enough that I got a big noseful every time I played it  

A good while ago I managed to buy a guitar from a heavy smoker and the guitar sadly knew it. I wound up chucking the gig bag away and after a few months of trying to get shut of the smell gave up and sold it on to a smoker!

merlin

I've not had any problems with any instruments/pedals bought here or sold here (as far as I know). We are a community, widespread and varied. We all have different ideas what is right for us as players. I suggest writing directly to the seller and discussing. If they are happy to get involved and help you financially or by suggestion to fix/tweak then all good. If not, I suggest you name and shame. 

stan

shaunm said ...." I can`t believe it`s not butter ".   is your real name Marlon Brando ?

DB1

midlifecrisis said:

i have been castigated in the past as i refuse to sell guitars by post. i know i limit potential buyers and it seems lazy and selfish but i want the buyer to see and check what they are buying  and dont want to deal with any problems relating to not what they expected. im not a dealer and just move on the occasional no longer wanted guitar so i understand dealers may want to be more flexible about posting.

Same here, really, although I'll cheerfully travel hundreds of miles to collect, deliver or meet up. I'd much prefer to do it that way, even if it's a bit more trouble. I don't want to run the risk of anything damaged in transit, and I don't want to run the risk of it not being to the buyer's expectations. That's worked well so far and you get the chance to meet some good people.

I've had an issue with a pedal that I've bought, and two amps. The way I look at it is that they're generally more complicated devices than guitars, and things can go wrong. In each instance, the forum member that I bought it from offered to pay for, or towards, the cost of repair. I refused, with thanks, as they were sold in good faith, and what might be working one day might not the next.

birtner

pjf said:

Let me start by saying I’ve greatly benefited from the Classifieds section on here. I’m certainly not the most prolific user but I’ve bought and sold some fantastic instruments through the Classifieds over the past few years and it’s without question a valuable resource. 

That said, I’ve been pretty let down on two recent occasions. Without naming names or going into the specifics of the guitars concerned, both have needed extensive work doing to them. Both needed extensive fret levelling and crowning. One was unplayable and needing work on the nut (which wasn’t the material described in the ad) and neck relief adjustments; and the other was dead on arrival, pickups not working and, again, neck relief all wrong. That’s not my diagnosis - they’ve gone to a local tech that comes highly recommended on The Fretboard. Total cost for the works will be ~£250.

I wouldn’t (and couldn’t) complain if these were set-up issues related purely to a preferred action or changing from 10s to 11s, etc. But they’re not. More to the point, both guitars were described in their adverts as having been to a tech or having great playability, etc. 

I don’t know what to do, if anything. Maybe I should just suck it up. Caveat emptor and all that; and there’s bound to be a few bad apples when distance buying. Maybe I’m only annoyed because my other experiences of buying/selling through the Classifieds have gone so well! Maybe I should ask the sellers to contribute to the repair costs given that the guitars weren’t as-described. I suppose this is what the Feedback thread is for, as well.

Anyway, mini-rant over; comments and advice welcome! 

Out of interest can I ask how much below list price you paid (as  a %)?

the reason I ask is because it severely twists my knickers  when people sell second hand and barely take the VAT off whilst asking you to put up with risks like this

Cols

Talk to the sellers as a first resort; explain how the guitars were unplayable/non-functioning and ask how they’d like to resolve things.

It does make things a bit sticky that you’ve already gone ahead and had them fixed by a tech at considerable cost, as it means the seller’s only options are to either a) reimburse you for the tech work or b) shrug their shoulders and say “sorry, caveat emptor and all that”.  The overall value of the guitars is another factor; if it was a pair of expensive high-end guitars £250 might be reasonable, but if it was a couple of budget beaters the repair cost might be excessive compared to the overall value of the guitars.

The Classifieds are fairly self-policing and run on trust and honesty; the Feedback section helps to identify those who are a joy and a pleasure to deal with, and the few who are bad eggs.  Talk to the sellers and try to come to an amicable arrangement before anything else.