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Post by andy on Apr 26, 2011 5:38:40 GMT -5
Hi Guys,
Long time no see!
I recently sold my Nashville Tele on Ebay, and after a few emails back and forth I decided to accept it back, as the buyer was really unhappy with the neck. As it has a maple neck it would have cost him £250 for a re-fret to get it to the perfection he required!
Now, the thing isn't perfect, granted, but it is easily playable all across the 'board from my perspective. So while I think he may just have been making excuses or looking for a level of engineering perfection beyond the call of duty, it has knocked my confidence in re-selling that guitar.
I'll perhaps have a pro look it over for me to confirms it's health, but I'm also considering selling the parts individually.
Does anyone think it might even be worth more as a bunch of modern Fender parts and Dimarzio pickups than as a whole guitar?
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Post by sumgai on Apr 26, 2011 15:35:42 GMT -5
Andy, That's a sad tale, no doubt. Figure yourself lucky that you got the guitar back intact, and let it go. The clown was/is a Bozo, and there's no reasoning with that type of..... person (loosely qualified, of course). Does anyone think it might even be worth more as a bunch of modern Fender parts and Dimarzio pickups than as a whole guitar? Many, indeed very many, sellers on eBay seem to think that there's gold in unassembled Fender guitar parts. But I'd be a bit leary of knock-offs, so I'd check the seller's ratings and longevity both, before I plunked down my money. BTW, if luthiers in your country are getting £250 for re-fret jobs, I better dust off my passport and start packing - that's twice what the job is worth over here in your rebellious upstart of a colony. ;D Ain't sayin' nuttin' here, jes' sayin', tha's all..... sumgai |
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Post by cynical1 on Apr 26, 2011 21:14:20 GMT -5
Andy -
Good to see you back among the living around here.
Parting a guitar should bring in more coin then the guitar as a whole, provided you have the time to let all the auctions run their course.
You can do a few quick searches for similar items to get a feel for their value.
And I'm with sg on re-frets over there...for that kind of money you could buy a new neck...
Happy Trails
Cynical One
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Post by sumgai on Apr 27, 2011 2:12:51 GMT -5
...for that kind of money you should buy a new neck... F1x0r3d! |
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Post by andy on Apr 27, 2011 5:25:08 GMT -5
Thanks Cyn! Can we think of me as the Undead, come back to feed on the minds of the living? That would be cool (and unfortunately quite accurate, too)  I did tell the guy that I bought a replacement neck and had it professionally fitted and set up for less than that! No logo on the headstock though... Apparently the cost was because of the maple fingerboard- removing the frets can damage the finish, so might need some extra care and re-finishing work. It looks to me like there is plenty of fret height for a re-dress anyway, so I'm pretty sceptical on that one. It sounds inline for price comparision though, Sumgai - it seems like everything costs twice as much here, bar petrol/gas which is about ten times the price! I've had a dash round the neck today, and although it has been tweaked a bit since I last saw it, there is some choking when bending on higher frets on the high 'E'. I guess I need to get it to someone who can look it over and tell me for sure if there is a need for drastic action, or if it just needs a bit of TLC. And I'll just check prices on Ebay for parts, too. I've been on there for a while and my feedback is pretty trust inspiring. |
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Post by cynical1 on Apr 27, 2011 6:47:39 GMT -5
Andy -
There's usually some re-finish work on a re-fret, but as you alluded to, there's generally enough meat left on the frets to allow for a re-dress or cleanup prior to a complete re-fret.
Some people's kid's a re just impossible to make happy. Take the guitar back, part it out and make an extra 30%-50%.
And there's a few possibilities on why the neck has issues when bending. If you have a good tech in town a trip for a tune up might make it more sellable...and with the blessing of a "professional" it does make it more marketable on eBay...probably not any better, just more sellable...
You can always sell it "as-is" so the whole caveat emptor factor supercedes buyers remorse.
Good pictures and descriptions work well. The more technical detail (radius, fret wire, etc...) the better. Tends to get the bidding up.
Happy Trails -
C1
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Post by andy on Apr 27, 2011 10:22:14 GMT -5
30-50% you reckon?
That makes liquidating it sound like a pretty good way to go.
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Post by thetragichero on Apr 27, 2011 17:00:16 GMT -5
there's a gentleman on ebay on our side of the pond (reliablefender) who it looks like buys new guitars to disassemble and part out on ebay
he gets some pretty good money for it, it seems
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Post by newey on Apr 27, 2011 18:22:37 GMT -5
I've bought pickups from that site (he is indeed "reliable"). At the time I wondered whether he was parting out new 'Grade A" stuff or whether it was B stocks or factory seconds that he was parting out.
Fender makes a lot of guitars, and there's always going to be the crate that falls off the back of the truck, etc. That would be the way to really make a profit on it.
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Post by thetragichero on Apr 28, 2011 15:07:58 GMT -5
i've bought a lot from him as well
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Post by andy on May 1, 2011 12:51:14 GMT -5
Well, I got to the menders today, and as suspected, it barely needs touching.
As it stands I've left it with him for a fret dress and to replace the nut (the string spacing on which is not quite perfect, as noted my original ebay listing, and used without issue by myself for pro gigs and recording). I still have time to pull out if I decide the cost just isn't warranted, but I'm still thinking it over. It would be nice to know it was going out in absolutely A1 condition, but it would be setting me back a few quid- nothing like the money the first buyer was yakking on about though!!!
I've looked through the guitar parts sales on ebay and while there are the occasional big money sales, there are lots of completed listings at pretty small change. At least that means I can sell the guitar as a whole, and I know the problem was... not so much with the guitar, lets say.
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Post by Yew on May 2, 2011 5:43:06 GMT -5
Sounds to me like somone ust googled, "new fret job" and will have picked the first thing he saw on the website maple neck, new frets, 250 big ones. Without a) consulting a professional or b) shopping around.
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Post by sumgai on May 2, 2011 16:08:00 GMT -5
Sounds to me like somone just googled, "new fret job" and will have picked the first thing he saw on the website maple neck, new frets, 250 big ones. Without a) consulting a professional or b) shopping around. Highly astute answer..... +1! |
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Post by andy on May 2, 2011 17:08:14 GMT -5
Sounds to me like somone just googled, "new fret job" and will have picked the first thing he saw on the website maple neck, new frets, 250 big ones. Without a) consulting a professional or b) shopping around. Yeah, either that or he was hoping I'd feel guilty and shunt some money his way. He was very polite about it though, which to us Brits does help to soften the blow, doesn't it?  Funny how easy it is to end up doubting yourself over this kind of stuff. Or it is for me, at any rate. At least I know the guitar is fine, that's the main thing. |
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Post by cynical1 on May 2, 2011 18:23:39 GMT -5
...He was very polite about it though, which to us Brits does help to soften the blow, doesn't it? We Americans tend not to suffer from that...at least not the ones from Chicago. When people get polite in Chi Town the bovine scatology detector pegs out... The best cons are the ones that you willing accept and walk into without question. And it always was. Al Rush, my old mentor, boss and all around sensei of the musical instrument business had two hard and fast rules. 1.) Easy Credit Terms: 50% down...and the rest now... 2.) Brutal Honesty. It is what I said it is, good or bad...and if you don't like it, open a store next to me and put me out of business...I'll gladly sell you my inventory if you do. No one gets emotional selling a car battery. Musical instruments are the same thing. If you honestly represent the article for sale, and someone buys it fully informed, then a deal's a deal. Caveat Emptor...Futuere Ilict... Well, that's enough American Philosophy 101 for now. Good luck selling the guitar...as a whole or in parts... Happy Trails Cynical One |
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Post by Yew on May 3, 2011 13:32:10 GMT -5
Im guessing his real reason is not liking the neck/bodyshape/sound/setup/action (delete as apropriate) and trying to find some point to get his money back
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Post by andy on May 11, 2011 4:39:16 GMT -5
So, the saga continues. I took the guitar to my local guy for a checkup- no drastic issues, as previously discussed, but it has come back in need of a bit of further tweaking. The lower frets are great, but it's almost as if he didn't quite take enough of the higher ones, so there is now some choking when bending up high. I'll get it back to him tonight. This guitar has served me well over time, but with all this dragging on I will really be glad to see the back of it now. Shame our good relationship has soured right at the end!  |
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