Is this acceptable on a £1545 guitar?

skunkwerx

The top images show a gouge/scratch/missing paint. 

Its not unfortunately buffing compound. 

The swirl marks are all over the place, back and front. Making the finish dull and hazy/cloudy compared to a previous model I received.. 

Am I being outtas? 

Or does £1.5k get you this level of detail now? 

I won't post the retailers response yet.. but well, I will if it turns out its not just me that wouldnt be happy with the above! 

paulnb57

Send it back, in my opinion that wouldn’t be acceptable on any price instrument....if Squier can get it right on a hundred quid Mustang anyone can...

hollywoodrox

At £1.5k I would expect it to be 100% AAA grade perfect. Unless it was a used guitar with commensurate wear relative to its price.  

I can see how someone may not bother and see it as a tool , but if you have saved up your hard won cash to buy a new signature model guitar. I think you have a right to complain if  it does not sit right with you . Especially if you have had a previous model that does not have the same flaws you should not be expected to accept a second rate finish

hotpickups

It probably wouldn’t bother me too much but it will niggle you I’m sure if you keep it I feel. Best return it ?

ICBM

[Philosophical hat on]

Difficult question. If it's a hand built guitar and the sort of thing that usually sells for double that sort of price, it probably is. If it's a factory-made guitar and the sort of thing that is usually perfectly-finished at that price, it probably isn't.

[Change of hats to humour/irony ]

There's another thread where someone is asking whether some of the scratches on his 'relic' guitar which I think cost about the same sort of money second hand are 'factory original'...

ie you can't really say as a 'rule' - it's your choice. If you're not happy, under the consumer contracts regulations you can simply send it back anyway, whether or not anyone else considers it acceptable.

digitalscream

The question to ask yourself is, "Would this happen with a £1500 Ibanez?".

The answer's "No", by the way

boogieman

I must admit the gouge/missing paint don’t really show up much to me in the pictures, where’s the damage exactly ? 

The swirl marks are more obvious, those look like sanding marks, as if it hasn’t been buffed up properly.

I wouldn’t be happy either, send it back. 

ArchtopDave

If it bothers you, then just send it back ( assuming you've only just bought it, and are covered by the laws relating to returning goods).  Are the fret ends comfortable to you? They look very squared off in your photos. I note with considerable personal pleasure, that it's not a Gibson!! 

sweepy

If it plays and sounds wonderful I'd keep it and try and get a few £ off, you can't guarantee the replacement will be as good tbh

skunkwerx

boogieman said:

I must admit the gouge/missing paint don’t really show up much to me in the pictures, where’s the damage exactly ? 

The swirl marks are more obvious, those look like sanding marks, as if it hasn’t been buffed up properly.

I wouldn’t be happy either, send it back. 

Hard to photo. Its weird, right in the crease, neither a reflection nor dust/polishing residue though.

skunkwerx

Aye its factory made, 100% brand new out the box. 

I've requested a return but here is my response. 

The 'previous return' had a chip in the lacquer at the edge of the fretboard. But andertons deem it not a problem For a brand new guitar so its back in stock for the next guy to buy..... Great. 

JezWynd

ArchtopDave said:

If it bothers you, then just send it back ( assuming you've only just bought it, and are covered by the laws relating to returning goods).  Are the fret ends comfortable to you? They look very squared off in your photos.

Those fret ends do look odd, is it deliberate to give maximum string pull room?

clarkefan

Bloody non-Amazon dealers.  We bemoan the loss of the high street shops and at the same time Andertons piss about like this.  I'm having a similar situation as we speak (another company).

I've sent them instructions on where the problem is and the still can't find it.  I've sent them bloody video clips and "it's not clear" what the problem is.

Some things never change.  The more money is involved the more they never change.

"nature of the finishing process" my arse.

ArchtopDave

JezWynd said:

ArchtopDave said:

If it bothers you, then just send it back ( assuming you've only just bought it, and are covered by the laws relating to returning goods).  Are the fret ends comfortable to you? They look very squared off in your photos.

Those fret ends do look odd, is it deliberate to give maximum string pull room?

The basic answer to this is No. You'd normally bend the string away from the edge of the the fretboard, unless you were wanting to do one of Jeff Beck's tricks, and bend the string off the edge of the fretboard, which gives a sudden stop to the bent note. My concern was more that fret ends like this could be prominent enough to catch your finger(s) as they go up and down the neck.

Sassafras

I'd send it straight back but only because it's a purple sparkle finish.

DefaultM

skunkwerx said:

Aye its factory made, 100% brand new out the box. 

I've requested a return but here is my response. 

The 'previous return' had a chip in the lacquer at the edge of the fretboard. But andertons deem it not a problem For a brand new guitar so its back in stock for the next guy to buy..... Great. 

What a load of shit. Is the issue just who pays the postage costs? If it's not faulty you have to pay it?

skunkwerx

Frets ends are ok, though a little 'sharp' its nowhere near bad. The trem is leaning forward so probably needs a little tweak. 

The scratch I can live with though I do resent paying one and a half thousand quid for something that should be new and pristine but isn't, and all I get is a 'its fine by our standards'. 

Its the hazy finish. The one that went back before gleamed and sparkled, this one, any light hits it and it looks like its got sections of dried buffing residue, except its the haze caused by the swirl marks. Same as on cars. 

Its impossibly hard to photograph what I'm describing though, save for the surface swirlies. 

I've asked them how its acceptable to be a finishing quirk when the whole point of buffing a clear coat is to remove these surface scratches!!! 

I get their not happy because I've sent one back already, but thats a months pay, and it's supposed to be a limited edition, play it but also keep it nice for decades gift to myself

Like someone else said, my cheaper Fender tele, and ibanez rdg (£1000 less) are immaculate. So really Esp need to sort it out if this is the way the standards are going. 

I mean end of the day, its disappointing. 

And I'm not going to kick off over a £15 return fee at this price. But I really don't like that this one and the one before will just be sold as new for the next dude to end up with.

skunkwerx

DefaultM said:

skunkwerx said:

Aye its factory made, 100% brand new out the box. 

I've requested a return but here is my response. 

The 'previous return' had a chip in the lacquer at the edge of the fretboard. But andertons deem it not a problem For a brand new guitar so its back in stock for the next guy to buy..... Great. 

What a load of shit. Is the issue just who pays the postage costs? If it's not faulty you have to pay it?

Seems so. However I'm pretty sure there are other scenarios that require the seller to pay the return cost. Item not as described, fit for purpose n all that. 

For £15 its fair, I don't mind losing it. My own courier would cost double and only be insured for £1000. 

Its moreso their general attitude toward what condition a new item is in is deemed acceptable thats irked me. 

Try and sell something to these mobs though and they notice every small detail and knock you back for it. 

soma1975

Seriously, post those photos and their response on all Andertons social media and let the public decide if their QC is acceptable. See how long it takes for you to get taken care of and it be deemed an oversight. 

JezWynd

The swirl marks are just poor workmanship, their trying to pass it off as “the nature of the finishing process” is laughable. Box shifters.

Lodious

I'd pay the £15 quid to get my money back, then shame the fuck out of them on social media to get the £15 returned. That response from them about QC checking is total bullshit.

Was that really Anderton's who sent that? That's awful.