It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Subscribe to our Patreon, and get image uploads with no ads on the site!
Base theme by DesignModo & ported to Powered by Vanilla by Chris Ireland, modified by the "theFB" team.
Comments
is it crazy how saying sentences backwards creates backwards sentences saying how crazy it is?
To be fair to them, there shop price for that Lemon Drop is middle of the road. Some are cheaper, some are more expensive.
This though is about £100 north of where most people place it- web or shop purchase
http://www.chandlerguitars.co.uk/product_Detail.php?ItemID=5140
is it crazy how saying sentences backwards creates backwards sentences saying how crazy it is?
There is an engl combo for 450 if anyone wants it
I have a soft spot for Doug, Paula and Charlie from my brief stint working there back in '94.
Brinsley was also a font of knowledge even though I don't think he liked me.
sad to see it have to go and a bitter pill for those who work there both in the shop and workshop.
Many guitars have a re-sale value. Some you'll never want to sell.
Stockist of: Earvana & Graphtech nuts, Faber Tonepros & Gotoh hardware, Fatcat bridges. Highwood Saddles.
Pickups from BKP, Oil City & Monty's pickups.
Expert guitar repairs and upgrades - fretwork our speciality! www.felineguitars.com. Facebook too!
Many guitars have a re-sale value. Some you'll never want to sell.
Stockist of: Earvana & Graphtech nuts, Faber Tonepros & Gotoh hardware, Fatcat bridges. Highwood Saddles.
Pickups from BKP, Oil City & Monty's pickups.
Expert guitar repairs and upgrades - fretwork our speciality! www.felineguitars.com. Facebook too!
Doug, Paula and Charlie regularly got credits on albums for their invaluable help.
Web prices seem pretty much static and FB says nowt.
No refunds on sale items
Only 7 days to return
Must include original packaging
No refund of the delivery charge
If they can't even be bothered to offer the minimum required by law then they don't deserve to stay in business.
....but it was a very important shop for many many players, many of whom are pros and many who will feature in your album or CD collection. The reason it was important was (in it's heyday) the level of knowledge was second to none and they were great at guiding players looking for answers to their playing desires towards finding a rig or just parts of it. People bought from them even though there were discount merchants selling cheaper because of loyalty to the store that would always help them out and offer guidance and also the technical back-up they would get from the store, should they need it.
Many guitars have a re-sale value. Some you'll never want to sell.
Stockist of: Earvana & Graphtech nuts, Faber Tonepros & Gotoh hardware, Fatcat bridges. Highwood Saddles.
Pickups from BKP, Oil City & Monty's pickups.
Expert guitar repairs and upgrades - fretwork our speciality! www.felineguitars.com. Facebook too!
I visited Kew Gardens a couple of weeks ago and popped in. It felt very flat and not like it used to. Oh well...
Back in the day they weren't over priced, I bought quite a few ex name guitars and was never charged more for that...Mick Ralphs '82 AVRI Tele was £425...Graham Gouldman's (10cc) '87 PRS Custom cost me £1200 for example....oh and my dear long since departed ex Roger Taylor Schecter Tele....£750...bugger! Everything came set up to perfection too, the workshop was brilliant. Who remembers the tariff board complete with extra charge for those who wanted to watch them work on your guitar...funny!
My first Custom Shop Fenders circa 1990 came from there....my first PRS Custom....my first '90 Tom Anderson....it was never ending, I'd ring Doug up for a chat pre internet days on a regular basis, he'd send me guitars on appro if I couldn't travel down. Once when Tom Anderson took ages to make me a guitar Doug loaned me a lovely £1500 Strat to play F.O.C whilst I waited.
He never made me feel like I was a walking £ sign through the door. I'd spend hours there just chatting. Doug was knowledgeable and well connected, he had a real passion for quality instruments. Went to a Guitar show in London once and spent a couple of hours with him and Paul Reed Smith just talking guitar over coffee. Happy days. I was gutted when he left to work for PRS in the U.S and split from Paula. End of an era right there.
Chandlers also sold plenty of guitars for me, even when I'd bought tthem from elsewhere...they were always very fair with their commission charged and sold them well for me.
Things change, not for the better....never felt quite the same about other shops.Sounds Great were fairly close to me but they weren't on a par with Chandlers despite Gary's best efforts. These days I avoid the shops and either buy privately or online, quite often from the U.S....can't bear there attitudes and bland modern shelving....give me the posters and wooden pegboard at Chandlers any day.....it was like an Aladdins cave...you'd go for one thing then find another gem whilst you were there.
My fave moment with Doug was when he was dealing with two guys trying out amps, he sold them a Mesa Boogie in the end ..the softly spoken guy in a blue parka with hood up paid and I could tell that Doug had no idea who they were. They left and he came back across to me, I was laughing...he asked if I knew them....he suspected they must be famous cos their address was a P.O Box...yep it was Ian Broudie and Terry Hall of the Lightening Seeds and Specials fame...I told him and he was still none the wiser...lol....he was such a gent...denim shirt, beige slacks and deck shoes....last of a breed.
Alas I did sense the end was coming, I had a sneaky look online at the accounts of various guitar shop a while back just to see the state of the market and was sad to see Chandlers as one of the ones who were struggling. They aren't alone....others will follow. One day we'll be left with only the dreaded _______ !
Thanks Doug, Paula, Charlie & Brinsley.
As others have said the service was great. I remember borrowing something over the weekend to take it home and having a good try out. Not going to get that from Amazon without paying return postage. I've also taken something into the workshop and on a couple of occasions they have fixed minor things in 5 minutes and not charged me.
I think they took a decision in the early days of internet retailing to keep margins up rather than compete on price which looks to be a mistake in hindsight.
In that location the overheads would be crippling though compared with a lot of other shops. The rent must be 3 times what retailers would pay for similar space outside of London. A box shifter outside of London can probably pay minimum wage (or close to it) for wages as well.