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However, I doubt any of those guys would be in the market for a handmade guitar and I doubt any of them would buy a guitar from an unknown builder on a whim - purely because it would still be a major purchase.
Any guitar that costs 4x a good entry-level instrument should be fundamentally functional. That means the neck should be straight, the frets should be in the right places, the hardware should be correctly-installed and work properly, as should the electric bits. The guitar in the OP clearly doesn't tick those boxes and it isn't a buyer's fault for not knowing the price was unreasonable.
It's not like handmade guitars are something you can buy in Tescos so it's not reasonable for a noob to understand what goes into one.
Supportact said: [my style is] probably more an accumulation of limitations and bad habits than a 'style'.
also agree that £700 is a chunk of anyone’s money to put down on a guitar, noob player or otherwise...
Even more reason to do your homework!!!!!
now before anyone starts getting pissy and shouting “victim blaming” again... re read and understand what myself and others have said...
whilst £700 is a big step up from an entry level guitar and is a large sum of money to invest in an instrument... it is so wildly lower than the
price of even a cheap custom made bolt together... it will NEVER be a playable quality instrument at that price point made by a one man band in a shed!!!!!
and yes, totally agree that the guy should not be making/selling guitars... and yes, really do feel for the folk that have been suckered in by this shyster, and yes £700 should get you a playable instrument... but it won’t get you a playable hand built custom guitar and that is what folk need to understand before they hand over their hard earned on a whim!!!!
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!
This is exactly how the individus in question usually handle online discussion haha
"I tried building a guitar for a customer who was on a very low budget. This year hasn't been easy so couldn't turn it down as I'd make nothing but keep working. Didn't work out unsurprisingly so I refunded him in full in 3 days of getting the guitar back (which I thought was really good going). Not for one of his friends though. Absolutely awful bloke. Bile has been incredible...I'm very upfront as anyone who has a guitar from me knows. This has been a bit of an eye opener. My initial mistake to think I could do it for that money I suppose but I thought I think I did the right thing. Live and learn. The guy himself has been cool about it"
So I'm an "absolutely awful bloke" now! Makes me glad to have shared this sorry tale in the first place.
would be a shame if folk posted a link to this thread on his fb page
A friend made me aware of the deal he was offering: six guitars with the same body/neck shape and material (mahogany) with a choice of fingerboard wood, tuners, pickups (Bare Knuckle) and bridge. On speaking with Elson, I became aware that he custom shaped the bodies and neck, starting with a block of mahogany. He bought the hardware at a dealer discount. By building six guitars in parallel there was a bulk saving plus he had stocks of various items. My figures told me he would probably be making around £150-200 profit per guitar. That's around a grand for a side project. I didn't see that as a red flag especially as there were no negative comments anywhere in December 2019. Given the handmaking in parallel, two-and-a-half months didn't seem unreasonable.
What did I expect? A guitar that would bridge the gap between the other guitars I own. I liked the idea of having a P90-based guitar, especially one with the Bare Knuckle version. Tim Mills had replicated a pair of Tom Holmes pickups for me previously and their pickups are really good. I liked the idea of solid mahogany and chose a decent trem unit (for an additional £85). My luthier maintains guitars for the likes of Mark Knopfler and Brian May and I know what he would have charged for a custom guitar. I didn't expect that level of quality - but I did expect a guitar that would have offered my a recording tonality I didn't have. I've owned many guitars in the past. This was an opportunity to have some input into the build.
Given the lockdowns last year, I wasn't surprised when the end-of-March deadline wasn't made. That said, I didn't expect it to be a further three months but any reasonable person would have allowed for this given the circumstances.
I saw photos of the build as it progressed. I had various choices including the stain colour, fret wire and electrics. I spoke with Olly who wires up the guitars regarding possible wiring configurations. The six of us involved in the purchase were in communication. No-one raised any issues. This was no whim of a purchase and I'm not naive.
Given all the above, where are the red flags for a non-luthier?
You mentioned your tech and what he charges for a build, did you get quotes for a similar build from anyone else? Not having a pop at you by the way, just genuinely curious.
At the moment I'm looking for:
* Hamer Watson, SS2, Vintage S, T62.
* Music Man Luke 1, Luke II
Please drop me a message.