Heartbreaking situation. Advice needed.

[fatherbowie]

I "discovered" PRS recently and fell in love with the S2 line. I had an SE245 first and then moved up to a S2 Singlecut Standard used from GC. That was a great guitar. Late last year I got the bug for one of the S2 594 models, so I upgraded to a new S2 McCarty Thinline. I posted photos here. I loved that guitar, except I wasn't crazy about the 85/15 S pickups. They only sounded OK to me, I actually preferred the pickups in the Singlecut Standard.

I splurged on some Bare Knuckle Mules after reading and hearing such great things about them. I have wired pickups before, but I hardly have time to work on my own stuff anymore with a kid, and I just wanted a pro to do it. I chose a shop in town with over 30 years of experience and a stellar reputation.

They told me the work would take about a week. I called them a little over a week later just to check on it, and they said the guitar was ready. I went to pick it up. After several minutes waiting, they said the guitar wasn't quite ready, it had "a scratch" that they were fixing. They would call me when it was ready. OK. I didn't freak out too bad because, hey, things happen. An honest scratch, no big deal.

They called the next day and said the guitar was ready. I went to pick it up and they took it out of the bag. I didn't see anything at first. Then I started to see some dings and scratches around the control area and I saw a scuff on the neck pickup cover (these were brand new BKP's, by the way). I was like... uhh, I didn't know what to say. They told me they would not charge me anything and to let them know if I wanted to discuss the guitar further. I said OK and left.

I got the guitar home and I was just flabbergasted. Several small dings and scratches around the control area, the neck pickup cover was scuffed as I mentioned. There were three separate spots around the bridge that they had tried to repair and polish out with cyanoacrylate. The bridge and tailpiece looked badly polished. There were even some fine scratches and pinpoint dings on the back of the guitar.

I thought about it and emailed them back. I didn't want to call as I was afraid I'd start yelling. I very calmly wrote that the damage to the guitar was a long way from "a scratch" and I didn't think it was enough to simply not charge me for the service. I told them that the guitar was brand new when I brought it to them. I had 1000% planned to keep that guitar but now I just wanted to get rid of it, and I would take a bath on it.

That was Saturday. Today I get an email back from them saying they would "properly take care" of it and to drop off the guitar. I'm not sure what it means to properly take care of it at this point. The guitar cannot be brought back to original condition without a fresh finish and some new hardware, IMO. And even then, it's not really "original".

I don't know what to do. I've never seen a guitar botched so badly. The damage is hard to photograph and the guitar looks fairly good from 10 feet away, but when you're playing it or looking closely, it just looks like a train wreck. A guitar isn't supposed to come out of the repair shop looking worse than when it was dropped off.

 

[Moondog Wily]

Wow, that totally sucks! My condolences on the whole situation!! Only thing I can say is, let them try to do the right thing, but don't let some cosmetics make you hate the guitar!!! I get the emotional drain that it has, but don't let it influence wanting to keep it or not, especially if it now sounds the way you want!!!! Best of luck on the resolution!!!!!

 

[andy474x]

I’d press them to buy it from you for what you spent on the guitar and pickups, and they can sell it used. I’d say it’s fair, they’re eating the cost of damage they did in the end.

 

[WEDGE]

That’s my nightmare. I do everything now unless I need a refret or for some reason can’t get a setup right.

 

[danktat]

 

[archtop]

Was the work done by the dealer who sold you the guitar?

A good luthier or repair person can make just about anything disappear, but it sounds like they may not have had their best work on your guitar. This is a job for somebody skilled in drop filling, sanding and polishing. If the shop has a good reputation for repairs then find out who built that reputation and insist they do the work.

Back in college I saved up to buy an acoustic and then saved up to have it setup by a renown luthier who had a new idiot working the day I dropped off my new guitar, he said he wanted to impress his new boss by setting up my guitar himself and before I could grab my guitar he ran to the shop where I heard a loud bang, boing and clunk. A few minutes later the idiot came out and said "did you know your new guitar had a cracked headstock?". Sometimes good shops let new idiots work on customer's guitars to get experience.

This is what you can expect from a pro:

 

[markd21]

Sorry, man. That is a total nightmare. I agree with andy474x...push them to buy it from you at full retail plus pickups. In the end I know that's heartbreaking and not much will "repair" the damage that business dealing has done.

 

[bodia]

You're right about it not supposed to come out of a repair shop in worse shape than when it went in. But, how does it sound with the Mules? If it's awesome, then you have to decide if the cosmetic issues are really enough to make you move a rad guitar. I mean, at some point your playing it may lead to worse than what it has now. I'm not saying to just keep it and take your lumps. You definitely should be properly compensated from the repair shop.

 

[fatherbowie]

The work wasn't done by the dealer. I bought the guitar in late November from MF. The place that did the work is a local repair shop that only does repairs (guitars and amps) and has built a very strong brand reputation.

The guitar sounds great with the Mules. I opted for their "half price new guitar setup" and actually I prefer how it played before. The action was a little higher but now I'm accidentally fretting strings I intend to mute. I think this could be rectified pretty easily by just raising the action a bit.

I'd prefer if they bought the guitar at retail rather than try to fix it (unless they send it to Dan Erlewine!). I'm sure the finish can be repaired (or refinished, worst case), but the bridge and tailpiece look all wavy now from being polished to take scratches out.

I'd also like to know just what happened. Did they drop the guitar? Did it fall off the workbench? Did something fall on it? It's bizarre. I can understand messing up and putting a single mark on the guitar, then reassess what you're doing, adjust, and continue. But there are so many flaws here, it's like it was some kind of big accident.

 

[Daryl Jones]

Having been on the other side for many, many years, I know things can and do happen anytime there is repair or upgrade work being done. That however, does not explain or forgive what happened. While no shop wants to lose money on a job of any kind, what needs to happen here is making it right for you the customer, even if it means they go into red ink to rectify the problem. But I can say that from a business manager's standpoint, you won't likely get any pleasing results if you are unreasonable (in their eyes, not yours) in your requests/demands for a satisfactory settlement. And that is what is going to be very hard for you, to be "nice" about it. As shown in the video above, a professional can restore the finish (even on the metal parts) to a point of near perfection, if they are willing to set things right. Which, if they are as reputable as you make out, they should be willing and able to do.
A few years ago, I damaged a customer's brand new off-road vehicle loading it up (he refused to load it himself, insisting that I do it) and in process, I clipped the edge of our ramp struts scarring the side panels of his machine. To say he was outraged is an understatement. I paid for full new replacement parts out of my pocket in order to make sure he retained his faith in our dealership and myself. He was happy enough, and it wasn't a super big expense on my part. Our dealer principle would have gladly saved me the costs I incurred, but I felt obligated since I was totally at fault and that's just the way I roll. Sometimes in business you just have to step up the game and swallow the s**t sandwich. Hopefully they do that for you.

 

[fatherbowie]

Having been on the other side for many, many years, I know things can and do happen anytime there is repair or upgrade work being done. That however, does not explain or forgive what happened. While no shop wants to lose money on a job of any kind, what needs to happen here is making it right for you the customer, even if it means they go into red ink to rectify the problem. But I can say that from a business manager's standpoint, you won't likely get any pleasing results if you are unreasonable (in their eyes, not yours) in your requests/demands for a satisfactory settlement. And that is what is going to be very hard for you, to be "nice" about it. As shown in the video above, a professional can restore the finish (even on the metal parts) to a point of near perfection, if they are willing to set things right. Which, if they are as reputable as you make out, they should be willing and able to do.
A few years ago, I damaged a customer's brand new off-road vehicle loading it up (he refused to load it himself, insisting that I do it) and in process, I clipped the edge of our ramp struts scarring the side panels of his machine. To say he was outraged is an understatement. I paid for full new replacement parts out of my pocket in order to make sure he retained his faith in our dealership and myself. He was happy enough, and it wasn't a super big expense on my part. Our dealer principle would have gladly saved me the costs I incurred, but I felt obligated since I was totally at fault and that's just the way I roll. Sometimes in business you just have to step up the game and swallow the s**t sandwich. Hopefully they do that for you.

I've actually been pretty easy going about this, I think, and I will be. If they can make the guitar right, great. If they can't, I'd diplomatically suggest monetary compensation. I'd love for them to just buy the guitar from me, but I don't think that's going to happen realistically. I'm just wary at this point of giving them the benefit of the doubt that they can make it right without cash.

Regarding the metal parts, I'm not that concerned about the pickup cover, and unless they can plate nickel, I don't think they can fix that. They can replace the cover if they want to, but it doesn't even bother me enough for them to do that. If that was the only flaw on the guitar, I would have 100% shrugged that off and gladly paid them for the service.

The bridge and tailpiece are different. I have a lot of experience collecting vintage watches, and refinishing a vintage watch case is a lot like polishing a bridge or tailpiece. You can take out scratches, but it's exceptionally hard to get the finish and the contours exactly right. The factory bridge and tailpiece are rounded where they need to be rounded, flat where they need to be flat, and sharp where they need to be sharp. They're generally perfect even on cheap hardware, let alone the PRS hardware that I've seen.

Those metal parts are all replaceable though. If they can make the finish on the body top and back look like they did before, I'll be happy.

 

[dmatthews]

I’d press them to buy it from you for what you spent on the guitar and pickups, and they can sell it used. I’d say it’s fair, they’re eating the cost of damage they did in the end.

^^^THIS^^^

 

[archtop]

The bridge and tailpiece are different. I have a lot of experience collecting vintage watches, and refinishing a vintage watch case is a lot like polishing a bridge or tailpiece. You can take out scratches, but it's exceptionally hard to get the finish and the contours exactly right. The factory bridge and tailpiece are rounded where they need to be rounded, flat where they need to be flat, and sharp where they need to be sharp. They're generally perfect even on cheap hardware, let alone the PRS hardware that I've seen.

PRS sells the 594 bridge and tailpiece in nickel for $80 each and a pickup cover is an easy swap (as long as the new cover matches the other pickup), you might suggest they replace the hardware as while finish dings occasionally happen damaging hardware brings to mind a Ferris Bueller parking garage joyride scenario. Talk to the owner of the shop!

Good luck, I hope it works out to your satisfaction.

 

[Rod/]

I’d press them to buy it from you for what you spent on the guitar and pickups, and they can sell it used. I’d say it’s fair, they’re eating the cost of damage they did in the end.

That’s a great idea…. Repair work like that are inexcusable in this day and age of Stew Mac tools and videos…..or YouTube for that matter…

 

[AllenTN]

I "discovered" PRS recently and fell in love with the S2 line. I had an SE245 first and then moved up to a S2 Singlecut Standard used from GC. That was a great guitar. Late last year I got the bug for one of the S2 594 models, so I upgraded to a new S2 McCarty Thinline. I posted photos here. I loved that guitar, except I wasn't crazy about the 85/15 S pickups. They only sounded OK to me, I actually preferred the pickups in the Singlecut Standard.

I splurged on some Bare Knuckle Mules after reading and hearing such great things about them. I have wired pickups before, but I hardly have time to work on my own stuff anymore with a kid, and I just wanted a pro to do it. I chose a shop in town with over 30 years of experience and a stellar reputation.

They told me the work would take about a week. I called them a little over a week later just to check on it, and they said the guitar was ready. I went to pick it up. After several minutes waiting, they said the guitar wasn't quite ready, it had "a scratch" that they were fixing. They would call me when it was ready. OK. I didn't freak out too bad because, hey, things happen. An honest scratch, no big deal.

They called the next day and said the guitar was ready. I went to pick it up and they took it out of the bag. I didn't see anything at first. Then I started to see some dings and scratches around the control area and I saw a scuff on the neck pickup cover (these were brand new BKP's, by the way). I was like... uhh, I didn't know what to say. They told me they would not charge me anything and to let them know if I wanted to discuss the guitar further. I said OK and left.

I got the guitar home and I was just flabbergasted. Several small dings and scratches around the control area, the neck pickup cover was scuffed as I mentioned. There were three separate spots around the bridge that they had tried to repair and polish out with cyanoacrylate. The bridge and tailpiece looked badly polished. There were even some fine scratches and pinpoint dings on the back of the guitar.

I thought about it and emailed them back. I didn't want to call as I was afraid I'd start yelling. I very calmly wrote that the damage to the guitar was a long way from "a scratch" and I didn't think it was enough to simply not charge me for the service. I told them that the guitar was brand new when I brought it to them. I had 1000% planned to keep that guitar but now I just wanted to get rid of it, and I would take a bath on it.

That was Saturday. Today I get an email back from them saying they would "properly take care" of it and to drop off the guitar. I'm not sure what it means to properly take care of it at this point. The guitar cannot be brought back to original condition without a fresh finish and some new hardware, IMO. And even then, it's not really "original".

I don't know what to do. I've never seen a guitar botched so badly. The damage is hard to photograph and the guitar looks fairly good from 10 feet away, but when you're playing it or looking closely, it just looks like a train wreck. A guitar isn't supposed to come out of the repair shop looking worse than when it was dropped off.

That totally sucks! I hope this works out to your satisfaction (as much as can be under the circumstances). As for advice, that is always easier to give when your not the one that it happened to… In some cases, I may feel exactly as you do; other times, if they gave a generous cash settlement, I would keep it, if the money equaled the difference in what I would’ve paid had I bought it used/blem/demo.

good luck with whatever you decide!

 

[Alnus Rubra]

That’s so sad!

The shop needs to make this right. Damaging customers property is a risk with repair work, however what you do after makes all the difference.

Hopefully this is resolved how you want.

 

[László]

I've had similar things happen in the past from the most highly regarded guitar and amp repair folks in my area. It's very upsetting. While the guitars came back functional, it's like they didn't care enough to be careful. One of my amps years ago came back in worse operating condition than it was when I took it in. So, never again.

This may sound a little crazy - OK, it is a little crazy - but I ship my guitars to my dealer in another state for repairs and setups, because he's just so good at it; or to the PTC. If an amp needs repair, it goes back to the factory for service.

Fortunately for my wallet, I learned that keeping them cased and properly humidified has eliminated the need for frequent setups.

 

[Dirty_Boogie]

I've had similar things happen in the past from the most highly regarded guitar and amp repair folks in my area. It's very upsetting. While the guitars came back functional, it's like they didn't care enough to be careful. One of my amps years ago came back in worse operating condition than it was when I took it in. So, never again.

This may sound a little crazy - OK, it is a little crazy - but I ship my guitars to my dealer in another state for repairs and setups, because he's just so good at it; or to the PTC. If an amp needs repair, it goes back to the factory for service.

Fortunately for my wallet, I learned that keeping them cased and properly humidified has eliminated the need for frequent setups.

You must really not trust your local shops/luthiers to trust UPS/FedEx more with your guitars.

 

[Lola]

I am so sorry this happened to you! I would of been very angry and freaked out. My guitars are the loves of my life!!

I have been taking my guitars to one luthier for the past 10 years and he is fantastic. He’s almost perfect.

 

[fatherbowie]

Just an update here... I dropped off the guitar. They do have a great reputation. There was a guy in front of me dropping off his vintage Martin with a side crack, and they talked about repair and refinish options. Sounds like they know what they're doing. The guy at the counter apologized and said the guitar should not have left the shop in the condition it did. I had to agree with him. He asked me to inspect an SG they recently repaired a cracked headstock and did a total refinish. It looked like a great job. So we'll see what happens. He said when I get it back I won't be able to tell anything happened to it. I did tell him not to worry about the hardware. I'm not concerned about some scratched nickel covers (they're both scratched, really) and I looked at the bridge and tailpiece again and I can live with them or replace down the road. I'm just concerned about the lacquer.

Not sure how long they'll have it, I'm guessing at least a few weeks. I'll post an update when I get it back.