Disappointment

Originally Posted by 3woodengulls

One thing i don't know is do I have to send it back to that store or can I take it to any guitar center. Anyone know?

You can take it to any Guitar Center. Tell them what happened and demand they refund any shipping charges you incurred (if any). They are supposed to cover that too if there's damage.

This is all too common with GC. Some of their used stock is simply abysmal. People dump their crap guitars there and GC happily re-sells them with very generous descriptions. What happened to you happened to me with a Gibson Songwriter. In my case the guy pointed out a scratch on the back but didn't mention deep gouges in the frets, a mis-cut nut, glue smears all over the inside and around the soundhole, and a few other things I don't remember now.

[3woodengulls]

Anyone know if I have 14 days or 45 days to return this

[3woodengulls]

If the description was correct I may have bought this guitar but not at the price it was listed for! It was way over priced given the condition. Pretty upset that there is just no honesty any more

[Earl49]

Take it back right now to your nearest store - don't wait for the 15/45 day period to become an issue. I have noticed that most GC used listings always say "excellent condition" as a default. Still there are numerous threads here about folks who got guitars that were clearly and obviously NOT in excellent condition, by any reasonable standard.

I try to put that down to incompetence, not dishonesty, but it does seem to be consistent.

[archerscreek]

Don’t wait to take it back. They might claim you caused the crack while the guitar was in your possession. Then you’d have to show time dated photos and such to prove your claim. Do it ASAP.

[3woodengulls]

Planning on taking it back tomorrow. That is the earliest I can get there

[erhino41]

That is par for the course at GC. I have and will buy used from them in the future but it is a mine field. I have ordered three guitars sight unseen that I received grossly inaccurate in hand descriptions over the phone. Since the buyer eats shipping and it is just as easy to resell the guitar at another GC location once it is returned, it seems their policy is to get the guitar out to the consumer and deal with the problems later, even if that means being dishonest. I would go so far as to call it deceitful, as a trained salesperson of guitars cannot miss certain discrepancies while giving an excellent condition and description of a guitar. If that salesperson can miss such discrepancies they should not be selling guitars.

I have in the past called up my local GC to get in hand descriptions on used guitars that I have already auditioned in store. I can tell you from the conditions I have noted instruments to be in and the condition they described those instruments to be in, they have a systematic propensity towards knowingly deceitful description of their inventory. Without the generous return policy it would border on criminal misrepresentation.

If the deal is good enough, I consider the shipping cost as a rental fee on the trial period. Their return policy is 45 days typically no questions asked. I usually ship to the store and pick it up there so the condition of the guitar cannot be blamed on me if and when it is returned.

There is a reason they do not post hi-rez images of the guitars they sell. You could always request higher resolution images from the salesperson. Nowadays, those can be taken with a phone and texted to a customer in a matter of seconds. If they refuse that should tell you something.

[frankmcr]

Originally Posted by 3woodengulls

So I ordered a used guitar from gc. Called them prior to the order and asked them what kind of shape the guitar was in. It was listed as excellent. They told me it was in excellent shape and that excellent is their top rating on used guitars. No issues. When it arrived I find a crack in the top I realize I have 14 days to return it but man why couldn't they have been honest with me. I went Back through the pictures they had posted and if you zoom in you can see a little be where the crack is but you cannot tell it's a crack in the photos. Sad and dissappointed really liked this guitar. And before anyone beats me up over not playing it before I bought it this was not an option as the guitar was 3000 miles from where I am. Guess I just would have liked some honesty. Lesson learned I guess.

One possibility - cracks can be repaired. Is it safe to infer from your account that the crack is not a large one? And if you do really like this guitar ... maybe take it to your nearest GC, talk to the manager, and if you can get enough money back have the guitar repaired.

Just thinking that if the guitar really appeals to you otherwise it might be worth your while to give that a shot.

[Earl49]

Originally Posted by frankmcr

One possibility - cracks can be repaired. Is it safe to infer from your account that the crack is not a large one? And if you do really like this guitar ... maybe take it to your nearest GC, talk to the manager, and if you can get enough money back have the guitar repaired.

Just thinking that if the guitar really appeals to you otherwise it might be worth your while to give that a shot.

Even if you got the crack properly repaired (literally anywhere else but the typical GC) be aware that a repaired guitar will take a big hit in price, and/or take a LONG time to re-sell should you ever go there. I would have to get a substantial discount to make that even remotely appealing. Something like 15-20% of what was paid.

There are plenty of very good / excellent condition used guitars out there that do not need any repairs, or have any other clouds.

[Seagull S6]

Originally Posted by Jukie

I'd just send it back, get my refund and then talk to the liars manager and unload on that guy.

Evacuating your bowels on someone probably isn't going to anything except make you look rather unreasonable and just make life more difficult. Return policy? No problem, just return it and done.

[ancient tones]

Originally Posted by Seagull S6

Evacuating your bowels on someone probably isn't going to anything except make you look rather unreasonable and just make life more difficult. Return policy? No problem, just return it and done.

Exactly! You win some and you loose some.

[Watt]

Originally Posted by 3woodengulls

So I ordered a used guitar from gc. Called them prior to the order and asked them what kind of shape the guitar was in. It was listed as excellent. They told me it was in excellent shape and that excellent is their top rating on used guitars. No issues. When it arrived I find a crack in the top I realize I have 14 days to return it but man why couldn't they have been honest with me. I went Back through the pictures they had posted and if you zoom in you can see a little be where the crack is but you cannot tell it's a crack in the photos. Sad and dissappointed really liked this guitar. And before anyone beats me up over not playing it before I bought it this was not an option as the guitar was 3000 miles from where I am. Guess I just would have liked some honesty. Lesson learned I guess.

Return it to your local GC and be done with it. I've purchased a few used guitars long distance from GC. All but one were great. The one exception was in fair condition, but described as excellent. Returned it locally. They politely asked why I returned it, but didn't question the return.

[sad99]

I've had good experiences buying used from GC, but it quickly becomes apparent that not all GCs are created equal. What I do is use the online email to contact the store with questions. At least half the time I never hear back, so those stores get crossed off the list. Those that do reply usually do so fairly quickly, another good sign, and I request more pictures. That way I have a pretty good idea of what I'm getting. If I decide I want it, I call the store and talk to whoever emailed me the pictures, and they can answer any final questions I have. I've always offered a little less than they have it listed for, and each time it's been accepted. And the local return gives me a final backup.

Granted I've bought fairly popular guitars, so I've always had a handful to choose from. If I wanted something that only one store had, I'd call and insist on more pictures or I'd probably steer clear.

I got a nice surprise on an FSR telecaster I bought. It said it came with a case, which I never asked about - I figured it was a cheap gig bag or something - but when I opened the box, I was looking at a $100 tweed hardshell case in perfect condition. So there are some good GCs out there and some good deals to be had.

[jhmulkey]

Originally Posted by Mr. Paul

No one that "unloads" on a long distance buyer of a guitar that comes with a good return policy is worth listening to. Sorry for your disappointment.

Assuming "unloads" does not refer to a profanity-laden rant, I disagree. First of all, distance has nothing to do with it; a customer is a customer. Second, it is obvious that this store was either grossly dishonest OR negligent with their inspection/description of the purchased guitar, and the manager definitely needs to hear from a person upset that their time has been wasted (it's not just about money). Unless they're simply a lousy manager, they should listen to such a person and make sure this situation doesn't happen again.

[guitar george]

It is possible that the young, inexperienced, broke, just starting out in life salespeople, that may have been involved in this sale, wouldn't recognize a crack if they saw one.