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Old 11-19-2009, 06:22 PM
FranK_S FranK_S is offline
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Default Purchasing a guitar from an online dealer-can't decide.

I am interested in a new Larrivee guitar that "Guitar Adoptions" has for sale. I emailed them and asked what the date of manufacture was because I said I was interested in buying it and the first response I got was, "It's irrelevant" so I responded by saying, "It may be irrelevant to you but it is important to me." Their response to that was, "O.K., can I ask why?"
So they never even attempted to answer my question and only responded by asking me a question.

I run a small business and if someone is interested in purchasing one of my products I don't answer to a query by asking a potential customer to justify their question, I just answer it, seems like good customer service. I sense a bit of an attitude on their part.
I'm sure some of you guys will feel it's irrelevant too but I've never purchased a guitar sight unseen or online before so it is important for me to know how long this guitar has been sitting around in their stockroom.

What do you guys think?
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Old 11-19-2009, 06:24 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by FranK_S View Post
...What do you guys think?
Hi Frank…
I think Dave at Guitar Adoptions has always been a stand up guy with me, and I've never been caught off guard nor had any bad service from them over the last decade.

I bet if you call them, he will give you the answer you are looking for.

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Old 11-19-2009, 06:25 PM
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Seems like a weird response from them. I have purchased from them before and received great service. Maybe they opened their bills today?
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Old 11-19-2009, 06:34 PM
FranK_S FranK_S is offline
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Originally Posted by ljguitar View Post
Hi Frank…
I think Dave at Guitar Adoptions has always been a stand up guy with me, and I've never been caught off guard nor had any bad service from them over the last decade.

I bet if you call them, he will give you the answer you are looking for.

I thought about it and didn't because I really don't feel like justifying my question. If he didn't know the answer, he could simply say, I can find out for you and get back to me, but he made no attempt to do so.
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Old 11-19-2009, 06:38 PM
Taylor Martin Taylor Martin is online now
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If you are wanting to know if it was made on March 1 or July 6 of 2009, I would have to agree that it's irrevevant. If you are wanting to know if it was made in 2007 or 2009, then by all means they should tell you. Last thing I would want to do is buy a 2007 for 2009 prices.....
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Old 11-19-2009, 06:41 PM
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By the way, I talked to them once about a guitar and pretty much got the same attitude, different questions but same attitude (I called vs emailed)....
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Old 11-19-2009, 06:45 PM
FranK_S FranK_S is offline
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If you are wanting to know if it was made on March 1 or July 6 of 2009, I would have to agree that it's irrevevant. If you are wanting to know if it was made in 2007 or 2009, then by all means they should tell you. Last thing I would want to do is buy a 2007 for 2009 prices.....
The month doesn't matter to me, it's the year. I'm a lefty and I noticed this model guitar was mentioned in a thread in 2004 on the Larrivee forum. It stated that G.Adoptions had purchased two of them (Hog top D) at that time so I was curious to know if this was one of them. It is listed as a "closeout" item on their website.
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Old 11-19-2009, 06:45 PM
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When the guitar was made is absolutely relevant - Perhaps there is a misunderstanding. I would suggest asking for year of manufacture. If they still say this is irrelevant - shop elsewhere.
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Old 11-19-2009, 06:49 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by FranK_S View Post
I am interested in a new Larrivee guitar that "Guitar Adoptions" has for sale. I emailed them and asked what the date of manufacture was because I said I was interested in buying it and the first response I got was, "It's irrelevant" so I responded by saying, "It may be irrelevant to you but it is important to me." Their response to that was, "O.K., can I ask why?"
So they never even attempted to answer my question and only responded by asking me a question.

I run a small business and if someone is interested in purchasing one of my products I don't answer to a query by asking a potential customer to justify their question, I just answer it, seems like good customer service. I sense a bit of an attitude on their part.
I'm sure some of you guys will feel it's irrelevant too but I've never purchased a guitar sight unseen or online before so it is important for me to know how long this guitar has been sitting around in their stockroom.

What do you guys think?

It's probably "new old stock"...or they are concerned that *you* are concerned that it's been abused in some way....and most retailers don't differentiate between new-stock and new-old-stock, unless indeed the guitar has been damaged (even slightly) while on-display.

Either way, it's absolutely the wrong way to answer your very direct question. If it's new-old-stock, and it's "like new," then they should be quick to provide that info, and let you make your decision.

I'd say to either give them some slack and try again, or vote with your wallet and take your business elsewhere.

It's your decision.
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Old 11-19-2009, 06:55 PM
FranK_S FranK_S is offline
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Originally Posted by Larry Pattis View Post
It's probably "old stock"...or they are concerned that *you* are concerned that it's old-stock....and most retailers don't differentiate between new-stock and new-old-stock, unless indeed the guitar has been damaged (even slightly) while on-display.

Either way, it's absolutely the wrong way to answer your very direct question.

I'd say to either give them some slack and try again, or vote with your wallet and take your business elsewhere.

It's your decision.
Your response makes perfect sense Larry. I don't doubt it is indeed "new" but from the responses I received, I get the feeling it could have been sitting around for quite a while.
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Old 11-19-2009, 07:00 PM
SpruceTop SpruceTop is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ljguitar View Post
Hi Frank…
I think Dave at Guitar Adoptions has always been a stand up guy with me, and I've never been caught off guard nor had any bad service from them over the last decade.

I bet if you call them, he will give you the answer you are looking for.

I agree! I've talked to Dave on the phone a couple of times regarding prospective Larrivee and Guild purchases and he's always been very congenial and patient with my questions.

Regards,

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Old 11-19-2009, 07:24 PM
Jeff M Jeff M is offline
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That surprises me.
I would want to know when it was built also.

Give "Notable Guitars" a call.
That is the other Larrivee dealer that is often recommended by folks over at the Larrivee forum.

http://www.notableguitars.com/

I've dealt with them. Great experience.
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Old 11-19-2009, 07:48 PM
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Yes defiantly phone them up,a good lefty is hard to come by,especially if it has been discontinued.It's worth the extra cost of a phone call.Maybe the person answering emails is new and doesn't know him/her self anything about guitars,more of a sales type person filling in.I would give them a call,if their sketchy and evade questions,the guitar might not be worth it since it most likely has some sort of damage they don't want to mention.
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Old 11-19-2009, 07:58 PM
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I have dealt and bought from both Jason and David. In fact, I have purchased at least three guitars from David. Both are good guys in my book.
Email can be a tricky business... you can tell so much more from a voice.
Nonetheless, one can blame you for trusting your gut and looking elsewhere.
If you want a other options I would recommend both Elderly Instruments or E.M. Shorts Guitars.

Good luck finding that Larrivee!
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Old 11-19-2009, 08:03 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by FranK_S View Post
I am interested in a new Larrivee guitar that
I'm sure some of you guys will feel it's irrelevant too but I've never purchased a guitar sight unseen or online before so it is important for me to know how long this guitar has been sitting around in their stockroom.
This question (How long has it been sitting around their showroom) is a different question than your original question of what is the date of manufacture. Let me explain...

Larrivee assigns a serial number to the guitar when the guitar construction is started. Some models may sit around their shop for a long time (18 months in some unusual circumstances). So if you ask Larrivee for a date of manufacture...that is the date that Larrivee will respond with.

So the date of manufacture can be very different from the amount of time a dealer has had a guitar on his floor. If you asked the dealer how long they have had the guitar you may get a very different answer. Also, lately, Larrivee has cut back its staff and its hard to get these types of mundane questions answered...so the dealer may not want to bother them with another serial number question...'cause he knows he won't be able to get an answer in a timely manner from Larrivee....

Not sure if any of this plays into your transaction with the dealer...its just my thoughts about what could be going on after leaning a lot about how Larrivee operates after hanging for years on the Larrivee forum.

My opinion and $1.75 is worth a cup of coffee....hope this helps...
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