I cannot imagine Matt Eich would let a defective guitar out of his shop. He is well known for perfection. But attaching an 8lb body to a light Mahogany neck and a maple biscuit sitting on very thin and fragile cones can definitely cause damage in shipping.

I have, yes. Having trouble getting an answer.

Yes, when you put it that way, I can’t imagine the guitar would have left the shop like this either. However, the guitar case has a card from Chicago music exchange in it, and I bought it from a shop called Willie’s, so that would probably mean I’m at least the third owner. Heavy strings for slide, a neck with no truss rod, and previous owners that did lord knows what to it….who knows how it got to be this way. I can say I noticed the neck was messed up the second I opened the case. I was hopeful that resos had some weird neck angle quirk I wasn’t aware of and it would still be ok, but upon attempting to fret the higher notes I realized something was seriously wrong.

Seems like it's between you and the shop you bought it from, and not really related to Mule at this point.

Have you contacted Willie's?

Definitely contact Willie's--they have a great reputation in Minnesota and the upper midwest...

Yes I contacted Willie's about 5 mins after playing the first notes on the guitar. They have been helpful, and I will shipping the guitar back tomorrow for a refund. I also asked them if they would be able to reach out to Mule to inquire about a neck replacement but I haven't heard anything on that front.

I am little peeved that they allowed this guitar to even leave their shop. I'm guessing they got it in and somebody ripped a couple quick slide lines on it, it seemed fine and they put it up for sale. Oh well, mistakes happen.