Oh....my....gosh.....! wow, ouch and wow

[fazool]

OK I found a guitar I GAS-ed for here

I wondered about the bridge integrity.

I did some research and found the weak spot was newly available and fully supported here

after learning that, I ordered it for myself here

I've been anxiously awaiting it's arrival here


Well I did get it today and guess what : it is truly brand new from Taylor and fully register-able and warrantied. Oh and the bridge came cracked.

So......I'm a little bummed but have gotten great responses from the store and manufacturer so far. I will see what they say (apparently I had two bridges purchased and they were already sending me a third free of charge.).

Once I get this all sorted out (and switch to decaf) I will then at some point happily announce a NGD. Or not, if I can't get it sorted out.

[Song]

Well that's too bad. I know you were hoping for better.
As a quality engineer it's easy to see the design flaws.
Cast not forged (metal?), too thin, and notch effects (a change in section, sharp angles/corners).
Has Taylor redesigned its bridge replacement?

[fazool]

They have been very supportive so I am still hopeful.

One guy sent me a spare bridge (before I even got the guitar) for free.

Without knowing that, another guy got me the info and I purchased two spares.

None of these have arrived yet so I can't say if they are a different design.

In addition to the weak overall design, they have some threaded holes that go through thin parts of the stoptail piece (and that is where this one cracked).

I've gotten 100% satisfactory promises of support from the store and Taylor so I am not worried. As long as they make it right, give me a guarantee and spare bridges I will still be happy with this - I knew this going in, I just didn't expect it on day one. so my NGD is simply delayed at this point.

[PTony]

Sorry to hear that! Never good on a NGD to have it arrive and not be what you were hoping for. I'm sure it will be taken care of, but I feel for you. Keep us posted!

Side note, what material did Taylor use for these bridges?

[fazool]

I was frustrated (and very disappointed) at the first answers I got. The Taylor customer service rep (on his own) advoicated to his manager for me (without me knowing) and they agreed to ship the guitar to them and fix everything under warranty which made me happy

[seannx]

That's so disappointing. Is there another option for an aftermarket bridge that would be better? It's hard to believe they wouldn't ship a replacement to an authorized repair tech near you.

[paulp1960]

I would just buy a Les Paul, that bridge design is awful.

But good luck anyway.

[fazool]

Originally Posted by paulp1960

I would just buy a Les Paul....

I had a Les Paul, and an ES-225, and a MMSG and two Sonex's. I know Gibson solidbodies rather well.

I actually even tried to buy a Gibson with the specs I wanted but they don't exist so, why would I buy one?

Gibson wouldn't even respond when I tried buying one.

I've been SORELY disappointed and frustrated with this situation but Taylor (and Fanatic Guitars in Barcelona) have been very responsive and supportive so my problems are on the way to getting fixed I believe.

I will have a big delay for my NGD but, the silver lining is that this will come fresh from the factory with a clean bill of health, a factory spec set up, extra bridge spare and confirmation of lifetime warranty.

So I am disappointed and frustrated (and very impatient) but how well they resolve(d) this goes a very long way in reminding me "no one is perfect. They just need to honestly fix their mistakes"

So far they have been.

Originally Posted by paulp1960

...that bridge design is awful...

The industrial design of the bridge is perfect. The styling is nice - it is extremely comfortable to rest your palm on and it has tremendous adjustability options to dial things in perfectly.

The mechanical design is poor - it is too weak in critical areas.

While it appears too complicated it really isn't.

A Les Paul ABR style bridge has 23 parts.
This has 22 parts.