Ever ordered 2-3 guitars with the intent of only keeping one?

PorkPieGuy · #1 10-26-2010, 08:20 AM

Since I rarely get to make my way to GC or anywhere else that has decent new instruments, I was curious to see if anyone had thought of doing this:

I'm thinking of ordering 2-3 guitars with the hopes of only keeping one and sending the other 1-2 back; in other words, I only want to keep one. I want to avoid ordering one, sending it back, ordering another, sending it back, ordering another, then deciding I wanted to try out that first one again. I'm trying my best to adhere to the "try before you buy" adage.

I realize that shipping back and forth might be expensive and ultimately maybe not worth my time, and I know that return policies can vary from place to place, but I was curious to see if anyone had ever done this. What was the result?

cpabolting · #2 10-26-2010, 08:22 AM

I think I would stick to two and I would discuss with the store what the plan is and make sure they are good with it. As long as you pay shipping both ways, I can't see how you go wrong.

kirkham13 · #3 10-26-2010, 08:26 AM

buy one at a time... learn from your error. it shouldn't take another 3 guitars to convince you if you want to keep one... and when you want to trade up, resell on the forum. I have bought 7 or so this year in my search for the right guitar/feel/sound.. and it is still a mystery-

Brent Hutto · #4 10-26-2010, 08:26 AM

I've not done that and would not care to. You're looking at a minimum of $100 for two-way shipping, quite likely more than that as the dealer is going to charge you "shipping and handling" and not necessarily just the FedEx fees alone. So the day you place the order for 3 guitars you've spent $300+ even if you keep none of them. For that amount of money you could probably make an overnight trip of a couple hundred miles to a place where more than three guitars are on offer.

Are you wanting to educate yourself about a range of very different guitars so that you'll discover what it is you're looking for? If so, make a road trip and really educate yourself. But otherwise, you ought to consider ordering one instrument that purports to be just what you're looking for and then evaluating it purely on the question "Is this particular guitar worth keeping at the price it will cost?".

You seem to be wanting to avoid buying one guitar when there's another out there that you woulda, coulda, shoulda liked better. That is a very expensive question and one that you will never, ever answer to your complete satisfaction. I highly recommend working toward the "Is this one good enough" question instead. In which case one guitar at a time will do.

kirkham13 · #5 10-26-2010, 08:28 AM

a worthy read is the thread on what I have learned from guitar ownership-

rmyAddison · #6 10-26-2010, 08:49 AM

I would not do it, especially with new guitars. Shipping is the worst enemy of acoustic guitars IMO.

Be totally up front with the dealership you are working with, if they are OK with it then it's their business and we have no say or skin in the game.

Personally I would day trip with the shipping money to the closest decent store, if possible.

Tone Gopher · #7 10-26-2010, 08:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PorkPieGuy

I was curious to see if anyone had ever done this. What was the result?

I bought two Bourgeois guitars here at AGF last summer - an OMC and an OMS-C.

I wouldn't be able to find either in a shop in this area and already had good experiences with owning previous Bourgeois and playing several others.

I enjoyed the OMS-C enough that I decided to keep it and sell the OMC as well as my "beater" Gurian S3R.

I have accepted a deposit on the OMC and a friend of mine is taking the Gurian.

MissouriPicker · #8 10-26-2010, 09:00 AM

I wouldn't do it. Unless the store is okay with it, it comes across as being a bit sneaky and dishonest. Just my view.

66strummer · #9 10-26-2010, 09:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissouriPicker

I wouldn't do it. Unless the store is okay with it, it comes across as being a bit sneaky and dishonest. Just my view.

?????? I don't get these kinds of comments. Stores like Musician's Friend tell you up front that they have a 45 day return policy. Many stores will charge a "restocking fee" if a customer returns a guitar.

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I say if you're willing to burn up the $$$ on return shipping and any other fees that apply to returns, then go for it. At least you will know what you want in the end.......or, like Rich mentioned spend the $$$ in gas and make a day trip to a good guitar store or 2. Be warned however that some (not all) "local" places charge ridiculous amounts of $$ compared to what online places sell at. I would never buy a Blueridge locally after I saw what they want for a BR160 compared to what it is online (try an extra $400!).....WHAT?????

brokepick · #10 10-26-2010, 09:22 AM

Definitely make sure it's okay with the seller. Surprisingly, most sellers don't seem to have a problem with it. I emailed Musician's Friend asking about this very thing a while back.

Their reply was that it was fine with them, as long as the unwanted guitars were returned in salable condition. I would have to pay return shipping, and the amount refunded would be minus their original shipping costs.

ewalling · #11 10-26-2010, 09:29 AM

I once called Musicians Friend and told them I was very interested in a guitar, but that I would only buy it on the understanding that if, for any reason, I didn't want to keep it, I could send it straight back. They were fine with that. That's as far as I've gone. However, I suppose if you're dead set on one model, say a classic like the OM-28V, I can see the logic in ordering three and keeping the best one, if you didn't have the time, inclination, or readies to fly to a store that had three OM-28Vs in stock. That's assuming that the online store has three of one model, but I would imagine that that a megastore like Musicians Friend would.

Most people on the forum attest to important differences between quality guitars in the same series, and that some are better than others. With that in mind, the buyer might decide that they are prepared to spend the extra X hundred dollars in shipping to make sure they got a model that they really liked, without the niggling suspicion that they may not have got one of the really good ones. Out of three, we could feel reasonably satisfied that at least we had had some freedom of movement and choice. An extra $300 in shipping doesn't seem extortionate to me for that greater sense of assurance.

Brackett Instruments · #12 10-26-2010, 09:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissouriPicker

I wouldn't do it. Unless the store is okay with it, it comes across as being a bit sneaky and dishonest. Just my view.

I agree

Quote:

Originally Posted by 66strummer

?????? I don't get these kinds of comments. Stores like Musician's Friend tell you up front that they have a 45 day return policy. Many stores will charge a "restocking fee" if a customer returns a guitar.

-----------------------------

I say if you're willing to burn up the $$$ on return shipping and any other fees that apply to returns, then go for it. At least you will know what you want in the end.......or, like Rich mentioned spend the $$$ in gas and make a day trip to a good guitar store or 2. Be warned however that some (not all) "local" places charge ridiculous amounts of $$ compared to what online places sell at. I would never buy a Blueridge locally after I saw what they want for a BR160 compared to what it is online (try an extra $400!).....WHAT?????

Perhaps that's why Musicians Friend, and other big box stores have higher prices than Maury, MFG, ect.

Would you want to buy a guitar that had been sold, then returned?
I know it's a double edged sword, and no one answer is totally right or wrong.

billv · #13 10-26-2010, 09:33 AM

I did just this a few years back and had a really good experience. I couldn't decide if I wanted a hollow or solid-body version of a Carvin electric guitar. I called Carvin up, and said "how about if I order one of each type and send back the one I don't like?". they told me that was just fine. So that's what I did, taking the full trial period to make sure I could decide on the one to send back.

I think it is a reasonable plan if you are upfront with the dealer/seller, and they have a reputable return policy, AND it is not feasible to go and try out the guitars.

cotten · #14 10-26-2010, 09:38 AM

Have I ever thought of ordering multiple guitars and just keeping one? Oh, YES! Yesterday, in fact. I was tempted to order a guitar from each of our luthier Sponsors and just keeping the one I liked best!

That wouldn't be wise or fair, of course. I already know that I'd never be able to part with any of them, so my wife and I would likely have to find a homeless shelter somewhere that had room for lots of fine guitars!

But the real answer is no, I've not considered ordering with the intention of sending back. Sure have enjoyed road trip guitars, though.

cotten

Matt Mustapick · #15 10-26-2010, 09:42 AM

I think the underlying assumption that sellers count on to some degree is that if a buyer orders something then it is their earnest hope to be satisfied with it. This would not be the case in the scenario the OP is proposing, so good faith clearly would require that the buyer make his plans known to the seller in advance. It would be the buyer's clear responsibility to be absolutely certain that the seller had the opportunity to opt in or opt out of the transaction with full knowledge of the buyer's plan.