Botched Luthier Job

[Mantastic]

7 minutes ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

I told him he can cover the cost of repair OR he can buy the guitar from me and fix it himself. 

I doubt he will do the second one either.

No offense, but I don't care what you think he will do.  You've never met the guy.and you have absolutely no idea who he is. Why do you think your opinion of what he will do is useful?

You seem to have a negative outlook on many things.

[Sgt. Pepper]

6 minutes ago, Mantastic said:

No offense, but I don't care what you think he will do.  You've never met the guy.and you have absolutely no idea who he is. Why do you think your opinion of what he will do is useful?

You seem to have a negative outlook on many things.

Then why are you on this forum sniveling about what happened and and asking us for opinions? Handle your business and don't ask us what you should do.

Sorry you are dealing with cancer, but none of us on this forum F-ed up your guitar. You can be mad at me for what I say, but I didn't ruin your guitar.

Edited October 16, 2021 by Sgt. Pepper

[Mantastic]

10 minutes ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

Why are you on this forum sniveling about what happened and and asking us for opinions?

I'm asking for opinions for two reasons.  Most importantly because I want to know the best way to deal with getting this guitar back into perfect condition. My second reason is to validate that I'm not crazy and this is pretty serious and to vent and to feel a tiny bit better about it because I have a family of Gibson guitarists behind me saying "you're not being unreasonable."

What I wasn't looking for are people to shoot down all options as being unreasonable.  If you'd like to commiserate with the guy who broke my guitar, contact me and I'll give you his email address.  The funny thing is that you're more negative about the potential outcomes than he is! 🤣🤣🤣🤣

So basically, I'm looking for people to commiserate with who will pat me on the back and say things like, "wow, you got screwed, but Gibson will be able to make it like new again".  You know, like most people have done. I'm also interested in serious comments about why it may not be fixible if that's the case, etc.  Not looking for predictions on the behavior of somebody neither you nor I know.

Suggestion for you: look up the definition of "sniveling".

Edited October 16, 2021 by Mantastic

[Mantastic]

18 minutes ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

Then why are you on this forum sniveling about what happened and and asking us for opinions? Handle your business and don't ask us what you should do.

Sorry you are dealing with cancer, but none of us on this forum F-ed up your guitar. You can be mad at me for what I say, but I didn't ruin your guitar.

Again, I never said you or anyone here broke my guitar. What gave you the impression that I think someone here broke my guitar?  It is your words that I find irritating.  Lol... To get me "mad" would take quite a bit more. But yes, I am irritated with you because you are trolling a thread that is important to me. I could never be mad at you - I know nothing about you except that you're anal about your strap buttons.

I'm not here because I have cancer you knucklehead.  I'm not here looking for the person who broke my guitar. I'm here sharing. That's what this is about - sharing.  Had I seen this post a week ago, it would have saved me a lot of aggravation. I didn't ASK for opinions, but your assumption that I would like them is correct. But I would like them from the perspective of people that truly hope for a successful outcome.  Not someone who's only purpose seems to be to try to stress me out more.

Edited October 16, 2021 by Mantastic

[Mantastic]

20 minutes ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

Then why are you on this forum sniveling about what happened and and asking us for opinions? Handle your business and don't ask us what you should do.

Sorry you are dealing with cancer, but none of us on this forum F-ed up your guitar. You can be mad at me for what I say, but I didn't ruin your guitar.

Don't ask us what to do?

A. I didn't

 

 

[Sgt. Pepper]

1 hour ago, Mantastic said:

Don't ask us what to do?

A. I didn't

 

 

Um . . . this is a forum and if you post about something people will comment. It’s was a forum is. If you don’t want comments don’t post. 

1 Small Claims Court

2 A lead pipe upside the guys forehead.

3 Or go back and tell him what you want and if he doesn’t fix it to your specs, go back to option 1 or 2.

Edited October 16, 2021 by Sgt. Pepper

[Mantastic]

Hello my Gibson friends.  While I LOVE this guitar, the luthier just offered to buy it at full price - $2200.  He said he "f***** up big time" and doesn't want me to have to deal with it.  He actually offered me the $2400 that I mentioned initially.

Um... What just happened?  Tbh, it's the last thing I was expecting. He's coming by tomorrow to give me the money and pick up the guitar.

I'm sad that it will go, but as for erasing the last week of frustration, it goes a hell of a long way.

Hey, it's not about the money.  Not for me. If Gibson charged me $500 or $600 or $800 to fix it, I'd have no problem paying it - even if it's out of my pocket. The whole thing is more complex than that. If you're reading this, then guitars are not just another object to you and you understand.

I'm upset that I don't get to keep the guitar, but this brings it down to a "normal" level of upset, like if it arrived with a broken headstock. Frustrating, but straightforward.

And since just waiting is the worst part of this for me, this solves that. Nobody really "won" - whatever went down when that guitar was there, I have no idea - he's upset too, and that's pretty refreshing. Not that I want him to be upset, but in these times... you know what I mean.

The guy has been in business for over 10 years. I've seen his custom guitars and they're beautiful.  I don't get it, and I'm going to do something I never do well.  I'm going to let it go 🤣.  The offer is completely fair. I think the only way the outcome could have been better is if I just never gave the guitar to anybody. But under the circumstances, I'm surprisingly relieved and pleased.

Edited October 16, 2021 by Mantastic

[jdgm]

Best result possible.

Good luck!

[RBSinTo]

1 hour ago, Mantastic said:

Hello my Gibson friends.  While I LOVE this guitar, the luthier just offered to buy it at full price - $2200.  He said he "f***** up big time" and doesn't want me to have to deal with it.  He actually offered me the $2400 that I mentioned initially.

Um... What just happened?  Tbh, it's the last thing I was expecting. He's coming by tomorrow to give me the money and pick up the guitar.

I'm sad that it will go, but as for erasing the last week of frustration, it goes a hell of a long way.

Hey, it's not about the money.  Not for me. If Gibson charged me $500 or $600 or $800 to fix it, I'd have no problem paying it - even if it's out of my pocket. The whole thing is more complex than that. If you're reading this, then guitars are not just another object to you and you understand.

I'm upset that I don't get to keep the guitar, but this brings it down to a "normal" level of upset, like if it arrived with a broken headstock. Frustrating, but straightforward.

And since just waiting is the worst part of this for me, this solves that. Nobody really "won" - whatever went down when that guitar was there, I have no idea - he's upset too, and that's pretty refreshing. Not that I want him to be upset, but in these times... you know what I mean.

The guy has been in business for over 10 years. I've seen his custom guitars and they're beautiful.  I don't get it, and I'm going to do something I never do well.  I'm going to let it go 🤣.  The offer is completely fair. I think the only way the outcome could have been better is if I just never gave the guitar to anybody. But under the circumstances, I'm surprisingly relieved and pleased.

He is being far more than fair, and if you were being a mensch, you'd not take him up on it, but merely tell him to take all responsibility for a Gibson restoration. 

I think you are taking unfair advantage of his good nature.

RBSinTo

[Mantastic]

2 hours ago, RBSinTo said:

He is being far more than fair, and if you were being a mensch, you'd not take him up on it, but merely tell him to take all responsibility for a Gibson restoration. 

I think you are taking unfair advantage of his good nature.

RBSinTo

LOL!  Nyuck, nyuck, nyuck!

There's always one in the crowd!

He still has full use of both legs. so I think I've been very generous.

Edited October 17, 2021 by Mantastic

[Mantastic]

4 hours ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

Um . . . this is a forum and if you post about something people will comment. It’s was a forum is. If you don’t want comments don’t post. 

1 Small Claims Court

2 A lead pipe upside the guys forehead.

3 Or go back and tell him what you want and if he doesn’t fix it to your specs, go back to option 1 or 2.

LOL... say what you want.  I honestly didn't come here to ask you what to do.

The opinions are informative and they've helped to guide me.  But I didn't come here to ask you what to do.

Is English your second language, or are you a narcissist?

Dr. Pepper, don't waste the attitude on me.  It has no effect.  I've been warding off forum trolls since before you knew what forums were.

Edited October 17, 2021 by Mantastic

[Sgt. Pepper]

1 hour ago, Mantastic said:

LOL... say what you want.  I honestly didn't come here to ask you what to do.

The opinions are informative and they've helped to guide me.  But I didn't come here to ask you what to do.

Is English your second language, or are you a narcissist?

Dr. Pepper, don't waste the attitude on me.  It has no effect.  I've been warding off forum trolls since before you knew what forums were.

Who did you come to ask then?

Dude English and Math are hard. That is why I got a Liberal Arts degree.

If you got all the answers go take care of it. We are all waiting on before and after pics. 

Edited October 17, 2021 by Sgt. Pepper

[Mantastic]

24 minutes ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

Who did you come to ask then?

Dude English and Math are hard. That is why I got a Liberal Arts degree.

If you got all the answers go take care of it. We are all waiting on before and after pics. 

I guess you missed it, Dr. Pepper.

[Larsongs]

6 hours ago, Mantastic said:

Hello my Gibson friends.  While I LOVE this guitar, the luthier just offered to buy it at full price - $2200.  He said he "f***** up big time" and doesn't want me to have to deal with it.  He actually offered me the $2400 that I mentioned initially.

Um... What just happened?  Tbh, it's the last thing I was expecting. He's coming by tomorrow to give me the money and pick up the guitar.

I'm sad that it will go, but as for erasing the last week of frustration, it goes a hell of a long way.

Hey, it's not about the money.  Not for me. If Gibson charged me $500 or $600 or $800 to fix it, I'd have no problem paying it - even if it's out of my pocket. The whole thing is more complex than that. If you're reading this, then guitars are not just another object to you and you understand.

I'm upset that I don't get to keep the guitar, but this brings it down to a "normal" level of upset, like if it arrived with a broken headstock. Frustrating, but straightforward.

And since just waiting is the worst part of this for me, this solves that. Nobody really "won" - whatever went down when that guitar was there, I have no idea - he's upset too, and that's pretty refreshing. Not that I want him to be upset, but in these times... you know what I mean.

The guy has been in business for over 10 years. I've seen his custom guitars and they're beautiful.  I don't get it, and I'm going to do something I never do well.  I'm going to let it go 🤣.  The offer is completely fair. I think the only way the outcome could have been better is if I just never gave the guitar to anybody. But under the circumstances, I'm surprisingly relieved and pleased.

If a Guitar I own has bad karma it doesn’t inspire to want to play it. I don’t get upset if I sell or trade it.. It can start a new life with someone else who will make great Music with it…

There are no shortage of Guitars I’d like to own.. I’m sure I can always find a new or used GREAT Guitar to replace it.. I’m sure you can too..

Best of luck to you…

[sparquelito]

A brilliant conclusion. 

All's well that ends well, then. 

🙂

 

[NighthawkChris]

17 hours ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

Unfortunately that is why we have a court system and lawyers.

How about do the work on your own guitar then you have only you to blame.

That is the exact reason I only install the strap button in the pre-drilled hole in the body. None of my acoustics have strap buttons anywhere else.

Bottom line is since I try not to write a novel for a post, use someone you trust. Find out how good they are with a smaller job then graduate to see if they are truly worthy to drill, clamp, whatever to your guitar(s) we all love and know. 

And yeah there are a lot of swindlers out there that if you go anywhere they’ll take your money cause an issue, you’re unhappy, talk to the manager, talk to your CC company to get a refund or whatever… I’d rather go somewhere that I don’t need a headache for simple stuff. That is… if I can’t fix something myself of course. 

[NighthawkChris]

19 hours ago, RBSinTo said:

Chris,

It must be terribly depressing to live in a world where this is your prevailing philosophy. Yes, these are difficult times for any number of reasons, but to lose all faith in people must be truly soul crushing.

My condolences.

RBSinTo

Appreciate it pal I need all the help I can get. 

[kidblast]

15 hours ago, Mantastic said:

Hello my Gibson friends.  While I LOVE this guitar, the luthier just offered to buy it at full price - $2200.  He said he "f***** up big time" and doesn't want me to have to deal with it.  He actually offered me the $2400 that I mentioned initially.

Um... What just happened?  Tbh, it's the last thing I was expecting. He's coming by tomorrow to give me the money and pick up the guitar.

 

Wow, I'd surprised by that turn of events too.   He's trying to make it right, that tells you a lot about the person behind the problem. 

We all make mistakes, God knows I've made my share.   

 

[Mantastic]

55 minutes ago, NighthawkChris said:

Bottom line is since I try not to write a novel for a post, use someone you trust. Find out how good they are with a smaller job then graduate to see if they are truly worthy to drill, clamp, whatever to your guitar(s) we all love and know. 

And yeah there are a lot of swindlers out there that if you go anywhere they’ll take your money cause an issue, you’re unhappy, talk to the manager, talk to your CC company to get a refund or whatever… I’d rather go somewhere that I don’t need a headache for simple stuff. That is… if I can’t fix something myself of course. 

This is excellent advice.  I did the opposite. The first job I've had on a guitar that I wasn't certain I could do and it's the first thing I hired someone for.  It seems logical at first.  But you're right.  Very good idea.

[Mantastic]

29 minutes ago, kidblast said:

Wow, I'd surprised by that turn of events too.   He's trying to make it right, that tells you a lot about the person behind the problem. 

We all make mistakes, God knows I've made my share.   

Oh, for sure.  And honestly, because of the situation, I never got "mad" at him or anything.  And I don't think I ever expressed that except jokingly once or twice in the forum.  I put myself in his shoes, too.  And now that I'm thinking about it, that affected me a great deal. Like I said before there was no blame to be dished out.  I'm sure his intentions were always good - it was just a horrible situation for 2 people.

But because of the way he handled it, I won't hesitate to give him small things to do.  He's put me in a position where I have absolutely nothing to lose by using him again.  It's smart.

If I'm as smart as I think I am (doubtful), I think he wants the original guitar to fix it up like new and show me that he's capable. That's a real stretch, but this guy is pretty serious about proving himself, so who knows.

[kidblast]

1 minute ago, Mantastic said:

Oh, for sure.  And honestly, because of the situation, I never got "mad" at him or anything.  And I don't think I ever expressed that except jokingly once or twice in the forum.  I put myself in his shoes, too.  And now that I'm thinking about it, that affected me a great deal. Like I said before there was no blame to be dished out.  I'm sure his intentions were always good - it was just a horrible situation for 2 people.

But because of the way he handled it, I won't hesitate to give him small things to do.  He's put me in a position where I have absolutely nothing to lose by using him again.  It's smart.

If I'm as smart as I think I am (doubtful), I think he wants the original guitar to fix it up like new and show me that he's capable. That's a real stretch, but this guy is pretty serious about proving himself, so who knows.

It was handled well on your part,  I'd have been upset about it too,  I'd like to think I'd have been rational about it as well. 

I've had a few dealings with repair people in the past, stuff happens..  I've gone back to discuss the matter and they've usually tried to make it right. 

Cooler heads prevail.

 

[Mantastic]

9 hours ago, Larsongs said:

If a Guitar I own has bad karma it doesn’t inspire to want to play it. I don’t get upset if I sell or trade it.. It can start a new life with someone else who will make great Music with it…

There are no shortage of Guitars I’d like to own.. I’m sure I can always find a new or used GREAT Guitar to replace it.. I’m sure you can too..

Best of luck to you…

I'm less creative.  I just ordered the exact same guitar from Gibson.  Thing is, I loved the guitar for the day I had it. I hope that I get one very much like it.

But the karma thing.  Yeah, this one had bad mojo all over it - at least in my mind - from it's first week here.  With a brand new guitar, that won't be part of its history and won't kill my vibe by popping into my head.  Thank you.  I absolutely love that perspective and I think it's the one I'll adopt.  Very wise.

Edited October 17, 2021 by Mantastic

[Mantastic]

I think we hit the nail on the head.

Blame the guitar! Wow.  That does make everything feel a bit lighter, and it's not really a stretch.

[Sgt. Pepper]

13 minutes ago, Mantastic said:

I'm less creative.  I just ordered the exact same guitar from Gibson.  Thing is, I loved the guitar for the day I had it. I hope that I get one very much like it.

But the karma thing.  Yeah, this one had bad mojo all over it - at least in my mind - from it's first week here.  With a brand new guitar, that won't be part of its history and won't kill my vibe by popping into my head.  Thank you.  I absolutely love that perspective and I think it's the one I'll adopt.  Very wise.

Well, that is a cheap fix. 

 

[Mantastic]

1 hour ago, kidblast said:

It was handled well on your part,  I'd have been upset about it too,  I'd like to think I'd have been rational about it as well. 

I've had a few dealings with repair people in the past, stuff happens..  I've gone back to discuss the matter and they've usually tried to make it right. 

Cooler heads prevail.

 

It definitely paid off.  I don't know how I stayed so calm. As dramatic as it sounds, what happened is not my worst nightmare, but it's in the top 10.  But I think I just had so many other things on my mind, I managed to inadvertently handle it pragmatically.  That's definitely not my style. I'm more a "shock and awe" person, which can go either way, but never in the middle. So I'm proud of myself and of him. 

What I thought was me venting about a no-win situation turned out to be an unexpectedly nice story about the human condition - or at least the guitarist condition. 🙂

Edited October 17, 2021 by Mantastic