Jeannie Pickguards...

[dlenaghan]

Well, I found the earlier thread, perhaps too late. Got some Darkstar thumb rests, ordered two since I live abroad and didn't want to get one, like it, and need another for the bridge pickup.

Well, the size in fine, but man I am hard pressed to ascertain which part of this costs what it did. I've sent in my reply, so perhaps this post is a bit premature, but we'll see where it goes.

I guess I thought if a piece of plastic is going to be 30 bucks it should look finished, eg, not with rough edges, glue seams apparent, etc.

Here's hoping to an alright customer experience RE: possible return or whatnot. If not, you can be sure I'll be trying to resell them on here in a bit.

Sigh.

[dlenaghan]

Ok, LITERALLY minutes after I sent in my concern/complaint, I had a response from Roger explaining why things were as they were (it is all hand done, certainly to be lauded, but perhaps not quite as clean a product as a machine-cut one) and offering a full refund.

I know he's gotten some crap around here but there are as many people who've had good experiences with his company, so don't let this thread necessarily dissuade you.

The upshot is that you still can get a thumb rest for Darkstars, since Fred Hammon is somewhat MIA and Hagstrom no longer has any remaining parts for the Bisonics. I know. I checked.

[dlenaghan]

Well, not sure what to do - been waiting on a response from the package I posted to them. Basically it went down like this, and now there's fault on both sides: I waited 10 days, instead of the stated 7 (in the ad, and not that he's required to do so but it would have been nice to be reminded of the return period during our exchange - the difference between good customer service and everything else), and Roger reminded, somewhat guilt-inducingly, that I'd waited too long but he'd still 'honor his word'.

Well, nothing since. I shipped it via EMS, which usually send an SMS message to the sender's phone when something is received, but I've had a number of packages go out recently and I'm not very good at keeping track of the paperwork. In any event, I responded and included the tracking info.

So, we'll see.

I get that I waited too long, but damn, if you've got stuff up online that is selling without a sense of how.. rough it will look in person.. I'm not going to get on a high horse here but I will openly lament the occasional absence of decent customer service.

On the other hand, you've got guys like Ryan at Dr Scientist or Adam at CoPilotFX and they've been top-notch at responding. If it's quick, it'll be short and to the point, and always gracious/polite/not taking digs. If it's detailed, you might have to wait a bit, but at least they'll talk to you like an adult.

So now it's a face-off. I haven't provided feedback, and he hasn't provided my refund (although I've ruined the conditions of expecting a refund by delaying 3 days too long).

It's a funny situation: if I get my refund, I'll provide positive feedback because I agreed to. Seems a bit harsh to be 'punished' by eBay for even mildly negative feedback, but I'm not a seller so I have no idea what eBay does to 'punish' sellers who don't get perfect feedback. So now I'm going to appear less-than honest by providing positive feedback when my experience is sort of 1 for 3 for good: bad product, bad communication, but an agreed refund even though the stated period has just expired. I guess that's how online purchases go.

Anyway - be forewarned.

[dlenaghan]

Oh, and apparently as a result of this transaction Roger's said he's no longer selling the thumb rests, so sorry to you guys who wanted one. On the other hand, it's something you'll easily be able to order up from pretty much any pickguard company by providing the dimensions for the guard and/or making a simple paper template.

I wish I had looked around a bit longer before choosing this option.

[dlenaghan]

Ok, all resolved. Not at all a pleasant experience, but it's over and done with, the thumb rests are returned, the purchase refunded, and I'm a bit wiser.