Fender no longer including manual, cloth, truss rod tool?

Talisker · #1 07-25-2010, 12:54 AM

I just got a new Fender Geddy Lee Jazz Bass from Musician's Friend.

It came with a gig bag but no other materials - no manual, no warranty card, no cleaning cloth, no hang tags (other than a QA tag), and no truss rod adjuster.

Musician's Friend customer service says: "Fender has stopped sending out their guitars with the Truss Rod adjustment tools, manual, cleaning cloth or tags."

Is this possibly true? No more pack-ins of any kind with Fender instruments?

Smallmouth_Bass · #2 07-25-2010, 12:59 AM

That's all I received on a recent Fender purchase as well.

Muaguana · #3 07-25-2010, 01:02 AM

More ammunition for my Fender flamethrower... mwahahahahaha!

Ahem. For what it's worth, I didn't receive anything with my Squier VM fretless (bought it a little over a month ago,) but then again I'm not sure if anything extra ever came with Squiers to begin with.

OmnitzGarima · #4 07-25-2010, 01:05 AM

I bought a J bass back in April, and I got all of the usual stuff, so this must be really recent.

Mrdak · #5 07-25-2010, 01:12 AM

I don't think the Geddy Lee ever came with the extra goodies. The USA models do.

**colcifer** · #6 07-25-2010, 01:18 AM

Either way we need our case candy.

TheGrizz · #7 07-25-2010, 01:23 AM

The Geddy Lee never comes with case candy. Mine didn't come with any. I got it directly from Fender, too. None of the other Geddy Lee's my store stocked came with any either.

12stringbassist · #8 07-25-2010, 03:55 AM

Case candy is nice to have, but I bet a lot of people never use it.
The Fender cleaning cloths I have are still all in their bags in the cases.
The truss rod adjusters have never (fortunately) come out of the plastic bag either.

Manuals are online, so that's a cost they can reasonably cut.

I'd go back and insist on a warranty card, or the equivalent, from the store.

C.Linton · #9 07-25-2010, 04:04 AM

I always thought it was only Amercian Standards came with all that stuff, along with the HSC. All I can say for sure is my '08 Am. Std. Jazz bought new in march of '09 had all that stuff, manual,truss rod tool, allen wrench for the bridge, strap, cord, cloth and SKB case.

t0t0m · #10 07-25-2010, 04:25 AM

Only USA lineups will get case candy.

CLMSHQ · #11 07-25-2010, 04:26 AM

Only MIA come with that stuff. They all come with an allen wrench, even the MIM, and MIJ.

middlebit · #12 07-25-2010, 04:47 AM

No manual?! How will new Fender players ever learn to play bass???

thumpbass1 · #13 07-25-2010, 06:06 AM

The Geddy Lee Bass, at least my early LTD Edition one, adjusts for the truss rod at the body end of the neck, just like a 72 J-Bass would before the conversion to the bullet truss rod came along. I can't see Fender giving out nice new, wide tipped, straight blade screw drivers, as the traditional truss rod nut is cut in a cross pattern of two deep straight slots. I'm presuming that the recent Geddy changes didn't change where the truss rod adjustment nut end would be located, let alone the type of nut. When I bought mine, they didn't come with anything, no gig bag, no nothing. Now, my MIM Nashville Deluxe Telecaster did come with a couple of allen wrenches, some stickers and a brochure manual in the gig bag when I bought it a few years back. Oh well, it seems that the bean counters are now back trimming costs where they can at Fender.

countrybass007 · #14 07-25-2010, 07:08 AM

I don't ever recall a manual with any of my Fenders, I did get the truss rod tool and the cloth though. I even got a cheapy molded cord in the case with some of them. Maybe the dealer throws some of that stuff in?

C.Linton · #15 07-25-2010, 07:57 AM

Update:
IIRC, I also got a Fender sticker with my MIA Jazz, too.

pasta4lnch · #16 07-25-2010, 08:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by t0t0m

Only USA lineups will get case candy.

and if you buy from Sweetwater you'll get box candy too!

chump stain · #17 07-25-2010, 08:04 AM

My Geddy came with an allen wrench for the Badass Bridge, a gig bag, and a couple other things. I bought it last year, but it was last years stock, last year.

plankspanker13 · #18 07-25-2010, 08:09 AM

Just another bit of fuel to the not-so-old argument of, "if you want to play a great Fender bass, get a G&L." My JB2's came with case candy galore, and, as far as I know, new G&L's do too (even the Tribute Series comes with a gig bag; USA models come with HSC). Throw in all of the things that make Fender instruments great, and a 21st fret, and the only Geddy Lee that would ever be in my hands would be a GC in-store demo noodling, or checking out a friend/associate's instrument.

C.Linton · #19 07-25-2010, 08:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pasta4lnch

and if you buy from Sweetwater you'll get box candy too!

Yup. Got some candy with my Squier bass.
Too bad I'm a diabetic.....
(I ate it anyway,sshhh!)

Kenner · #20 07-25-2010, 08:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by plankspanker13

Just another bit of fuel to the not-so-old argument of, "if you want to play a great Fender bass, get a G&L." My JB2's came with case candy galore, and, as far as I know, new G&L's do too (even the Tribute Series comes with a gig bag; USA models come with HSC). Throw in all of the things that make Fender instruments great, and a 21st fret, and the only Geddy Lee that would ever be in my hands would be a GC in-store demo noodling, or checking out a friend/associate's instrument.

My Tribute came with all the goodies and nice gig bag...