Who are the fastest custom luthiers? (I mean most punctual)

[Jjango]

The thread called I waited 10 years for a Ken Bebensee got me wondering... which custom luthiers out there are the best at keeping their promises for custom bass completion dates? Which are the worst?

I think it would be a good resource if we could collect this info in one thread. Nobody wants to be promised a custom bass in six months, only to end up waiting four years!

So which custom luthiers have kept their promises to you regarding the timeframe when you will get your bass?

[rfclef]

Scott at Birdsong got me mine in 6 months, as he said he would...I understand in the the realm of custom instruments a little give n take to the deadline... but 10 years? That would hack me off.

[Bryan R. Tyler]

Rob Elrick consistently gets his customs out in 4-6 months, which is his listed wait time. My last custom from him was a fairly complex bass- a lined fretless singlecut six with different-than-usual pickup placement and tuner arrangement. Time it took from order to completion? Three months even.

[73jbass]

Matt Pulcinella did both of my custom Level 5's in about 4 months each.Pretty much what he quoted.

[bassteban]

IIRC Chris Stambaugh's estimates are usually a bit optomistic; 6-8 months became closer to a year but it was WELL worth it.

[Melodicgroove]

Steve Wishnevsky. 2-3 months.

[Alienation]

Cliff Bordwell is good for his word/schedule. Just check with him and he'll give you the wait time, I think average wait is around 11-13 months but check with him for a more specific time.

[spade2you]

I think Rob Allen would need to top the list in my book because he had a Mouse 30 built for me in about 3 months from when I sent in the deposit!

Originally Posted by bassteban

IIRC Chris Stambaugh's estimates are usually a bit optomistic; 6-8 months became closer to a year but it was WELL worth it.

Very true. I didn't exactly keep track of when my Stambaugh should have been done, but it turned out amazing.

Originally Posted by Alienation

Cliff Bordwell is good for his word/schedule. Just check with him and he'll give you the wait time, I think average wait is around 11-13 months but check with him for a more specific time.

Cliff has got to be one of the best there is! Ok, so a year isn't fast, but he has a pretty good list of people waiting for a reason. He's probably one of the fastest at replying to e-mails, too. He seems to have figured out an extremely efficient way to give everyone pictures throughout the build process, too.

[mikezimmerman]

I suspect it really depends on what you're ordering--how close it is to one of the builder's standard models and what sort of options you choose (some are probably pretty time-consuming, especially if the builder hasn't done them before!). Also how big a backlog the builder has when you order, of course.

So, is the question "Which builder finishes most quickly?", or "Which builder gives the most accurate time estimates?"

Mike

[spade2you]

Originally Posted by mikezimmerman

So, is the question "Which builder finishes most quickly?", or "Which builder gives the most accurate time estimates?"

Hmmmm, good point. Depending on the options, certain aspects can get the build hung up. I know when I ordered my Rob Allen 6er, a few parts took a while to arrive and Rob couldn't really do anything until he got them. My Conklin took a little while longer because they were having trouble getting a piece of Dymondwood that wasn't bowed. Needless to say, perhaps expect a small delay or two. Besides, would you rather the luthier be done before you had the $$ ready to pay it off?

[Lo end PUNCH]

Greg at Status Graphite told me 12 weeks, it was done in 11.
Bud LeCompte told me roughly 3-4 months, he was done in roughly 3-4 months.
each bass that he built.

Bee bass was done in 7 months.
Krappy finished in 1 and a half months.

[Jjango]

Originally Posted by mikezimmerman

So, is the question "Which builder finishes most quickly?", or "Which builder gives the most accurate time estimates?"

The part in bold is what I meant.

Lots of great answers, folks!

[NWB]

It's my understanding that Tom Clement usually gets it done within the stated time-frame. He's also very good at sending pictures and clear communication of the build process.

I didn't actually get my Clement directly from Tom, but other Clement owners report top-notch service.

I can say that it's the sweetest playing and sounding bass I've ever had.

[bdgotoh]

Mike Lull hit or beat his time estimates for my basses, Rob Allen hit his estimate for the one I got direct from him. Chris Stambaugh took about 25% longer than his estimate for two basses.

As long as they deliver in a reasonable amount of time, I'm much more concerned with how well the bass is built vs how fast it's done.

[J. Crawford]

Originally Posted by Melodicgroove

Steve Wishnevsky. 2-3 months.

I lol'd.

[Pacman]

Brain Barret at LowEnd told me 4-6 months, and I got it in just over 4. And he's GREAT to work with!

[UncleBalsamic]

I got my Dingwall several months before I thought I would get it.

[Mike Shevlin]

Bud LeCompte does stunning work & can do a quick build if time is an issue.

[Pacman]

Originally Posted by Jazzdogg

Here’s a recap of the luthiers recommended so far. If we can add contact information for each luthier, this could become a thread worth “stickying.”


TB RECOMMENDED CUSTOM ELECTRIC BASS MAKERS
Who are the fastest custom luthiers? (I mean most punctual)


Scott at Birdsong


Rob Elrick


Matt Pulcinella
http://www.mpguitars.com/Site/Home.html

Chris Stambaugh


Steve Wishnevsky


Cliff Bordwell


Rob Allen


Greg at Status Graphite


Bud LeCompte


Tom Clement


Mike Lull

ahem - Brian at LowEnd Basses

[kjpollo]

Originally Posted by NWB

It's my understanding that Tom Clement usually gets it done within the stated time-frame. He's also very good at sending pictures and clear communication of the build process.

I didn't actually get my Clement directly from Tom, but other Clement owners report top-notch service.

I can say that it's the sweetest playing and sounding bass I've ever had.

+1 on Tom Clement. Once I finished picking out my top, it was only about another 2-3 months. Any delay was all on me by being a dithering fool trying to pick out a top.
The really sad part about all my dithering is that I ended up going with a top Tom had suggested at least 2-3 weeks earlier. I cost myself time with that one!!!