Buying Used Without Trying - Your Experiences

[LowEZ]

I want to hear about your experiences regarding buying used basses without trying first, not so much if you liked what you bought which is subjective, but more of what playing condition the bass was in when it arrived. Firstly I should mention that I do all my own work, so I wonder more about those who cannot, incurring additional cost to put it right or return to seller.

It perplexes me that in the past decade or so, I've purchased 11 basses online sight unseen. Of those 11, there was only one that just required a fresh set of strings, even the intonation was bang-on. All of the other 10 required significant work (anything more than a basic setup), most needing a full fret level and dressing, electronic work and/or hardware repair or replacement. Most of these I would personally describe as "unplayable" upon arrival, yet only one was purchased where the seller was up front regarding playability or lack thereof in this case. A guitar collecting friend concurred with my experiences stating that 90% of his purchases need a visit to his tech.

What have you experienced? Every purchase I think to myself "if he or she had this put right, they might not have wanted to part with it".

 

[Stumbo]

, Most of these I would personally describe as "unplayable" upon arrival, yet only one was purchased where the seller was up front regarding playability or lack thereof in this case.

A guitar collecting friend concurred with my experiences stating that 90% of his purchases need a visit to his tech.

What have you experienced? Every purchase I think to myself "if he or she had this put right, they might not have wanted to part with it".

The one time I bought a guitar online, it needed a basic setup to make it playable. I got a $60 credit from the buyer.

 

[JRA]

just dropped in to read: i've purchased instruments unplayed, but they were new.

 

[sawzalot]

I've bought 5 used basses sight unseen:

Bass #1: Massive hump in the frets. Needed significant work. Great playing bass afterwards.
Bass #2: Major manufacturer. Horrible quality control. Unplayable for the price.
Bass #3: Major manufacturer. Good experience. Had some fretwork done to tweak it a little.
Bass #4: Had a horrific cigarette smell I couldn't get rid of. Returned to store.
Bass #5: Mostly OK, needed setup and strings and that's it.

So 2/5 only needed minor setup/etc to be great basses. The others were duds for one reason or another and I don't have any of them anymore.

Tom

 

[Gorn]

I've bought probably 50 basses over the last decade or so and about 40 were bought from guitar centers around the country and shipped to me. I'd say of the 40, 15 were fine and needed a thorough set up for my taste, 15 were fine and needed the slightest bit of tweaking, and 10 were damaged and unable to be set up.

 

[murmur70]

Of my current stable of 4, 3 were purchased used from ebay or Reverb. Only 1 of them needed a setup.

 

[UNICORN BASS]

I have bought 3 basses sight unseen, don't regret any. 2001 Pilot Pro for a steal, loving it. SX P/J fretless, cheap way to find out how bad i play. Douglas 5 string from Rondo again, dirt cheap, decent sounding etc. Most needed nothing but a good set up and strings. I try to avoid sight unseen but have done pretty well.

 

[ejaggers]

I bought my SS Jag on-line new.

I had no intention on modding this bass, so I expected it to be playable.
Fret edges were so sharp you could play a G major scale and trim your nails at the same time.

I would not have bought it if I’d known I had to have the frets worked on, but now I’m glad I did.
Besides the weak J pup, it's a nice player.

As a rule, I don't buy w/o trying it out first.

057912

 

[QweziRider]

What have you experienced?

Concerning the shipping condition of each purchase, not a single problem yet.

Concerning the setup condition? Every single one needed some level of attention to suit my likes, but I expect that and attribute it to someone else' likes before me. Even the one I purchased years ago from a well know touring and recording pro got to have its neck and action tweaked more to my likes than his.

 

[ajkula66]

Between guitars and basses probably 10-12 in the last 2.5 years.

One was grossly misrepresented and I got a partial refund on that basis. It also needed work - which I was aware of - and became my favourite bass of all times.

One developed a flaw which the particular model is infamous for, but it happened gradually after being in my possession for more than a year. I don't blame the seller one bit. It's a vintage piece and stuff happens.

The rest of them were fine, some needed a more elaborate setup than the others but no complaints on my end.

Two things here, though:

1) The models that I buy online are the ones that I'm thoroughly familiar with and know what to expect. There are, however, pieces that I would never buy without trying them out in person for the very reason of being familiar with them. I would never buy an instrument that I'm completely clueless about online, regardless of how tempting the deal may look.

2) My expectation is that every instrument needs a setup, regardless of whether it was purchased online, in store, or from a private seller "in person".

My $0.02 only...

 

[Dwight Trash]

My first Ebay purchase of a bass was a 5 string OLP. The description made it seem to be a fair deal on a decent bass. It arrived in a soaking wet box on the only rainy day of the year in Southern California lol. My contact with the seller simply asking if he shipped in the condition received ended up in him giving me a bad rating as a purchaser with accusations of trying to lie about the condition to get a partial refund. I only wanted to make a claim with UPS but ended up NEVER purchasing anything on Ebay again. I have been told that Ebay now sides with the buyer, not the seller by default now. It was the opposite when I made the purchase almost a decade ago. Kudos to Ebay for straightening out their glitch but if I ever purchase anything online again, it will be because I moved out of Southern California and the convenience of being less than an hour drive from anything I need.
Just sayin'

 

[jd56hawk]

I want to hear about your experiences regarding buying used basses without trying first, not so much if you liked what you bought which is subjective, but more of what playing condition the bass was in when it arrived. Firstly I should mention that I do all my own work, so I wonder more about those who cannot, incurring additional cost to put it right or return to seller.

It perplexes me that in the past decade or so, I've purchased 11 basses online sight unseen. Of those 11, there was only one that just required a fresh set of strings, even the intonation was bang-on. All of the other 10 required significant work (anything more than a basic setup), most needing a full fret level and dressing, electronic work and/or hardware repair or replacement. Most of these I would personally describe as "unplayable" upon arrival, yet only one was purchased where the seller was up front regarding playability or lack thereof in this case. A guitar collecting friend concurred with my experiences stating that 90% of his purchases need a visit to his tech.

What have you experienced? Every purchase I think to myself "if he or she had this put right, they might not have wanted to part with it".

I've bought quite a few used bosses in the past two years alone without the opportunity to try them out...still own two of them...and I've never had a bad experience.
Even when it comes to gambling, there are smart bets and foolish bets.

 

[UNICORN BASS]

Bosses bet, get out!

 

[Blues Bass 2]

I've bought quite a few , probably 20 , mostly from the Talkbass classifieds . All of them have been worth what I paid . Some needed a setup and but only one needed a bunch of work , a kit bass from Carvin . It played and sounded really good but it had a rattle can satin black finish on the body that was pretty hideous . The maple neck had a spray on lacquer including the frets and fingerboard . I stripped the paint off and put a dark Miniwax stain and then a tongue oil finish . It's the bass in my avatar , turned out great and is long gone . Talkbass classifieds have been very good to me , I also do all my own setups and any other work on my basses .

 

[gully_jones]

I can't remember buying a Bass in person. Must be the really lucky, between 20-30 new and used basses since 2000 and never an issue. Of course I always assume it will need to be set up to my liking and possibly new strings.

 

[edro]

I've bought a couple or so.... I look at every pic closely and talk to whomever is selling it on the phone. I ask for better/more pics if I am not satisfied with what I see. If that is an problem, I will pass.
No issues...

I do NOT expect it to play well for me.
I do NOT expect great strings.
I do NOT expect perfect if used.
I do NOT expect perfect action if new...too subjective...
I DO expect to do setup work and possible fret dress. I'm gonna do that anyway.... I have cans of DeOxit and such for pots.

I have been lucky. No real issues with em.. My main concern is neck, whether guitar or bass. Good neck, I can make it play and sound the way I like it with a bit of work.

 

[Jrussblues]

Everything I’ve purchased online or in person has required a set up, I play with very low action though so I’m kinda picky. Other than that there have been no major issues.

 

[Ravenblack67]

I want to hear about your experiences regarding buying used basses without trying first, not so much if you liked what you bought which is subjective, but more of what playing condition the bass was in when it arrived. Firstly I should mention that I do all my own work, so I wonder more about those who cannot, incurring additional cost to put it right or return to seller.

It perplexes me that in the past decade or so, I've purchased 11 basses online sight unseen. Of those 11, there was only one that just required a fresh set of strings, even the intonation was bang-on. All of the other 10 required significant work (anything more than a basic setup), most needing a full fret level and dressing, electronic work and/or hardware repair or replacement. Most of these I would personally describe as "unplayable" upon arrival, yet only one was purchased where the seller was up front regarding playability or lack thereof in this case. A guitar collecting friend concurred with my experiences stating that 90% of his purchases need a visit to his tech.

What have you experienced? Every purchase I think to myself "if he or she had this put right, they might not have wanted to part with it".

I

I want to hear about your experiences regarding buying used basses without trying first, not so much if you liked what you bought which is subjective, but more of what playing condition the bass was in when it arrived. Firstly I should mention that I do all my own work, so I wonder more about those who cannot, incurring additional cost to put it right or return to seller.

It perplexes me that in the past decade or so, I've purchased 11 basses online sight unseen. Of those 11, there was only one that just required a fresh set of strings, even the intonation was bang-on. All of the other 10 required significant work (anything more than a basic setup), most needing a full fret level and dressing, electronic work and/or hardware repair or replacement. Most of these I would personally describe as "unplayable" upon arrival, yet only one was purchased where the seller was up front regarding playability or lack thereof in this case. A guitar collecting friend concurred with my experiences stating that 90% of his purchases need a visit to his tech.

What have you experienced? Every purchase I think to myself "if he or she had this put right, they might not have wanted to part with it".

I have been fairly fortunate. My used purchases have all been good. I normally swap the strings and do a setup. That’s it.

 

[chris_b]

I have only bought 2 basses sight unseen. A Lakland 55-01 and a Lull M5V Jazz. The Lakland was good but I felt it was too heavy for me. The Lull was fantastic but I bought a Sadowsky Jazz a week later which I preferred. Both arrived through the post and were in good condition and perfectly playable. They were sold on within a couple of months.

My Lakland 55-94 (owned for 15 years) and Lull PJ5 (owned for 5 years) were bought on Ebay and only played when I picked them up. I didn't have any problems with the purchase, they were both perfect so they became mine. They were in good condition and while I had them professionally set up they didn't really need it.

My only advice is to do your homework. Ask a lot of specific questions and check the feedback. I try to buy locally or within travelling distance. Never buy if you're less than 101% sure. Another one will be along in time. Never be too keen. If you want the bass too much you might risk bypassing the checking process. Let the seller know if the bass isn't exactly as described you'll return it and leave bad feedback.

 

[Matthew_84]

I’ve only bought three used basses, and all of them were local but two of them had issues I didn’t notice until after the purchase.

2000 MIA Fender P w/ hard case: the vase and bass had a terrible mildew stench. I tried nearly everything from (vacuum, febreeze, dryer sheets, vinegar, lemon juice, baking soda, and grinder coffee beans), but none of them could get rid of the stink from either of them. Apparently leaving them outside in the sun for a long time is supposed to do it, but I didn’t have the patience to guard them in a public area for a day or two. Eventually sold it a few months later just because the smell was so bad.

2010 Squier VM Fretless Jazz: with the infamous I levelled fretlines a lot of them seem to have.