Cancelled Fender Custom Shop order

[Doug P]

That is ridiculous !! Same thing is happening to folks waiting for US Geddy Lee models ordered almost a year ago.
Something is going on with Fender and it isn’t a good thing.
Thank goodness you have other options

i always felt the GL / USA was a great buy. The “in line” model like it was more $$. Go figure ??
Now I saw a new one for $2K, but not available at the time......
When they first came out they sold for $1500 USD I believe, a good price for what you got I think .... anyway. Hope all of you that are doing shows get back on soon. We start back the 26 of June. Can’t wait

 

[Gwyn ap Nudd]

Crappy communication is definitely a bummer...
One, however might consider what has been going on the past 16 months that could contribute to a significant delay.
Again, not excusing poor communication, but if you placed an order pre-covid and expected it anywhere near on time, you're dreaming.

Yeah, COVID-19 screwed up the neck and the wood in the body. Please. What part of the Custom Shop build is coming from China or the Far East? That's usually the excuse. And it is an excuse. Fender isn't the only one peddling it. La-Z-Boy has been telling its customers that it will take 6 months or more to get something that is not in stock - oh, and nothing is in stock except the stuff they can't get rid of. My local luthier doesn't take that long, even with COVID-19. So why are we letting these larger companies get by with the lie?

 

[Doug P]

I had them make a Tele to my specs a few years ago. I never bonded with it, and now of course I'll never get anything close to my money out of it on the free market.

I ordered a James Trussart Rust-o-Matic Steelcaster, too, which was even better than expected.
(Also had MJT do a refinish job—good communication, good finish, slightly more time than estimated, but it was Summer 2020, after all.)

But yeah: a good Fender is a good one and a meh Fender is a meh, regardless or what it says on the headstock or the price tag.

I read John Entwistle bought a P Bass almost every time he saw one. Well, don’t know about that but he did say he had quite a few. Always looking for the “right one” I guess.

 

[Doug P]

Never hear much about every other Custom Shop out there, Gibson, Warwick, etc..... is Fender the only one that gets blasted or praised?? If I found the “right” bass in every area, then you could go to the CS and say.... “just like this” ! But ya know, why buy one as you have the “right” bass in your hands.
As an instrument is mostly judged by the playability ( neck ) and tone ( from many things ). Right ? The looks are a given as your standing there to build one on an order form. If it’s not the way you wanted or.... it still belongs to you now I guess. That’s the thing.

 

[Antoine Brun]

So I’m guessing a Wal bass with a 4 year wait and $9k price tag would be entirely out of the question...

Wal waiting time is 2 years and when they say 2 years it's exactly 2 years

Still very long, when I ordered mine, after a few months, I almost forgot about the order ;-)

 

[jackietreehorn]

I hate to be in the position of defending a big company against the little guy, but as someone who works in distribution, I can not state how unbelievably messed up the global supply chain is right now.

Manufacturers can’t get products into shipping containers because they’re in the wrong part of the world. If they win the bidding war and get on a ship, sometimes the ship gets to port and can’t dock, because there is no space. If they can dock and get unloaded, the two busiest deep water ports on the East coast - Portland and Baltimore have breaks (and always have) in their train lines, so they rely on short trucking routes, but there is a labor shortage and those drivers are taking more lucrative long term trucking jobs so stuff is stuck at port. When manufacturers can’t get products their machines stop working.

This is impacting the food supply chain, automakers, everyone. We get confirmation of shipping constantly only to discover the truck never arrives or if it does half the stuff is not on it.

Right now there is a huge wood shortage in addition to all of this. I’m not saying Fender isn’t to blame, nor could they have done a better job communicating, but I seriously doubt it’s because they don’t want your money. If you placed an order for a Chevy truck now you would be in the same predicament.

 

[Paul MItchnick]

Call Nino Valenti. He will build you ANYTHING you want. You can talk to him. You can ask him questions. His work is flawless and the sound from his instruments. OMG !!!!!

 

[OregonMike]

Yeah, COVID-19 screwed up the neck and the wood in the body. Please. What part of the Custom Shop build is coming from China or the Far East? That's usually the excuse. And it is an excuse. Fender isn't the only one peddling it. La-Z-Boy has been telling its customers that it will take 6 months or more to get something that is not in stock - oh, and nothing is in stock except the stuff they can't get rid of. My local luthier doesn't take that long, even with COVID-19. So why are we letting these larger companies get by with the lie?

To be fair, a lot can happen to necks/bodies after shaping and other work. Oddities/Inconsistencies in grain structure, etc. can be hidden until material is removed (especially on roasted necks). I was warned about this when I selected a piece of ebony for my board. "It's possible that the board turns out sub-par, and you'll need to pick another piece, which will delay the process." etc. A lot of companies are still required to adhere to covid guidelines, (not to mention, susceptible to our screwed up supply chains)so it's not a "peddling" or a conspiracy to not sell goods and make a profit. The one thing I'll agree on, is they could do a lot better communicating to the customer and being more transparent with their processes. I'd be much more forgiving.

OregonMike

 

[/\/\3phist0]

Yeah, COVID-19 screwed up the neck and the wood in the body. Please. What part of the Custom Shop build is coming from China or the Far East? That's usually the excuse. And it is an excuse. Fender isn't the only one peddling it. La-Z-Boy has been telling its customers that it will take 6 months or more to get something that is not in stock - oh, and nothing is in stock except the stuff they can't get rid of. My local luthier doesn't take that long, even with COVID-19. So why are we letting these larger companies get by with the lie?

Who cares about the lie? Boycott Fender if one feels so strongly.
Seek out a smaller builder, or is it driven by the label envy?

 

[Frank Vozak]

I don't understand why the Fender custom shop don't care about their customers or their reputation. After nearly 18 months of waiting and being straight up lied to by the custom shop I cancelled my order this week.
It was just a 63 Precision bass with a roasted body and a roasted maple neck painted lake placid blue.
It should have been so easy... I have purchased well over $25,000 dollars of custom shop basses and amps from music stores in the past and figured I would get something special but not anymore. They lied when after 8 months they said it would be ready in ten days, then 4 months later they said the neck had a problem and it would be another 30 days... then 3 months later they said the body was bad... So I finally cancelled the order. The music store I was dealing with was lied to as well and they will no longer be carrying custom shop stuff. I will get it done with a local boutique guitar builder instead.
Thanks for the rant....

Fender seems to walk one step forward and two steps back. They have come out with some really fabulous basses including several new Squiers and their acoustic line on the other hand your situation really is not acceptable I think Fender can be unfair in their expectations of smaller dealers be required to sell a large number of Fender products to keep their franchise. But I do ;love my little Squier Precision Mini and their bass amp line is much more attunded to the small amp bassist than in the past. It seems that Fender is acting like a big company going for the mass market and not for niches like custom basses and small music stores. Even Chicago Music Exchange has a three year lag on their special runs by Fender.

 

[LBS-bass]

Yeah, COVID-19 screwed up the neck and the wood in the body. Please. What part of the Custom Shop build is coming from China or the Far East? That's usually the excuse. And it is an excuse. Fender isn't the only one peddling it. La-Z-Boy has been telling its customers that it will take 6 months or more to get something that is not in stock - oh, and nothing is in stock except the stuff they can't get rid of. My local luthier doesn't take that long, even with COVID-19. So why are we letting these larger companies get by with the lie?

Right, because not selling product is so profitable.

 

[DrMole]

I'm simply saying if you're going to come on a public forum and bash a business people are going to have questions, and people did.
But he's gone.
Whatever, I am aware that bashing Fender, among others, is jolly good sport here on Talkbass.
Please, continue...

So is sycophantically hanging on Fender's n...nevermind

 

[FRoss6788]

Yeah, COVID-19 screwed up the neck and the wood in the body. Please. What part of the Custom Shop build is coming from China or the Far East? That's usually the excuse. And it is an excuse. Fender isn't the only one peddling it. La-Z-Boy has been telling its customers that it will take 6 months or more to get something that is not in stock - oh, and nothing is in stock except the stuff they can't get rid of. My local luthier doesn't take that long, even with COVID-19. So why are we letting these larger companies get by with the lie?

So covid has had no effect on the supply chain domestically?
No effect on the number of workers allowed in a workplace at the same time?
Ect, ect, ect....

Ok

 

[FRoss6788]

So is sycophantically hanging on Fender's n...nevermind

Nowhere close to a sycophant.
Just call it like I see it.

 

[DrMole]

E="FRoss6788, post: 25326509, member: 217561"]Nowhere close to a sycophant.
Just call it like I see it.[/QUOTE]
Not saying YOU were- just that unabashed, often unwarranted praise for Fender is far more a sport here than the bashing- well at least similar maybe Football(US) vs basketball

 

[Black Out Jazz]

E="FRoss6788, post: 25326509, member: 217561"]Nowhere close to a sycophant.
Just call it like I see it.

Not saying YOU were- just that unabashed, often unwarranted praise for Fender is far more a sport here than the bashing- well at least similar maybe Football(US) vs basketball[/QUOTE]
"Leo got it right the first time." Like that thumbrest...

 

[LBS-bass]

Not saying YOU were- just that unabashed, often unwarranted praise for Fender is far more a sport here than the bashing- well at least similar maybe Football(US) vs basketball

Yeah, it happens a lot here. But I don't see that much of it in this thread. Mostly people talking about possible legit supply issues while other people suggest those issues are bogus. It's impacting companies besides Fender.

As I said, we really don't know what the OP was told and if he was lied to or not. If it was, it sucks. But I can see that kind of stuff potentially coming from anywhere right now as companies scramble to figure out how to function in this environment. Assuming that you believe the supply issues are real.

 

[DrMole]

Yeah, it happens a lot here. But I don't see that much of it in this thread. Mostly people talking about possible legit supply issues while other people suggest those issues are bogus. It's impacting companies besides Fender.

As I said, we really don't know what the OP was told and if he was lied to or not. If it was, it sucks. But I can see that kind of stuff potentially coming from anywhere right now as companies scramble to figure out how to function in this environment. Assuming that you believe the supply issues are real.

Agreed on all points- no, not so much in this thread though a few are doing backflips to excuse Fender when not considering that if true, the communication flops are really the major concern.

My ability to get anything I have wanted or needed since last March, in a normal time frame has differed none from 2019- except for Toilet paper, and one week of stupidity at the local grocery stores. One week of scarcity.

100% realize that the country, state and industry with which we deal will cause everyone's experience to differ greatly.

Last July when many US instrument people were weeks/months delayed due to CV19 claims- mostly legitimate- I ordered a guitar from Thomann on a Thursday, recieved across the Atlantic, to the Midwest the following Tuesday and Germany was reportedly in a far more restrictive situation at that time.

There are definitely supply issues and there are also many who are leaning a bit heavily on the virus to make up for poor service-
I know the extra 25 lbs I am wearing was 100% CV related

 

[Plake]

Well, that is a good bit of info. I was considering plunking down for a MJT Jazzmaster body vs getting a Warmoth and just finishing it myself. Looks like I have some nitro to purchase now.

OregonMike

Just my experience with MJT but I ordered around March and was aware of the extra delay. I dont recall if it was on the order form or site but it was mentioned to me at some point. I have received updates every 2 to 3 weeks including photos of the progress. So far so good for me.

 

[OregonMike]

Just my experience with MJT but I ordered around March and was aware of the extra delay. I dont recall if it was on the order form or site but it was mentioned to me at some point. I have received updates every 2 to 3 weeks including photos of the progress. So far so good for me.

Oh, cool. Good to know. I’m good as long as they update and I know what to expect. Bonus, if I get progress photos.