Frustration on my JERZY DROZD build. Please help me.

[bholder]

OK, JD has reestablished communication with OP and OP is choosing the top from samples, can we get over the more useless and unconstructive aspects of this discussion, please? Time to move on.

 

[mdogs]

OK, JD has reestablished communication with OP and OP is choosing the top from samples, can we get over the more useless and unconstructive aspects of this discussion, please? Time to move on.

So basically, you are saying that every thread that goes over 1 page should be shut down.

 

[bholder]

So basically, you are saying that every thread that goes over 1 page should be shut down.

Not at all, but this thread is just rehashing now. No sense in inflaming an issue that's already been resolved.

 

[LiquidMidnight]

Doesn't Alexander Dumble have a policy that he'll cancel your amp order if you even so much as call for a status update? I get that builders don't want to have clients constantly up their asses, asking, "isit dun yet?! isit dun yet?!" But you also can't keep people in the dark. If you don't want to deal with people, there are two options: 1. Eat the labor costs and hire an office manager to handle the phones and email (e.g., Gard at Roscoe) or 2. Get in a different line of work.

 

[mdogs]

Not at all, but this thread is just rehashing now. No sense in inflaming an issue that's already been resolved.

Ya, my point was that every thread that goes over one page is just rehashing...

 

[bholder]

Ya, my point was that every thread that goes over one page is just rehashing...

Disagreed, some remain useful long after the first page. Most do degenerate into it, though, I'll grant you that.

 

[Showdown]

Regarding communication, It's as impressive as it is asinine, what customers will excuse and give passes to. There's so many argumental fallacies in this thread it's ridiculous.

On communication alone: Being a business owner that takes custom orders is absolutely about communication. Whether you are a lowly 1-man amateur, or a 500-man mega complex. Being a popular, 1-man perfectionist builder with a wait time DOES NOT, in any way, correlate to getting a pass, or being exempt from proper, timely communication. Not speaking a language is no excuse for not responding to emails. If you'll take international money (obviously converted) in exchange for a service, you're expected to provide adequate communication. A time-frame is a commitment. At any point that commitment date is pushed off, communication to every single order is necessary. You should not feel lucky to recieve communication, or consider it a friendly heads-up that wasn't warranted. It's a basic fundamental right to the customers who keep that very business afloat. A small operation with huge wait times and poor communication tells me a few things: they're trying to maximize profit while curbing necessary business tools; they're scaling the workload too fast, and NOT the company or employees and need to cap off orders; or, they shouldn't be in a public business to begin with.

Being a nice bass, does not correlate to bad communication. The quality of the bass and the expectation of product is built into the price of the instrument. That, and that alone is where the builder has valued his time, effort, materials, and such.

A well communicated wait time, however long, should be the only thing that differentiates these builders.

Excusing the builder for having delays is a bonus for the builder, not a right they are entitled to. Delays should be built into the time-frame. It's unreasonable to assume every build will go perfect every time and as such, it's not the customers problem. It should have been conveyed from the beginning that issues arise and that can vary the wait time by xxxxx days,weeks,months,years.

Stop Excusing bad customer communication as the by-product of recieving a quality product. Both are paid for and expected by the customer.

Can't afford adequate customer communication?- raise your prices to offset the extra time spent using the preferred email method, or hire another employee.

Pissy communication on the customer's behalf however, is also not warranted. Convey your feelings with maturity, solidity, facts and expectations. Cursing, blaming, and sarcasm, is not condusive to getting your product any faster.

He can run his business however he wants. You are free to go elsewhere to buy a bass. We call this the free market. Don't like his lack of communication? Don't buy from him. Problem solved.

 

[Luckydog]

Pretentious, self-important business owners do not get my business. If I sense it in their ads, their communications, their policies, or whatever, I will drop my money elsewhere. I am old school, and still believe that the customer comes first. Even whiney, badgering customers. Its ridiculous, but have you noticed how often when someone buys something now, that the "sales associate" does not even thank the customer...often its the customer who provides a "thank you", followed by an emotionless, "no problem" from said associate.

 

[blubass]

He can run his business however he wants. You are free to go elsewhere to buy a bass. We call this the free market. Don't like his lack of communication? Don't buy from him. Problem solved.

It is possible to like and enjoy a product, and still have sense enough to recognise a business model with flaws and hold the owner accountable. Liking a product is not reason enough to minimise others comments and complaints.

Just as it's a free market, it's also free to post our opinions to talkbass. Don't like it? Don't respond, better yet, utilize the ignore feature as I've done with you. Problem solved.

 

[Showdown]

It is possible to like and enjoy a product, and still have sense enough to recognise a business model with flaws and hold the owner accountable. Liking a product is not reason enough to minimise others comments and complaints.

Just as it's a free market, it's also free to post our opinions to talkbass. Don't like it? Don't respond, better yet, utilize the ignore feature as I've done with you. Problem solved.

Wow. He put me on ignore for that post? I guess some people don't like people to disagree with them.

 

[Just Thumpin']

and I'll guarantee you, if you order a custom Fodera, it won't be completed in 6 months either. It will go in the batting order, and won't get into production for months also.

Right now our delivery time for a new Custom build is roughly 8 months. We are quite accurate (+/- 2 weeks) with the delivery date we give a customer when they order...

 

[Just Thumpin']

Let me explain a few differences between Jerzy and Fodera. Jerzy also makes his own bridges. He winds his own pickups. He does all the work himself. He does not have a dozen workers. He doesn't use aftermarket pickups and bridges. He does the finishing as well. He sources the wood, and does R&D on new innovations, and models. He does a lot more than sit at a bench carving necks and bodies. All this takes time.

Every luthier must choose how they want to produce instruments and what they choose to spend their (very limited) time on. I am not sure what this post was intended to imply about how we build at Fodera but just to be factually correct:

1. We source all of our own wood;
2. We do the majority of our own finishing in house. The only thing that we send out is color work because there are people who are set up to do it better than we can presently do in-house.
3. Our pickups and bridges are our own, completely proprietary designs (with one or two exceptions on the pick-up front). The fact that we have them made for us by shops who specialize in their area of expertise is quite deliberate. While we could make those items in-house, we determined many years ago that a properly set-up machine shop and pickup maker were better ways to go (for us).
4. We are constantly engaged in R&D on virtually every aspect of our designs, materials and parts for our existing models as well as the introduction of new models.

We believe that our greatest "value-added" lies in luthiery-related work. We will never run a machine shop as well as a dedicated machinist will or wind pickups as well as the custom shop of a top quality pickup maker. By consciously partnering with people who do these things at the highest possible level we believe that the quality of our work is enhanced, not diminished.

 

[Charles Shipman]

That is very interesting reading, thank you. I see I can learn a great deal here at TB.
Glad to be here for sure!

 

[Charles Shipman]

Wow. He put me on ignore for that post? I guess some people don't like people to disagree with them.

Usually, when one cannot accept a different view, especially if it is personal, They get a bit defensive and irrational. Sometimes I do. But I really try to see that a differing view holds some truth most
of the time.

 

[RickyT]

My custom build was delayed because a certain pick up maker in the US took 12 weeks to get my pick ups to Australia. Not my fault & certainly not the builders fault. Unfortunately sh*t happens and you just have to wait.

6 months for a custom build seems a little unrealistic to me.

 

[LiquidMidnight]

Wow. He put me on ignore for that post? I guess some people don't like people to disagree with them.

Not sure what Blu thought about your post, but I found your posting slightly snarky, which, regardless of the content of your argument, is probably what led to the Ignore. Just my perception of the situation.

 

[spufman]

Artists and commissioned work... ugh, sometimes tough to keep karma smooth. Hope it works out beautifully.

 

[nostatic]

We believe that our greatest "value-added" lies in luthiery-related work. We will never run a machine shop as well as a dedicated machinist will or wind pickups as well as the custom shop of a top quality pickup maker. By consciously partnering with people who do these things at the highest possible level we believe that the quality of our work is enhanced, not diminished.

This is a key aspect. The romanticized vision of the "one-man shop" is largely a pipe-dream. The reality is that going solo leads to a lot of compromises as there is no free lunch. Actually any business model (and instrument design) is a set of trade-offs. The down side to one person doing *everything* is that they probably aren't as good at some tasks as they are at others, and invariably customer service will suffer as demand increases. One best case scenario is where you have one "prime" or "integrator" who is very good at the overall task, and then subs who are expert at their particular task/area. For a bass, that applies to wood, hardware, pickups, electronics, customer service, and logistics.

 

[Schlyder]

to imply

Every luthier must choose how they want to produce instruments and what they choose to spend their (very limited) time on. I am not sure what this post was intended to imply about how we build at Fodera but just to be factually correct:

1. We source all of our own wood;
2. We do the majority of our own finishing in house. The only thing that we send out is color work because there are people who are set up to do it better than we can presently do in-house.
3. Our pickups and bridges are our own, completely proprietary designs (with one or two exceptions on the pick-up front). The fact that we have them made for us by shops who specialize in their area of expertise is quite deliberate. While we could make those items in-house, we determined many years ago that a properly set-up machine shop and pickup maker were better ways to go (for us).
4. We are constantly engaged in R&D on virtually every aspect of our designs, materials and parts for our existing models as well as the introduction of new models.

We believe that our greatest "value-added" lies in luthiery-related work. We will never run a machine shop as well as a dedicated machinist will or wind pickups as well as the custom shop of a top quality pickup maker. By consciously partnering with people who do these things at the highest possible level we believe that the quality of our work is enhanced, not diminished.

Hi Jason. Oh yes. I did not mean to imply that Fodera doesn't do those things also... they do, and do them very well. I was only pointing out the difference that Fodera has a team of craftsmen, working together, to create their instruments... in contrast to, in this situation, a lone builder who is doing those things all by his lonesome, and that it obviously requires extra time to complete an instrument.

 

[malthumb]

This is a key aspect. The romanticized vision of the "one-man shop" is largely a pipe-dream. The reality is that going solo leads to a lot of compromises as there is no free lunch. Actually any business model (and instrument design) is a set of trade-offs. The down side to one person doing *everything* is that they probably aren't as good at some tasks as they are at others, and invariably customer service will suffer as demand increases. One best case scenario is where you have one "prime" or "integrator" who is very good at the overall task, and then subs who are expert at their particular task/area. For a bass, that applies to wood, hardware, pickups, electronics, customer service, and logistics.

Good point. Alembic is a family run business, but a lot of people are involved in the building of each instrument. They provide a "wood card" for each instrument that details the build contents, wood recipe, and at the bottom, everyone who was involved in building the instrument. This is the wood card from a bass I no longer own.... count the names