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G&L Order Placed...the Waiting Begins!

#61
Templar said:
Totally agree, G&L neck options are just too sweet. Gloss, light tint, binding, I'll be in hog heaven when this beauty arrives.

glossneckwithbinding_zpsf95c6ea7.gif
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NG&LBD today. It's evidently brand new NOS, never played, but no case candy or paperwork. It's a NAMM show bass, marked "NAMM show only" on the neck butt.

A 2006 model, Butterscotch Blonde over ash, 9 lbs, 2 oz. Plays beautifully, no tweeks needed. No clue how/why the seller acquired theses things, but I'm a happy human.
 
#64
fourstringdrums said:
I heard back from Chris @ G&L. There is too much variance from side to side from the treble to bass side of the fretboard. So they're making me a new neck. No ETA but I figure it will be about a month.
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Are they shipping the new neck to an authorized dealer or do you need to ship the bass back to the factory at G&L's expense?

I had a problem with the first 30th Anniversary L-2K when I bought it from Jims Music. I had very little, if any, movement in the relief dept. It eventually got sorted out but I came to one very important conclusion after the incident. For one, things happen and not EVERYthing coming out of the G&L Factory or any Factory I'm sure, is top notch. Most are, yes. If not, the company would be out of business. But some things get out and are defected. They somehow get through the music store and end up in the customers hands. Now. I believe that the only way to order a custom bass is to deal with a dealer that is close by. Not someone who is on the other side of the country. It becomes a hassle because G&L believes that the dealer is the premier go to guy once the bass is in the consumers hands. Not a terrible policy for them. After all. They are not customer direct. OK. So if you place an order with a dealer near you who you can actually interact with physically, the dealing is easier. You might have caught the problem in the dealership when you went to pick up the bass and he would have called the factory right there. Instead I'm sure, you had a few hoops to jump through with regards to phone calls, call backs and emails back and forth.

In fact that is how I am going to go forward when I order a custom G&L in the future. And you know what. Even then, ask kevin, you might have grief.
 
#66
Freddels said:
I wonder what happened to the paperwork.
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I'm thinking this one is a prototype, Fred. The control cavity has an curious unused battery rout inside. Never seen that before on a JB-2.

Maybe the 'NAMM show only' marking means it was never meant to be sold via their retail dealer network? Hence, no paperwork for protos?
 
#67
Youngspanion said:
And by the way. Jims Music was very helpful in the situation. They ended up getting me a new bass the first time. But they are far away so I won't do that again.
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I'm in New Hampshire but I actually ordered through Jim's Music. Ben has been very helpful in the whole situation. He's basically on top of them making sure it gets taken care of. I shipped the whole bass back at G&L's expense. When it's finished they're going to send it to me directly.

I remembered that we have a dealer only a half hour away, but because I got such a great deal from Jim's I didn't think they could match it. Next time if I order a new bass I'll probably get a quote from Jim's and then take it to the nearby dealer and see if they can match it. No disrespect to them since they've done a fantastic job taking care of things, but it would definitely be easier to deal with someone closer should something happen.

I just wonder if they're going to apply the same serial number to the new neck or if I'll get a new # and COA.
 
#68
Well, the bass still hasn't returned. It's been 14, going on 15 weeks since they received the bass back in December. I heard back from Chris, G&L's warranty rep, but only after multiple emails and a phone call to the rep at Jim's Music to try and get him to email me. He just said that he'd put in an inquiry to look into the status of the neck, but that it shouldn't be long and he'd email a tracking # as soon as it goes out. I haven't heard anything other than that so really, I have no idea how much longer I'm going to be waiting.

It's a shame because it's really killing the whole experience for me of ordering a custom instrument. I ordered the bass 7 months ago and the replacement neck is taking as long as it took for the original instrument to be built in the first place. I love G&L and I know how they can play and sound but part of me is concerned that the next neck will have issues (I'm expecting it to be 100% perfect as it should be) or that I'll feel like the entire wait and inconvenience was NOT worth it.
 
#69
Yes, waiting for G&L to replace a neck can be a real hassle. I ordered a custom L-1500 in 2006, and the neck needed to be replaced twice. The first one had a bad truss rod (as several did in mid-2006; TB'er Major Metal also experienced this) and the bass came back with the wrong neck, a #7 instead of the #8 I specified. Each time, the replacement took a few months, which was really a drag. I think the painted headstock added to the delay, as did G&L's change of the neck design and manufacturing during this period. Even so, I was surprised how long it took.

One of the changes, however, was G&L's adoption of Plek fret leveling, so in the end I had the best playing bass I've ever owned. (After I sold it, I saw it on the wall of a GC, and I guy who had just tested it said it was the best playing bass he'd ever tried.) My current G&L's are real close, but not quite like that L-1500 for playability.

It usually runs smoothly though, and quality is usually outstanding. My next special order was a JB in 2010, which arrived on time and absolutely perfect. I bought an M-2500 a few weeks ago, and I'm simply astounded by the quality. Despite my L-1500 experience, I've stuck with G&L, and I'm glad I have.

Good luck, and I hope in the end the bass is worth it.
 
#70
Well the Plek is why I'm expecting it to be perfect. The original neck had a bad fret or two which Jim's Music suspected got dinged. I don't know if the neck being twisted added to that but even the rep was disappointed with that. Not to mention he ordered a few LB-100 the same week as mine and mine took considerably longer even though it wasn't a complicated build.
 
#71
I received my LB-100 last month after and I can assure you the neck is perfect as is the rest of the instrument. I tried dozens of Fender American standard P's and never found one the I liked so I took a chance on ordering the LB-100 and I am glad I did.
 
#72
Needenaneden said:
I received my LB-100 last month after and I can assure you the neck is perfect as is the rest of the instrument. I tried dozens of Fender American standard P's and never found one the I liked so I took a chance on ordering the LB-100 and I am glad I did.
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I expected the neck on this one to be perfect. But I guess things happen. I'm only giving them one chance though. If this neck has any issues at all I'm going to fight for a refund.

I love G&L but waiting 7+ months for a playable instrument is ridiculous.
 
#73
fourstringdrums said:
I expected the neck on this one to be perfect. But I guess things happen. I'm only giving them one chance though. If this neck has any issues at all I'm going to fight for a refund.

I love G&L but waiting 7+ months for a playable instrument is ridiculous.
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Yeah this is a total fail in my book.

Maybe G&L should worry less about introducing new models, and focus [DEL]more[/DEL] ALOT more on customer service. :eyebrow:

Just for contrast, this is the complete opposite of how Dan Lakin would handle this type of thing.

I'd be pissed, too. I guess that's why I never order a custom bass from any builder. Probably never will, either.

Good luck.
 
#74
Templar said:
Just for contrast, this is the complete opposite of how Dan Lakin would handle this type of thing.
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I agree and I would have loved a USA Lakland but $3,000+ is far out of my budget.

G&L is a great company. I've loved every one of their basses I've ever played but for my first time placing an order with them they completely dropped the ball.

The funny thing is I almost went for a Carvin P-Bass but didn't just because I don't care for how the pickguard looks. But if I had gone with them, I would have had more options for less money and if there was an issue, I could get it straightened out directly.
 
#75
fourstringdrums said:
I expected the neck on this one to be perfect. But I guess things happen. I'm only giving them one chance though. If this neck has any issues at all I'm going to fight for a refund.

I love G&L but waiting 7+ months for a playable instrument is ridiculous.
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I feel your pain.
I ordered this bass back in late December
http://www.rocketmusic.net/cgi-bin/commerce.cgi?preadd=action&key=5824
received it around the end of February. tried doing an initial setup and the saddles bottomed out before I could get the action low enough for my preference. not a huge deal for me as I've shimmed numerous basses due to my liking of really low action. the bass was playing pretty smooth but I noticed that the G-string wanted to slide off the edge of the fretboard. held it upright and noticed 2 issues, the nut slot for the G-string was cut a little too close to the edge of the fretboard and the whole neck was mis-aligned. in the pics it doesn't look so bad but is much more noticeable in person. I thought the fender approach of loosening/aligning/re-tightening the neck screws trick might work. wrong. G&L has very tight tolerances for their neck to body fit. no wiggle room at all. people complain about loose neck pockets from fender, and in some cases is pretty bad, but a little wiggle room can be a good thing IMO. luckily Greg has been extremely helpful with this ordeal and he forwarded my concerns to G&L and got me a return label as well. I shipped it off the beginning of this month and hope it doesn't take as long as it has for you and others, but I'm pretty much in the same boat as you. they've got once chance to make it perfect, and if they don't, I'm asking for a refund and spending my money elsewhere. sorry for the long post, not trying to derail in anyway.
 
#76
dedpool1052 said:
I feel your pain.
I ordered this bass back in late December
http://www.rocketmusic.net/cgi-bin/commerce.cgi?preadd=action&key=5824
received it around the end of February. tried doing an initial setup and the saddles bottomed out before I could get the action low enough for my preference. not a huge deal for me as I've shimmed numerous basses due to my liking of really low action. the bass was playing pretty smooth but I noticed that the G-string wanted to slide off the edge of the fretboard. held it upright and noticed 2 issues, the nut slot for the G-string was cut a little too close to the edge of the fretboard and the whole neck was mis-aligned. in the pics it doesn't look so bad but is much more noticeable in person. I thought the fender approach of loosening/aligning/re-tightening the neck screws trick might work. wrong. G&L has very tight tolerances for their neck to body fit. no wiggle room at all. people complain about loose neck pockets from fender, and in some cases is pretty bad, but a little wiggle room can be a good thing IMO. luckily Greg has been extremely helpful with this ordeal and he forwarded my concerns to G&L and got me a return label as well. I shipped it off the beginning of this month and hope it doesn't take as long as it has for you and others, but I'm pretty much in the same boat as you. they've got once chance to make it perfect, and if they don't, I'm asking for a refund and spending my money elsewhere. sorry for the long post, not trying to derail in anyway.
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That's a shame. Yeah I'd expect to wait at least 3 months. I have a feeling I'd have an uphill battle trying to get a refund if the bass comes back to me not to my liking since I ordered it custom. But you ordered yours custom too didn't you? Hopefully you don't have that problem should you go for a refund.
 
#77
Sorry to pile on but I thought I should share...I ordered an LB100 around late October of last year, bass took only a month to receive but the fretboard was unevenly sanded and there were no playable notes between the 9-11th frets on the A and the D strings. I took the bass to a local luthier and he scoffed at the notion that these are PLEK'd instruments. Since they had slowed down for the holidays, my dealer wasn't able to get hold of the return/repairs guy for 3 weeks. The whole ordeal was a hassle and I returned the bass to the dealer and used the money as a deposit on a Mike Lull. G&L quality control and customer service are horrible IMO.
 
#78
Adam Wright said:
Sorry to pile on but I thought I should share...I ordered an LB100 around late October of last year, bass took only a month to receive but the fretboard was unevenly sanded and there were no playable notes between the 9-11th frets on the A and the D strings. I took the bass to a local luthier and he scoffed at the notion that these are PLEK'd instruments. Since they had slowed down for the holidays, my dealer wasn't able to get hold of the return/repairs guy for 3 weeks. The whole ordeal was a hassle and I returned the bass to the dealer and used the money as a deposit on a Mike Lull. G&L quality control and customer service are horrible IMO.
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No, pile away. I want to hear about other experiences. I ordered mine in August, so I honestly wonder if maybe they were having some problems. I know they were merging or moving warehouses, so I wonder if for some reason this caused them to churn out a few bad products in that time frame.

I think should the new neck have issues, or hell, if I get sick of waiting if it takes say another month, and I try to go for a refund I may be able to get one. Ben @ Jim's Music knows what I've been through and he wasn't even happy at the fact that the bass got delayed a few times and then when it did show up before I got it, a fret or two had problems. I am surprised however that he didn't notice the neck twist, especially with how low he set the action. A few frets were unplayable around the 9-12th fret on the D.
 
#80
Things might have been different back in 1999 when ordering my custom ASAT [double bound, #7 neck, matching headstock]. The build was delivered in 9 weeks, exactly as promised. Since then it's never let me down, plays like a dream, and still looks as good as day one.
P1230750.jpg
 

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