No that is a custom order USA SB2. Yes, second one in a row to arrive via UPS with a broken neck. ***
Interesting thought about failed scarf joint.
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G&L Order Placed...the Waiting Begins!
- Thread starter fourstringdrums
- Start date
No that is a custom order USA SB2. Yes, second one in a row to arrive via UPS with a broken neck. ***
Interesting thought about failed scarf joint.
Dude....you're jinxed!
Let me guess....it shipped in a tolex case?
Tell them to ship the next one with the strings totally slackened.
Speculation on my part. That is the weak area if dropped under tension. The fact it broke so cleanly definitely lends credibility to a weak or failed glue joint. Even if the joint were less than optimal it should have been strong enough to handle a fall with slack strings. That is unless UPS threw it. They've done worse.
G&L does not use scarf joints.
That break is the reverse shape of a typical scarf anyway.
It's a "perfect storm" situation.
a) In the tolex case, the neck rests on the raised ridge, right near where the stock meets the neck. It acts as a fulcrum.
b) It's cold weather season still. Things tend to act more rigidly, less flexible when they're cold.
c) Strings tuned to pitch put a huge tension load on the neck, especially at the nut area. There is no trussrod to help the headstock counteract the string tension.
All it takes is to drop the box on its flat side just right, the sheer mass of the unsupported headstock (including tuners) is enough to snap it like a twig against the fulcrum that only supports the rest of the neck.
People always ask why big name builders always ship basses tuned to pitch, if it increases the chance for neck damage? I have no idea why they do that. Maybe they have a better way to support their headstocks. Looks like G&L just ate two in a row....with the same customer!
a) In the tolex case, the neck rests on the raised ridge, right near where the stock meets the neck. It acts as a fulcrum.
b) It's cold weather season still. Things tend to act more rigidly, less flexible when they're cold.
c) Strings tuned to pitch put a huge tension load on the neck, especially at the nut area. There is no trussrod to help the headstock counteract the string tension.
All it takes is to drop the box on its flat side just right, the sheer mass of the unsupported headstock (including tuners) is enough to snap it like a twig against the fulcrum that only supports the rest of the neck.
People always ask why big name builders always ship basses tuned to pitch, if it increases the chance for neck damage? I have no idea why they do that. Maybe they have a better way to support their headstocks. Looks like G&L just ate two in a row....with the same customer!
Well I am curious to see what happens next. At what point does a company throw up their hands and say "hey, we tried..."
Good question. Dunno if they're self-insured, or what their relation ship might be with the carriers and their insurance companies.
Hate to whip the same dead horse ad nauseam, but I know one thing for sure. As a non-commercial, occasional shipper (like most of us around here), slackening strings on any guitar is a UPS requirement, as per their packaging rules. And they mean it. I learned that lesson the hard way.
If that's a requirement you think g&l would follow it since they ship countless instruments yearly.
Right, which makes me wonder if they self-insure, or if large scale commercial accounts (like G&L would be) have a different set of packing requirements, or if the carriers' insurance companies don't bother to investigate.
It also would seem to follow, that they could easily have more than a couple damaged bass necks coming back. Especially during the winter months.
Here's a question...
Has anyone ever measured the clearance inside a G&G G&L tolex case? Is it possible that the top lid could be pressing down on the headstock when the case is closed? Even slightly?
I would think so in order to ensure it doesn't move. I want to say there are indents in the top of mine.
G&L ships to the dealer. Dealer ships to customer. My bass was ordered through a dealer. The dealer has to go through an arduous claims process with UPS and the customer is out of his purchase price while waiting to be made whole. My case.
Well I guess I'm lucky that G&L screwed up and not UPS
It's going to be a long 8-12 weeks for the new bass, especially since I don't want lightning to strike twice either.
I've ordered several basses from G&L (and other brands) over the years. Each time, I put a deposit down and when the bass arrives at the dealer, I pay the balance. If the bass arrived at the dealer with damage, I wouldn't pay the balance (though it never happened with my orders).
The dealer was not local. The damage occurred in shipping from the dealer to me on both occasions.
Thinking about it, it makes sense that manufacturers would have their dealers hassle with insurance claims. Why not, right?
I would love to know what, if anything, happens when UPS insurance inspectors realize that strings are always tuned to pitch by companies like G&L (and many others, no doubt), in each and every neck damage claim. You'd think at some point, the message would trickle up to the decision makers on both ends. Or not.
