NGD ~ Only Lasted About 30 Minutes

[jstarr823]

Received my new 2012 Les Paul Junior in Pelham Blue from Zzounds (via FedEx) yesterday morning. Unfortunately, my smile turned to a frown before I was able to completely remove it from the gig bag.

First thing that I noticed was the jagged paint line of the Pelham Blue against the edge of the fretboard. It was hard to tell if the masking tape was removed to early or late, but it left a very jagged line where you would obviously expect a clean, straight one. It was then cleared over. Other QC flaws included black paint from the face of the headstock that was evident on multiple places along the edge of the headstock ~ where it should have been Pelham Blue. The nut looked like someone hit the face of it with a grinding wheel. The butt end of the fretboard was caked with dried white buffing compound. Of greatest concern was the fretboard near the nut (1st string side). It was about 1/8" too narrow where it met the neck, leaving a very pronounced ridge starting a fret 0 and ending at fret 2.

Other than that, it played beautifully and sang like a bird. Another item worth noting for prospective jr buyers: the grain was VERY visible throughout, despite having the "gloss" Pelham Blue finish. Much more than I would have ever expected on a "gloss" finish... it was very pronounced.

Anyway, I packed it up, called Zzounds and got a RMA and pre-paid return UPS label within 1/2 hour of unpacking it. I'm exchanging it for the TV Yellow in gloss. Hoping for much better QC on that one. Zzounds was very helpful with the exchange, and shipped the TV right after they were able to confirm that I dropped the original one at UPS.

Hoping to post a happy new guitar day next week. I'll keep you posted.

[Bobby Mahogany]

Nasty! Tooo bad for you. I hope your TV y is up to par!
Keep us "posted"!

[CapeRR]

Wow too bad. Hopefully the next one is better.... I have a rule that I'll never buy a guitar online though. I like to try before I buy.

[Kezia]

You'll love the Gloss Yellow, I love mine!

[Who]

Originally Posted by jstarr823

......Other than that, it played beautifully and sang like a bird. .....

It will blow if the next one is cosmetically perfect, but doesn't sound as good!

[jstarr823]

I wanted to snap some pics of the flaws, but the CS Manager at Zzounds said that they would ship the TV Yellow replacement as soon as I gave them the UPS confirmation. So it turned into a mad rush to get that dud shipped out.

I'm just posting this for reference in regard to what is coming out of Nashville quality wise ~ at least with the lower priced Gibbys. The Junior was pretty fresh, with a June 2012 build date. In stark contrast, the last two Melody Makers that I bought (a 2010 Burst LP & 2011 Ebony SG) were far better in regard to initial quality. I was especially stunned with how nice the SG was out of the box.

Oh yeah... the Obeche fretboard on the PB JR was pretty rough. There were several tool marks on the lower frets. Otherwise, I didn't notice a HUGE difference compared to the Baked Maple.

[jstarr823]

Originally Posted by Kezia

You'll love the Gloss Yellow, I love mine!

So tell me... can you see the grain under the yellow? How was the fit & finish on yours? I searched Google pics for some close shots of the yellow, but I couldn't tell if the grain was evident on any of them.

[jstarr823]

Originally Posted by CapeRR

Wow too bad. Hopefully the next one is better.... I have a rule that I'll never buy a guitar online though. I like to try before I buy.

I'm with you on that, but both Guitar Centers in my area were sold out of all finishes... other than a floor model burst & a used satin yellow. Playing that floor model burst was what convinced me to buy a Junior. I loved the Slim Taper neck and that P-90 just sounded right for my style of playing. I also have a rule... never buy a beat to $h!t floor model from GC.

[jstarr823]

My MM all polished up with Virtuoso:



And my MM SG (also polished with Virtuoso):



Both are light years better quality-wise than the PB junior. Go figure.

[Who]

jstarr, I keep seeing this listed locally:

Gibson sg melody maker new

Think it's worth a look, for the $250 price?

[jstarr823]

Originally Posted by Who

jstarr, I keep seeing this listed locally:

Think it's worth a look, for the $250 price?

As far as price, no. They're $299 at Musician's Friend & Guitar Center right now, so I wouldn't pay $250 for a used one. Fun factor wise, hell yes! I love both of my MMs. I wouldn't record an album with one, but they are a blast to play. I was strictly a Fender guy until I played my 1st MM. That changed everything for me. Now... I'm a Gibson guy first.

[Rodolphe]

Makes me want my kid to be a few years older for me to buy him one like this for him to learn how to play the guitar....

this black little SG with cover looks gorgeous.

[blamo]

That's too had you got a dud.

My JR has some flaws as well.

I pulled the pick up cover on mine to find 3 screw holes. One totally in the wrong place and one that's off by about 2 mm making the pup sit really pressed up against the cavity.

Otherwise, she is a great guitar. Its one of the last ones to get rosewood as well.

[Joeydego]

Originally Posted by jstarr823

it played beautifully and sang like a bird.

Originally Posted by jstarr823

Anyway, I packed it up, called Zzounds and got a RMA and pre-paid return UPS label within 1/2 hour of unpacking it.

[kenmarkat]

Isn't it a shame that, regardless of the price of a lower cost Gibson, that an "American Made" company lets stuff like that go out the door. And also a shame that an online retailer doesn't do at least a five minute check for obvious quality issues before being willing to sell it. Maybe a hardly perceptible finish flaw or something that a quick eye might overlook is understandable but no one should have to go through the anticipation of waiting for arrival and then being disappointed by an obvious flaw visible while still in the case.

Down vote to that retailer for being willing to sell that guitar but kudos that they are at least trying to expedite a replacement. Maybe if we publicized these kinds of sad experiences more that it would pressure retailers to take responsibility for the quality of "their" products. I know Sweetwater inspects every guitar and the two I've gotten from them have been beautiful - I wonder what percentage of Gibsons (and other higher end guitar manufacturers) they reject due to flaws they can't fix (as opposed to easy remedies like removing remaining polish compound, bad set up, etc). That would be an interesting stat.

[Joeydego]

Originally Posted by kenmarkat

Isn't it a shame that, regardless of the price of a lower cost Gibson, that an "American Made" company lets stuff like that go out the door. And also a shame that an online retailer doesn't do at least a five minute check for obvious quality issues before being willing to sell it. Maybe a hardly perceptible finish flaw or something that a quick eye might overlook is understandable but no one should have to go through the anticipation of waiting for arrival and then being disappointed by an obvious flaw visible while still in the case.

Down vote to that retailer for being willing to sell that guitar but kudos that they are at least trying to expedite a replacement. Maybe if we publicized these kinds of sad experiences more that it would pressure retailers to take responsibility for the quality of "their" products. I know Sweetwater inspects every guitar and the two I've gotten from them have been beautiful - I wonder what percentage of Gibsons (and other higher end guitar manufacturers) they reject due to flaws they can't fix (as opposed to easy remedies like removing remaining polish compound, bad set up, etc). That would be an interesting stat.

the factory tour said 3%

[AXE]

My Jr is a workhorse.

57 RI.

[Buick8]

Try Sweetwater.com. At least they take it out of the box, inspect it, set it up before sending it

[budg]

Originally Posted by Buick8

Try Sweetwater.com. At least they take it out of the box, inspect it, set it up before sending it

This ! I think if every retailer unboxed their merchandise and at least give it the "once over" many returns wouldnt happen.I just bought a Martin d35 from them and it came to me without flaws and in perfect tune. Bought a 335 a while ago from another online retailer with the factory seal in place.It had several flaws. Out of 4 gibsons , it was the only dog of the bunch.

[60player]

It's shameful, really. Lack of quality control on Gibson's part is not limited to the 'lower end' guitars. It's spread across the board. Gibson should be ashamed, and so should that dealer that would send out that guitar.

[Satch0922]

There certainly seems to be a trend.

[Led Zep Fan]

Everyone should have a Jr in their arsenal.

[Joeydego]

Originally Posted by Buick8

Try Sweetwater.com. At least they take it out of the box, inspect it, set it up before sending it

seriously, I have a guitar on the truck today. Im normally not picky about this stuff at all. I've been in the market for a resonator and saw their in house brand, Wechter, was economical < a grand. Im no acoustic blues superstar and still consider myself a student, so National at 3,000 bucks was out of the question. Everything else is MIC. My sweetwater sales rep not only answered all my questions with the exact guitar he was sending me in hand, but was even good enough to send me a 2 minute sound clip of him playing the guitar! Who the hell does that? About 6 months ago, he took back a wireless that I've had for a year.

[Tangerine]

It sucks having to exchange a guitar, but you don't want to pay that much $ for one you aren't 100% happy with. Who knows maybe the new one will turn out to be your top player!

[60player]

Originally Posted by Buick8

Try Sweetwater.com. At least they take it out of the box, inspect it, set it up before sending it

So will EM Shorts, and they won;t bombard you with emails and phone calls for the rest of your life. I ordered something from Sweetwater a year ago. The salesman was calling me once a month seeing if I needed to buy anything else. I finally told him if I do, I'll have my people call your people. Until then, I'd appreciate it if he quit calling me.

[Joeydego]

Originally Posted by 60player

So will EM Shorts, and they won;t bombard you with emails and phone calls for the rest of your life. I ordered something from Sweetwater a year ago. The salesman was calling me once a month seeing if I needed to buy anything else. I finally told him if I do, I'll have my people call your people. Until then, I'd appreciate it if he quit calling me.

All you have to tell them is once you'd prefer not to get cold calls

[roodyrocker]

Originally Posted by Buick8

Try Sweetwater.com. At least they take it out of the box, inspect it, set it up before sending it

Both Sweetwater and Zzounds are good to deal with. The fact that Zzounds leaves the guitar in the box, with Gibson factory seal is ok with me. No need for either of these places to set up the guitar then ship it because it will get set up here once it arrives anyway. Besides, they have great return policies anyway. The OP is getting another one shipped right away.
I bought a guitar from Zzounds before and I liked seeing that factory seal on the box. It means no one has touched my guitar except the factory people who built/inspected it. I'm ok with that

Rudy

[Kezia]

Originally Posted by jstarr823

So tell me... can you see the grain under the yellow? How was the fit & finish on yours? I searched Google pics for some close shots of the yellow, but I couldn't tell if the grain was evident on any of them.

Nope, no grain visible. Odd that yours did, I haven't seen any Yellow or Pelham Blue with visible grain

[budg]

Originally Posted by roodyrocker

Both Sweetwater and Zzounds are good to deal with. The fact that Zzounds leaves the guitar in the box, with Gibson factory seal is ok with me. No need for either of these places to set up the guitar then ship it because it will get set up here once it arrives anyway. Besides, they have great return policies anyway. The OP is getting another one shipped right away.
I bought a guitar from Zzounds before and I liked seeing that factory seal on the box. It means no one has touched my guitar except the factory people who built/inspected it. I'm ok with that

Rudy

If there are flaws or issues with the guitar I ordered , I dont want to be the one to discover it.I would rather they did and pick another to send me.I also like being able to see pics of the exact guitar you are buying.That way I get to choose the grain I want .No surprizes is a good policy for me.

[LouieTM]

Indeed, Juniors are cool: