HoboKen
Member
I searched and searched for the most perfect used Westerly Guild D-55 I could find for over a year. Seller, "tonezone1" presented what I thought was such a guitar in "excellent + condition." 20 other folks thought so and bid also. I should have been smarter when seller would only accept a personal check and would only insure its shipping upon my insistance. I never buy or sell any guitar without shipping insurance.
Guitar received with small dent in another area of the hardshell case and guitar strings de-tuned down only two steps. Looking closely at the guitar I found hairline cracks along the fretboard sides in the guitar body. I could not get my 5.1 MP digital camera to get the cracks to show, (seller used a 3.1 MP camera I believe for the E-Bay pictures), but in close visual inspection you could see them clearly.....and with a mirror and flashlight very clearly inside the guitar. Which only means that maybe one can trust on-line photos and maybe one cannnot. Seller claimed in an e-mail replyI had buyer's remorse and there was nothing wrong with the guitar.
I took the guitar to the most reputable luthier and authorized Fender-Guild (Martin & Taylor too) repair person in South-Central PA. He told me that he could do a "patch job" that would last a few years , but eventually the neck would cave into the body with out a major rebuild costing about what I'd already paid for the guitar....and even then it would not be in original "Excellent +" condition.
The seller would not take back the guitar, saying its was in "excellent+ condition" when he shipped it. This left me the only recourse of claiming against USPS. In so doing I fould out that the seller insured the guitar for $210 less than the check I sent him for the guitar delivered. USPS did pay the claim and kept the guitar, but the seller under insured the guitar.
Since the claim took over 90 days to be resolved, E-bAY WOULD NOT LET ME GET THEIR E-bAY BUYER'S GUARANTEE $150. So much for giving the seller a chance to make things right.
E-Mails and regular snail-mail and finally a classified letter to seller failed to get any reply at all. I finally had to place an initial negative response for E-Bay item # 7409271899 transaction for this seller. This is the first bad experience I've had in buying and selling guitars in over 30 years......and wouldn't you know, I only need a D-55 to complete my Guild Collection.
E-Bay Buyers.......only buy if it can be returned........if insured and make seller state amount insured for,....... and use pay-pal!
What more can I say.....'cept heartbroken HoboKen...over and out.
Guitar received with small dent in another area of the hardshell case and guitar strings de-tuned down only two steps. Looking closely at the guitar I found hairline cracks along the fretboard sides in the guitar body. I could not get my 5.1 MP digital camera to get the cracks to show, (seller used a 3.1 MP camera I believe for the E-Bay pictures), but in close visual inspection you could see them clearly.....and with a mirror and flashlight very clearly inside the guitar. Which only means that maybe one can trust on-line photos and maybe one cannnot. Seller claimed in an e-mail replyI had buyer's remorse and there was nothing wrong with the guitar.
I took the guitar to the most reputable luthier and authorized Fender-Guild (Martin & Taylor too) repair person in South-Central PA. He told me that he could do a "patch job" that would last a few years , but eventually the neck would cave into the body with out a major rebuild costing about what I'd already paid for the guitar....and even then it would not be in original "Excellent +" condition.
The seller would not take back the guitar, saying its was in "excellent+ condition" when he shipped it. This left me the only recourse of claiming against USPS. In so doing I fould out that the seller insured the guitar for $210 less than the check I sent him for the guitar delivered. USPS did pay the claim and kept the guitar, but the seller under insured the guitar.
Since the claim took over 90 days to be resolved, E-bAY WOULD NOT LET ME GET THEIR E-bAY BUYER'S GUARANTEE $150. So much for giving the seller a chance to make things right.
E-Mails and regular snail-mail and finally a classified letter to seller failed to get any reply at all. I finally had to place an initial negative response for E-Bay item # 7409271899 transaction for this seller. This is the first bad experience I've had in buying and selling guitars in over 30 years......and wouldn't you know, I only need a D-55 to complete my Guild Collection.
E-Bay Buyers.......only buy if it can be returned........if insured and make seller state amount insured for,....... and use pay-pal!
What more can I say.....'cept heartbroken HoboKen...over and out.