weird guitar shop experience

[HTH AMPS]

ok, so I'm browsing a local guitar shop and try this particular guitar that takes my fancy.  I like it, but the strings are too light so (since it needs a set-up anyway) I ask if they can put some 11s on and I'll pop back in the next day to play it before sealing the deal.

I was told that if I paid for a set-up, they'd do it - wtf!!!  :?

Anyone else think that is weird? (or am I expecting too much?)

[gwEm]

i agree thats definitely a service any local guitar shop should provide in the price of any new guitar

[mikeluke]

Assuming it was more than £50....

:-)

[HTH AMPS]

It was only a £200 guitar (used), but still.

This particular (high end) shop has been very weird of late - I was in there a couple of weeks back with a mate who'd gone with £2k in his pocket with the intention of walking out with a used LP Custom they had.  They wouldn't budge on the price, so on principal he walked and managed to find the same guitar elsewhere for £1800.

[nfe]

A problem might well be that A - it'd be a nuisance to set up guitars every time a possible buyer asks (because loads do, all the time, few with even a hint of true interest) and B - the overwhelming majority of players want light strings and they'd need to change it again straight away if you weren't to buy. Also, they might use a tech who isn't a direct employee and would need to pay his full fee. All the guitar shops I've worked in were in that situation, the techs got to use the space rent free as long as they did warranty repairs free, but they'd charge the shop for bits and bobs that weren't "needed".

All the problems come from the fact that obviously 99% of people who show interest in a guitar wont ever buy it. It'd be great if you could easily tell the guys that are serious, good customers from the arses that circle guitar shops asking staff to go to great lengths for stuff they'll never, ever buy. Or if they do, off the internet.

[Bob Gnarly]

Having worked in a music shop years ago, I'd have to agree;
Chuck free strings in with guitar purchase......YES
Put heavy gauge strings on and patiently await your return to maybe purchase guitar.......NO

Different if you are a known good customer, but 9 times out of 10 when someone said they'd be back. They weren't

[Keven]

i agree with nfe and bob. working in a shop myself i go to great lenghts to keep all guitars well setup and playing well, i'll change the strings when they're dead and check the necks-action every 2-3 months on each guitar if time permits. but the string changes are standard gauges. maybe not all shops do but as the do-it-all tech guy i feel it's the least i can do for my customers.

when we get the cheapo xmas electric guitar kits i set them up with the slickest action i can. even if it means setting up 20-30 guitars in the course of a week. i've of course stopped doing that on the cheap acoustics... some of them are just hopeless!

i've done this once for a lefty and he made me waste my time, he wanted to properly try the flying v i had in stock. never bought it, even bought it from some shop in a bigger city.... maybe i'm bitter, but i can tell where the guy is coming from. if they don't have a local tech it's even worst as it involves more than just taking regular work hours to change strings and setup and intonate. you gotta call an outside guy to do it!

I play with heavy strings myself but i can definitely tell if a guitar is fine or not even if the strings are very light. on 2K purchase i wouldn't mind doing what you asked since it's worth seeing if the guitar is perfect in the most perfect of setups

but on a sub 500$ guitar, no offense and i say this in the most respectful way possible do you really think the gauge change will make you like it more or less?

[Frank]

I remember asking this exact same question about an ash bodied telecaster many years ago

Went back the next day, tele had been sold - and it was an absolute cracker of a tele :(

[hunter]

If the guitar is used and 200GBP I have to admit I can understand their point of view. Otherwise they'd have to advertise it at 250,- I guess if they'd want their setup service included. On top of that they might be afraid that they do setup on 11s and then you never come back?

[HTH AMPS]

To put it in perspective, I know most of the people in the shop (apart from the manager who had the final say), go in that shop regularly and have spent money there in the past.  They do their own set-ups too.  Still, its not a big deal to slap a set of 11s on a guitar and adjust the trem/neck so I can get a general feel of the guitar.

A set of strings at shop cost is only gonna be a couple of quid, I just find it odd that they'd be so unaccommodating.

[Brow]

To be honest I don't know any shop that would re-setup a guitar and change its string gauge just for someone to try it and (possibly) not buy it. Especially as like someone else said earlier, most people use 9s or 10s so it makes sense to have those on guitars.

I've been using the same shop for the last 14 years and I doubt they'd even do that  :lol:

[HTH AMPS]

my previous experience of guitar shops is obviously way over and above what most deem to be acceptable in that case as I've never had a problem with a shop making adjustments to the guitar while you're considering a purchase (including changing the strings).

[Twinfan]

I've never known a shop be so accomodating for a £200 guitar.  For a £2000 one maybe, but it's not worth doing it for something with so little margin.

[Philly Q]

Gotta say, I can also see their point of view - moving up from, say, 9s to 11s is enough of a change to require a truss rod adjustment, bridge height adjustment and intonation adjustment.  I wouldn't expect them to do that for just a "potential" sale.

In fact, a lot of shops blithely say they'll set up any guitar (after sale) with your choice of strings, preferred action etc.  In practice no shop has ever offered to do that when I've bought something...

[nfe]

All the shops I've worked in would do a set up on any guitar purchased but would only make a point of actually offering one on expensive guitars otherwise their techs would never get anything else done.



EDIT: I do loathe only noticing a spelling mistake after someone has quoted you!