UrbanJesus Posted November 12, 2007 Share Posted November 12, 2007 So as some of you remember (from a previous post) I was awaiting a '69 Barney Kessel Original that I had ordered from a vintage guitar store based in Nashville that I had found online. I had been waiting for about a month while I put down deposits and figured out my money situation to make it work. Well it finally arrived Thursday morning (while I was at work)...so I anxiously awaited til I could get away a couple hours to go play it for a bit. I finally made it home around 2pm, washed up a bit, and began the process of unpacking the guitar. I got down to the original hard case and was having trouble getting the last latch open and thought perhaps they had hidden the key somewhere within the packaging. I called the salesman who sold it to me, and he was talking me through it and can even be quoted as saying 'Im gonna walk you through this man, I cant wait to hear your reaction when you see that guitar'. So the excitement and suspense was building. I finally got the case open and to my surprise the strings were broken off (a little inconvenient but whatever), and the bridge was also off the guitar, which is common when shipping hollow bodys. Then I noticed a slight hairline crack at the base of the neck and thought, 'well he never told me about that but whatever, Im sure its fine'. Then I flipped the guitar over, only to find that the guitar had been destroyed in shipping. It looked as though someone stepped at the base of the neck and pulled up on the neck in an attempt to rip it out. It was a sad sad sight. So while I battled with the red tape of getting my money back (which isnt going to be a problem as it was insured through UPS), and the fact that this beautiful guitar would never be the same. I sent a couple pictures over to the guitar shop and they said they could restore it and sell it to me at a newly appraised price. This seemed like a good option at the time, but I then decided to shop around again to see if I could find another one out there. And I did! Instead of shipping it this time, I drove down to LA myself to pick it up at a place called Voltage Guitars (this dude has sold guitars to everyone from Kurt Cobain to Richard Gere), and I now am a proud owner of a '68 Barney Kessel Custom! So despite the tragic events that lead to it, I ended up with a nicer guitar for a few hundred bucks more and a 5 hour car ride. And let me tell you this guitar sounds incredible. So if any of you want to get a restored '69 Barney Kessel Original in a few months (or however long it takes to get it fixed), let me know as I will be the first person they contact about it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BigWheeledWagon Posted November 12, 2007 Share Posted November 12, 2007 So as some of you remember (from a previous post) I was awaiting a '69 Barney Kessel Original that I had ordered from a vintage guitar store based in Nashville that I had found online. I had been waiting for about a month while I put down deposits and figured out my money situation to make it work. Well it finally arrived Thursday morning (while I was at work)...so I anxiously awaited til I could get away a couple hours to go play it for a bit. I finally made it home around 2pm, washed up a bit, and began the process of unpacking the guitar. I got down to the original hard case and was having trouble getting the last latch open and thought perhaps they had hidden the key somewhere within the packaging. I called the salesman who sold it to me, and he was talking me through it and can even be quoted as saying 'Im gonna walk you through this man, I cant wait to hear your reaction when you see that guitar'. So the excitement and suspense was building. I finally got the case open and to my surprise the strings were broken off (a little inconvenient but whatever), and the bridge was also off the guitar, which is common when shipping hollow bodys. Then I noticed a slight hairline crack at the base of the neck and thought, 'well he never told me about that but whatever, Im sure its fine'. Then I flipped the guitar over, only to find that the guitar had been destroyed in shipping. It looked as though someone stepped at the base of the neck and pulled up on the neck in an attempt to rip it out. It was a sad sad sight. So while I battled with the red tape of getting my money back (which isnt going to be a problem as it was insured through UPS), and the fact that this beautiful guitar would never be the same. I sent a couple pictures over to the guitar shop and they said they could restore it and sell it to me at a newly appraised price. This seemed like a good option at the time, but I then decided to shop around again to see if I could find another one out there. And I did! Instead of shipping it this time, I drove down to LA myself to pick it up at a place called Voltage Guitars (this dude has sold guitars to everyone from Kurt Cobain to Richard Gere), and I now am a proud owner of a '68 Barney Kessel Custom! So despite the tragic events that lead to it, I ended up with a nicer guitar for a few hundred bucks more and a 5 hour car ride. And let me tell you this guitar sounds incredible. So if any of you want to get a restored '69 Barney Kessel Original in a few months (or however long it takes to get it fixed), let me know as I will be the first person they contact about it. I'm glad to hear that things worked out in the long run, but what a horror story. I can't imagine the sick feeling you must have had upon seeing your guitar destroyed (typical UPS -- I never ship anything with them that is the least bit fragile). What Nashville store did you order from originally? Other than the UPS fiasco, how were they? I'm always looking for good places here in Nashville (and there are several). Quote Link to post Share on other sites
UrbanJesus Posted November 12, 2007 Author Share Posted November 12, 2007 I'm glad to hear that things worked out in the long run, but what a horror story. I can't imagine the sick feeling you must have had upon seeing your guitar destroyed (typical UPS -- I never ship anything with them that is the least bit fragile). What Nashville store did you order from originally? Other than the UPS fiasco, how were they? I'm always looking for good places here in Nashville (and there are several). It was a place called Gruhn Guitars. They were pretty good. I mean I had no real complaint with them. The salesman I talked to all over the phone was very helpful and brutally honest about every guitar I asked about. They were also very helpful with the whole destroyed guitar situation. Check em out at gruhn.com. They have some cool stuff including a Byrdland owned by Jerry Garcia that they just added the other day. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BigWheeledWagon Posted November 12, 2007 Share Posted November 12, 2007 Gruhn is a true Nashville landmark. As a teenager, I would spend hours just staring at all their old Gibson flat tops and their amazing assortment of antique Martins and dream of one day owning one (still do -- though I do now have a '67 Gibson Dove). I'm glad to hear they've successfully entered the internet sales arena (or at least have a website for browsing). They really do have some wonderful unique old guitars, and if I had an extremely valuable vintage guitar, it is the place I would take to have any work done. I may just have to head over there this weekend and marvel at some guitars I will never be able to afford (or at least justify the expense of buying one to my wife). Quote Link to post Share on other sites
deepseacatfish Posted November 12, 2007 Share Posted November 12, 2007 Yeesh, that sounds traumatic. Shipping Hollow-body guitars, particularly vintage ones always seems like a risky gamble to me. I'm glad that in this case it worked out pretty well for you (and not as terribly as it could have for the guitar). Glad you got a guitar that suits you though...that's the real important thing. A Barney-Kessel would be neat, but I'm thinking the college student budget will be prohibiting any serious guitar purchases for me right now. I'm sure someone will be interested though, once repaired that guitar deserves a good home (and hopefully a better trip there) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
hollow Posted November 12, 2007 Share Posted November 12, 2007 Reading your story made me sick to my stomach! I've had a couple of hollow bodies shipped to me, and was lucky -- one was a 66 Gibson ES-330, my baby... But, I did have an ES-335 delivered in person because the dealer happened to be in the area and hand delivered it. After your experience, I'll be willing to make the drive necessary for my next vintage purchase! Good to hear that the dealer was willing to work with you, although Nashville is too far a drive for me (Seattle) -- but LA would be a possibility, I'll have to check out Voltage. Enjoy your new addition! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
anthony Posted November 13, 2007 Share Posted November 13, 2007 Tragic story...... The brown bomber strikes again! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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