So bummed... Had to return my Custom Shop Jackson RR1.5

[Anonymous]

You guys might remember I posted pics of this guitar:

Loved it - played great (once I set it up), sounds great... I was playing it last week and noticed something pulling away from the fretboard at the the 15th fret that was scratching my fingers when playing. I look and I find this:

The binding is not actually coming away - it is a finish issue. I've outlined in red where the problem is on the binding. You can see in the first picture (it's a bit hard) that I've outlined in red the little lighter colored semi-circle after the 15th fret that is missing the finish on the binding - almost a perfect semi-circle between the 15th and 16th frets - you can feel it and it is coming away more now from playing it. In the second picture you can see I've outlined in red a little bulge at the 15th fret where the finish is coming away from the binding and you can see that the area between the 15th and 16th fret is missing the finish on the binding...

So... this is a finish issue... The Music Zoo told me the only way to get it fixed was to ship it to the Custom Shop in Corona. I'm like "Fuck that! - it is less than an hour drive away, I'm not shipping it! I'll drive it there." They tell me no, they don't have a customer reception area. So... I have a friend in Southern California who is a Jackson Custom shop dealer I called to see if we could circumvent the normal process. He spoke with the production floor manager in the custom shop to see what he thought from the pictures... He said that since this is a finish issue, it is a really complicated fix that is going to take awhile...

So... if you know anything about the Jackson Custom Shop it is that it is incredibly SLOW - I'm not going to have my guitar sit there for months to be re-finished for a defect that existed whn I got the guitar. So I returned it to The Music Zoo for another one:

I really loved the cream one I had, but I didn't like the colors of the other ones they had left, so I went with the polka dots... Oh well... the other one was so classy looking and now this... I love the way these play and sound though so I wanted another one...

Crap...

Steve

 

[fearhk213]

I think the RR1.5's are really freaking cool axes. I wouldn't mind giving one a go ones of these days.

Bummer about the finish, though. I'm not sure what's going on with Jackson's Custom Shop lately. On another forum a while back some guy posted pics of his custom shop Jackson, and they built it with 23 frets instead of 24! I have no idea how that could get past the setup and the final qc check. I can't believe they actually shipped it out like that without saying anything.

 

[Steinmetzify]

Dude that sucks. Even lamer that they wouldn't put a SOLD guitar with a finish issue at the top of the queue for repair. You could teach them a thing or two about customer service.

 

[yngzaklynch]

Damn Steve. Hope the new one rocks just as hard

 

[AndyK]

I would think you could have sanded the defect area down with super fine paper (or steel wool), to get it to blend better?

That black one is a Randy classic look too though. How does it play/sound compared to the white one?

 

[Anonymous]

I would think you could have sanded the defect area down with super fine paper (or steel wool), to get it to blend better?

The problem is the finish is pulling away even more - sanding it won't stop it and it affects the playability of the guitar. I don't care what it looks like (you can't even really see it), but it scratches my fingers/hand when I do pull offs and it's getting worse… Has to be addressed...

That black one is a Randy classic look too though. How does it play/sound compared to the white one?

Don't have the new one yet - it will ship when they get my cream one back… I'll let folks know what I think when I get it…

Steve

 

[AndyK]

Too bad. You think they sprayed the clear on too soon? Wrong temperature? Why would it flake off like that?

 

[gibson5413]

Boom, that's too bad and awesome all in the same post! At least you got another and I think the black looks cool.

 

[xzyryabx]

Have only been hearing bad things about the Jackson CS these days....
You didn't say it specifically, but I'm assuming they told you they wouldn't be putting it at the top of the cue?
I'd personally wait for it if it were a max of 2 months than be stuck with another paint scheme I'm not 100% into...
Sorry you had to deal with this...

 

[joepete77]

That stinks steve, but its a good thing that the finish problem surfaced now rather then later down the road. I like the cream finish better also but the polka dot is cool in its own way.

 

[PBGas]

Wow...that really sucks. I can only imagine how long you had to wait for that one.

I do like the new one though....it looks great!

 

[mooncobra]

that sucks bro! too bad you could not get the exact one you chose in the first place. lucky the music zoo usually has some bad ass guitars in stock. their charvel selection is usually tops!!

 

[timeroo]

What I dont get is how a guitar that costs 4 billion dollars with a shop wait time of like 2.5 years comes back with a blemish.

 

[Anonymous]

Too bad. You think they sprayed the clear on too soon? Wrong temperature? Why would it flake off like that?

I just don't know. It almost looks like the oil from someone's thumb was on that one spot and the clear coat was applied over it and didn't stick right in that spot. Once you start playing in that area, the edges start to pull up and away from the binding… Sucks…

S'ok though - don't feel bad for me. I dig the polka dot one too… I mostly just like the way these play and sound, but if the playability is affected, I can't deal with it…

Steve

 

[jmgman69]

That Polka dot RR! is fucking EPIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! win win!!! Sorry to hear about the finish and congrats all in one post

 

[H Golf Sport]

Jackson is Fender now correct?
Have an early Jeff Beck with the huge neck. Clear started doing the same thing. Ended up stripping the whole back of the neck to bare wood and oiled it. Could not believe how thick that poly was either.
Looks like they still have the same problems in their paint dept. Just sloppy prep probably.

 

[Anonymous]

That Polka dot RR! is fucking EPIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! win win!!! Sorry to hear about the finish and congrats all in one post

Yeah, I'm starting to see it this was as well…

Steve

 

[Anonymous]

Jackson is Fender now correct?
Have an early Jeff Beck with the huge neck. Clear started doing the same thing. Ended up stripping the whole back of the neck to bare wood and oiled it. Could not believe how thick that poly was either.
Looks like they still have the same problems in their paint dept. Just sloppy prep probably.

Yeah, Charvel/Jackson is part of Fender…

Steve

 

[Anonymous]

At least the new one will go nicely with my other Rhoads clone though :

Steve

 

[Deleted member 13074]

Polka Polka!