NGD - Daemoness Cimmerian

[frogman81]

Hi everyone, to sum it up I've received my Daemoness after a 5 year, 5 month wait (May 2014-October 2019) and I'm disappointed with it. It plays nice, sounds good, and looks cool across the room, but the fit and finish just aren't what I was expecting. I've waited a week to think it over, took it to a guitar shop for another opinion, and just emailed Barnes my thoughts. I'll try to follow up with whether we can try to come to an agreement that makes me feel better about the situation.

I'll try to just let the photos do the talking (haven't bothered getting my DSLR out yet, just iPhone pics) and anyone who cares can make up their own mind as to how they would feel.

Here are some pics.

The main issue is that there is a neck pocket crack, but there are a fair amount of other small things that in isolation wouldn't be a big deal, but all add up to make it not the guitar I was expecting. The first thing I noticed was that there are A LOT of polish marks. I compared it with a couple of other new gloss black guitars at The Twelfth Fret in Toronto today, and they just didn't have marks like this.

How would you feel?

 

[MaxOfMetal]

Stupid question: if you just took delivery, why are there pictures of this guitar on their Instagram from all the way back in February?

 

[AkiraSpectrum]

I have no idea how much Daemoness guitars are but I'm assuming they are pricey, especially after a 5+ year wait-time.

If I were you I would be furious. I'd send the guitar back and demand a full refund. If you can walk into a music store right now and get a Squire or budget Ibanez without issues like this than this is unacceptable in my book.

I hope things work out for you.

Is it possible the majority of these issues happened in shipping?

 

[frogman81]

Stupid question: if you just took delivery, why are there pictures of this guitar on their Instagram from all the way back in February?

I don’t think that’s a stupid question. I got the email that it was ready September 18th. As to what it was waiting for all that time, I believe it was setup and control cavity art.

 

[KnightBrolaire]

Hi everyone, to sum it up I've received my Daemoness after a 5 year, 5 month wait (May 2014-October 2019) and I'm disappointed with it. It plays nice, sounds good, and looks cool across the room, but the fit and finish just aren't what I was expecting. I've waited a week to think it over, took it to a guitar shop for another opinion, and just emailed Barnes my thoughts. I'll try to follow up with whether we can try to come to an agreement that makes me feel better about the situation.

I'll try to just let the photos do the talking (haven't bothered getting my DSLR out yet, just iPhone pics) and anyone who cares can make up their own mind as to how they would feel.

Here are some pics.

The main issue is that there is a neck pocket crack, but there are a fair amount of other small things that in isolation wouldn't be a big deal, but all add up to make it not the guitar I was expecting. The first thing I noticed was that there are A LOT of polish marks. I compared it with a couple of other new gloss black guitars at The Twelfth Fret in Toronto today, and they just didn't have marks like this.

How would you feel?

strange, dylan is usually very very thorough with his fit/finish work from what I've seen. Speaking from my own experience it's pretty hard to completely remove polish marks and scratches in black gloss finishes, though it depends on the polish/clear coat used. Thicker clear coats give you more leeway with polishing since you don't risk burning through with a machine buffer. Most production guitars get a thick poly coating of some sort, and I'm pretty sure dylan doesn't use poly.
Is that the only spot with black paint bleeding onto the green? I could forgive it if that's the case since it's a difficult effect to do really well, especially on contours.

 

[MaxOfMetal]

I don’t think that’s a stupid question. I got the email that it was ready September 18th. As to what it was waiting for all that time, I believe it was setup and control cavity art.

Weird. A lot of what's wrong looks like poor storage/use. There are all kinds of pictures of it, perhaps it was damaged in the process.

Again, it's so odd that it would be hanging around for half a year. The body was finished almost a full year prior.

I'd be very interested in an explanation if and when you get one.

 

[jco5055]

Are the pics broken for anyone else? The carbon fiber m2m thread is the same issue for me. I'm not on mobile so I don't know if those on mobile can see it?

 

[frogman81]

Are the pics broken for anyone else? The carbon fiber m2m thread is the same issue for me. I'm not on mobile so I don't know if those on mobile can see it?

Yeah I just realised this. I thought imgur worked still. Can someone tell me which site to share from?

 

[ikarus]

I would be so pissed. 5 years, multiple thousand euros and flaws like you would expect from Ibanez Gio or something.

The third picture looks horrible, just like a homebuild. How can something like that leave the shop?

For anyone who can not see the pics: hit the reply button and let them load. then you can exit the thread and visit it again and then they are visible.

 

[dhgrind]

Jesus that looks like it went thru the ringer. Sorry that’s the shape it came to you in. Def contact them and don’t accept it as is. I’m still waiting on even doing a Skype call with them. If my guitar showed up like that I’d probably have a mini meltdown.

also I’m surprised it came like this given how happy others have been with theirs. Although you can definitely tell that recent Ghost ship V was smacked on a wall during Dylan’s messy showcasing.

 

[spudmunkey]

Yeah I just realised this. I thought imgur worked still. Can someone tell me which site to share from?

Imgur hasn't work as long as I've been here, unfortunately.

Photobucket is also huge tire fire.


You can attach them to your post with the "upload a file" button.

 

[G_3_3_k_]

To me. You paid new money for what amounts to a guitar that looks like its been well used and has some production and finish flaws to boot. That would be a no from me. If it had been just the poor buffing or the hardware on the back, it wouldn't bother me in the least. All of that together? Nope. Not acceptable after 5 1/2 years. Fix it promptly or refund.

 

[wedge_destroyer]

Imgur hasn't work as long as I've been here, unfortunately.

Photobucket is also huge tire fire.


You can attach them to your post with the "upload a file" button.

Imgbb may be an option not tried it here works other places.

Yea if i paid too price, id be so hot under the collar, my shirt would catch fire.

 

[jco5055]

I'm interested to see Dylan's response, here's hoping he's not another luthier you need to remove from the "good" list.

 

[technomancer]

Wow that is just sad

 

[MSS]

I would be so disappointed. Maybe the crack happened during shipping?

 

[arasys]

Compared to other Daemoness guitars, it almost looks like Dylan gave specs to a random Chinese luthier when you look at the fretboard, and paint..

If you keep that guitar (ignoring the cosmetic flaws) a potentially cracked neck will leave a bad taste in your mouth to say the least..

5+ years is a long wait, and there's absolutely no way I would accept it after spending tons of money.. I can't imagine how you feel because ordering a custom guitar is definitely not stress-free until you receive what you want. When I received mine, I was little bummed about the chipped headstock during delivery. But that was fixed before even I opened the case for the first time, and guitar is perfect except for that fixed tiny chip (3 mm long).

 

[mastapimp]

What a bummer...if you can't work out a compromise, send it back for a full refund. Those issues shouldn't be on a guitar of this price-tag and build time. It's a shame because, from afar, that guitar looks killer. Good luck!

 

[Wolfhorsky]

Damn, i feel Your pain. I would be veery frustrated. That paintjob is worse than my garage paintjobs Why the hell that neck pocket is painted?

 

[electriceye]

Pics, or I don’t believe you!

All joking aside, who the hell makes a customer wait FIVE YEARS for a fucking guitar? That’s inexcusable on every level. If you’re a builder and have a waitlist THAT long, you don’t know what you’re doing. On the flip side, who in their right mind would agree to that and plunk down money that far in advance? Seems crazy, either way.

EDIT: On my iPad, I can see the pics if I reply directly to the original post. Couple of things: What the hell took 5 years for that guitar? That finish is a joke. Those green trim lines are something I’d expect from ME, and I don’t know what I’m doing. The polishing is atrocious. The neck pocket crack, INEXCUSABLE. Did they screw up that fret slot and fill it???

Frankly, you got jacked. That’s amateur-level craftsmanship. Even on my PERSONAL builds, I beat myself up over simple mistakes. That finish would lead to a complete strip and re-fin, easily. This build permanently stains Daemoness for me. I’m blown away they sold that to you. It’s B-stock at best.

How much did you pay for this thing?