Siggery guitars

[Danukenator]

Bluntly because people don't get it:

-Marty is lying about delivery times. Flat out lying.
-The guitars are mediocre.
-Communication is awful and dishonest (false promises of dates and updates).

You'd have to be pretty stupid to order a guitar when these issues have been known for two years.

 

[ikarus]

Bluntly because people don't get it:

-Marty is lying about delivery times. Flat out lying.
-The guitars are mediocre.
-Communication is awful and dishonest (false promises of dates and updates).

You'd have to be pretty stupid to order a guitar when these issues have been known for two years.

I fully agree with you. Thats exactly what I have experienced, with my own Siggery and with the one from my friend.

 

[Danny Husk]

When you're close to 3 years in, I bet some of the guys here would rather have a mediocre guitar in hand than more empty promises.

 

[kruneh]

It only takes one single pic of a finished Siggery and people are flying again..

 

[Danukenator]

It only takes one single pic of a finished Siggery and people are flying again..

Exactly. He releases a photo of 1 guitar, the buyer makes a raving NGD and proclaims it to be the best thing since sliced bread and then 3 weeks later it's on the market place.

And a couple people place orders and ask, 3 months later, "Hey? Anyone else not get their guitar???"

 

[straymond]

proclaims it to be the best thing since sliced bread and then 3 weeks later it's on the market place.

And this never happens to custom jacksons, carvins, strandbergs, prs's and capas?

This IS ss.org, after all

 

[Kammo1]

Have to say that I have been reading this thread and can say that if I kept my customers waiting 12-18 months I would be doing them an injustice. There is absolutely no justification for the way some of you guys have been waiting and also the promises of it arriving and then it doesn't.... I honestly think that anyone thinking of ordering of him should read this and heed the warning.... I can see this ending in some very dissapointing stuff and tears and possibly court cases...........

 

[MrTeatime]

the one from my friend.

You mean this one?
http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/guitars-sale-trade-wanted/265056-siggery-b2-copy.html
The one you advertised as "playing great" and "much better than the one you had"?

 

[MrTeatime]

And this never happens to custom jacksons, carvins, strandbergs, prs's and capas?

This IS ss.org, after all

Actually, now that the washburn strandberg production is running great, I seem to see at least one brand new untouched strandberg available for sale each week

 

[Deadnightshade]

Bluntly because people don't get it:

-Marty is lying about delivery times. Flat out lying.
-The guitars are mediocre.
-Communication is awful and dishonest (false promises of dates and updates).

You'd have to be pretty stupid to order a guitar when these issues have been known for two years.

I totally agree about the quoted delivery times. At least a more realistic timeframe that gets stretched 3-4 months would be better.

Apart from your case, Ikarus and his friend, no one here has mentioned anything truly dissapointing. Maybe he got better, who knows. I want to believe that the worst case scenario nowadays is to encounter problems like the ones I described in my post a page back.

Again, Marty doesn't compete with a big guitar company, neither with more expensive custom shops, or with a semi-custom shop. Does anyone think that he can get (for example) a fanned fret guitar with multi-laminate neck, fancy top, BKPs, for a great price, from a (mostly) one-man job, with no flaws, and the build quality of a god-tier luthier? It's all about compromise. I hate to say this, but if you're in a market that's that niche, you should have enough experience to know that. At least he hands out receipts and a guarantee, so even if you think you didn't get your money's worth and got totally deceived as a customer, you can debate repairs/refunds, and take advantage of the fact that he's still a business that shows some signs of life. Nor barely speaking english and shoddy, nor in a mental asylum.


I'll agree again on the third point. It ties with the lying about the delivery times, but it's a general problem. When he doesn't take care of his email account not receiving emails etc, it's natural to be negatively predisposed as to the state of your guitar, the ability to persuade him that the final product is of a quality deserving a refund, etc.

Marty should most definitely change something. For example, get additional professional help, make future pool of specs more barebone/limited for the average sum he now quotes (see RAN and their upcharges for specs different than the choices given), things like that. Take your pick. But that's decision that isn't ours to make. My responsibility is to state that it's foolish to order now, although the final product I got from Marty pleased me for the amount of cash and time it took.

I can see this ending in some very dissapointing stuff and tears and possibly court cases...........

What screws everything over is the 2+ year cases. A build time of ~16 months that still gets achieved in some customer cases even now, for someone swamped with orders sounds rational, lies about the original completion date aside. Don't forget that people waited double this amount for a blackmachine. Maybe got an even better product, but they also payed double the sum. It's up to him to save his business from the mistake of taking more orders than he could chew, because there are more custom shop alternatives, the price and spec difference of which might be negligible for someone wanting to get a (maybe) better product in a faster time.

 

[ikarus]

You mean this one?
http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/guitars-sale-trade-wanted/265056-siggery-b2-copy.html
The one you advertised as "playing great" and "much better than the one you had"?

Yes, it was much better than the one that I had and it played great. But IMHO it was not what i am expecting from a custom guitar. Every production guitar in that price range that I have played was better. I don't care for all the cool option you can have for a cheap price, if in the end I never be keen on playing the guitar...

 

[Danukenator]

I totally agree about the quoted delivery times. At least a more realistic timeframe that gets stretched 3-4 months would be better.

How is 6 months realistic? It took me somewhere between 8 and 10 months and that was a couple years ago. He needs to quote between 2 and 3 years for his builds current.

Apart from your case, Ikarus and his friend, no one here has mentioned anything truly dissapointing. Maybe he got better, who knows. I want to believe that the worst case scenario nowadays is to encounter problems like the ones I described in my post a page back.

Except these "awesome" NGD's have obvious flaws in the pictures. Scratches in the end grain are common on some of these builds. Often, when the guitars are sold for a second time issues come out of the woodwork as well.

I guess it comes down to one's need. If you NEED a guitar with fancy features then I guess Marty is arguably not a horrible idea (except that he may fold at any time...). However, ANY major production brand in the same price range will be better made and probably sound better for the same price or less.

I've always found a great guitar made with slightly sub-optimal personal specs is always the better choice. My

 

[OWHall]

Yes, it was much better than the one that I had and it played great. But IMHO it was not what i am expecting from a custom guitar. Every production guitar in that price range that I have played was better. I don't care for all the cool option you can have for a cheap price, if in the end I never be keen on playing the guitar...

I see the angle you're coming from but you've got to accept that at a given price point, there is a balance of build quality and obscurity in materials, obviously production models are going to be focused around the former and evidently that suits you better but I don't think it's a valid reason to put Marty down.
You want great quality at a low price, you sacrifice custom options and unusual hardware/woods. The opposite is also true. It's a fine balance. You want both, pay more.
What Marty does at his price point is unique.

 

[ikarus]

What Marty does at his price point is unique.

Quoting months that end up in years, nearly no communication and delivering a mediocre product?

I am outta here...

 

[Deadnightshade]

How is 6 months realistic? It took me somewhere between 8 and 10 months and that was a couple years ago. He needs to quote between 2 and 3 years for his builds current.

You misinterpreted my words. I agree on the fact that 6 months for his workload is bs, and that he should quote more.

Except these "awesome" NGD's have obvious flaws in the pictures. Scratches in the end grain are common on some of these builds. Often, when the guitars are sold for a second time issues come out of the woodwork as well.

The problem that I see here is the fact that people bloat the guitar in the honeymoon phase very much, and either oversee the flaws, or discover them later. The thing is that raises expectations, which leads to confusion when the reader of the NGD becomes a customer.

As for the flaws in general, I divide luthiers in 2 categories:
1)The ones that don't know (or don't care) how to avoid them.
2)The ones that know how to avoid them, quite possibly possess even the tools to do so, but cut corners from the manhours for some reason (such as to achieve lower pricing).

I want to believe that Marty belongs to the second category.

I guess it comes down to one's need. If you NEED a guitar with fancy features then I guess Marty is arguably not a horrible idea (except that he may fold at any time...). However, ANY major production brand in the same price range will be better made and probably sound better for the same price or less.

I've always found a great guitar made with slightly sub-optimal personal specs is always the better choice. My

Production models have flaws too. The thing is that you get way better support because we're talking about a whole freaking international company here. If the manufacturer was at fault, 90% of the times you'll get another instrument or have that one fixed. Solutions can be found, a great number of people also have their instruments, perhaps even the same exact model.

The playability and sound is rather subjective I believe (apart from flat fret ends which is the only thing that in theory is a playability/sound downgrade from a production model), it greatly depends on what you asked for, too.

 

[the_heretic_divine]

I'm actually looking to sell my slot, if anyone is interested. Had some things come up, and need to sell a few things. Deposit was made May 2013. Contact me if interested.

 

[straymond]

well, I still have an optimistic mindset, AND patience
I don't have anything to gain on the opposite at this point.
He answers me promptly, especially of late, and if he doesn't meet his latest time-quote, my world won't come apart.

I have specifically asked him to take his time, rather that give me a rush-job.

 

[Danukenator]

I want to just make a quick note here. I don't want to come across as a dude just looking to rag on Marty. I'm just been down the custom road (with different builders too) where the end result was meh and the rest of the situation was a headache. It ruins the experience and sours your perception of the final product. With a couple warning signs (longer and longer delays, slower communication) I don't want to see anyone get burned if Marty does fold.

 

[MAKETOTALDESTROY]

New to this thread, placed my order at the end of March 2014

Blackmachine B2 style
Swamp ash body, Spalted Beech top with ivory binding
Zebrano fretboard
5 piece maple and walnut neck.
Schaller Hannes bridge and locking tuners
one volume and 3 way toggle
BKP Juggernauts (black covers with bulb etch)

Similar to this

 

[straymond]

sounds wicked!
welcome to the thread and the forum, man