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Post subject: 2016 Elite Jazz Bass V Broken Nut On First Restring.
Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2016 7:23 pm
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Less than 4 months old. Probably no more than 6 hours play time. Stored in climate controlled room (69 degrees 50% humidity). I felt it was time for the first restring. I carefully unwound each string & lightly put a little graphite in each nut slot. As I lightly brushed away any excess graphite from the nut, the low side of the nut fell off. I'm extremely pissed. If I can send this bass back to Fender in exchange for a gift card I would much prefer that then having an authorized Fender repair shop fix it. It doesn't sit well with me that this would happen on a new bass, especially Fender's new flagship Elite line. What are my options for returning this in exchange for either a new bass or Fender store credit? - Bass was bought new from Sweetwater Sound in store Fort Wayne, Indiana. I have all receipts and proof of purchase.Image


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Post subject: Re: 2016 Elite Jazz Bass V Broken Nut On First Restring.
Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2016 10:56 pm
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Unfortunately, you have no recourse at this point but to return the instrument to an authorized Fender service center for repair. FMIC's warranty is quite specific and absent some larger fundamental defect, they're under no obligation to accept a return.

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: 2016 Elite Jazz Bass V Broken Nut On First Restring.
Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2016 11:13 pm
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Pretty much figured I'm stuck with this p.o.s.


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Post subject: Re: 2016 Elite Jazz Bass V Broken Nut On First Restring.
Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2016 11:38 pm
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I know it's disappointing but let FMIC make good on the repair -- you may change your opinion of the instrument.

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Post subject: Re: 2016 Elite Jazz Bass V Broken Nut On First Restring.
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 5:48 am
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Ouch! Sorry that happened to you. I've never had that misfortune occur on any basses. Is that a Bone Nut on it?

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Post subject: Re: 2016 Elite Jazz Bass V Broken Nut On First Restring.
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 9:07 am
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You'd think for as much as you paid for the bass, they'd have a better nut on it. I wonder if it was damaged somehow before you got it, even from the factory?

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Post subject: Re: 2016 Elite Jazz Bass V Broken Nut On First Restring.
Posted: Tue Sep 06, 2016 6:56 am
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krismiller1982 wrote:
Pretty much figured I'm stuck with this p.o.s.


Bone nuts are desirable because they conduct vibrations so well. However being a natural material they are not uniformly dense like synthetics. This means a bone nut can have internal weaknesses that are not visible. Any internal density variances can be exacerbated by huge pressures involved in a five string bass. Broken bone nuts on a 5 string bass are more likely than a broken synthetic nut and actually not totally surprising nor indicative of a POS.

Bone nuts are more brittle than synthetics also which makes them far less forgiving about trying to cram in a larger gauge string than the slot is intended to properly accommodate. If going to a larger gauge string then the slot needs just the right amount of expansion first or you will get exactly what you have here all over again.

The advantage of a bone nut is clearer to me on a Spanish guitar than a bass because any tonal advantage to using bone is only a benefit on open strings and you are going to be hitting open strings on a Spanish guitar far more often than on a bass. If this opportunity arose on an instrument of mine with a bone nut then I might consider replacing it with a synthetic nut. That is if you do not go the free repair route at the service center.

You can also break a synthetic nut but they typically do not break all the way through as this bone nut did. Even when trying to cram a too large string into a synthetic nut slot when they break they typically do not break all the way through, but just one of the raised slot notches will pop off, usually on the outside edge.

Also, if I might make a suggestion for the future. I only change one string at a time instead of stripping all the strings off at once. Yo-Yo tension is not good for the neck or the truss rod system. This is especially critical if you are doing frequent string changes. The neck is a system in balance and the string tension is a critical part of this balance. Unless doing some work on frets I would never strip all the strings off a bass at once because that is just asking for trouble and at least a complete setup from scratch with a fresh settling in process.


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Post subject: Re: 2016 Elite Jazz Bass V Broken Nut On First Restring.
Posted: Thu Sep 22, 2016 8:36 pm
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Not much to add to BD's excellent summary. Don't shoot the bass just yet, Fender USA makes a quality product, in fact I have not found a lemon since before 2010. If this was not operator error, it is an issue that will not repeat.

The first time around, back in 82, the Elite Jazz Bass never made it into production, but the prototype is pretty cool, and it is still a player.

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Post subject: Re: 2016 Elite Jazz Bass V Broken Nut On First Restring.
Posted: Wed Sep 28, 2016 3:11 pm
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OH MAN!..Kris, I feel your pain. I got one back in April ( I think it was ) and it had an issue with the colouring on the headstock decal. Fender offered me £150 off or a wait of 8 weeks for a replacement ( they couldn't repair as the fault was under the laquer ). I chose to wait and I am very happy with the bass, an awesome piece of kit. I Hope you get a quick and satisfactory result.

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