No they do not sell seconds unless clearly noted. All mass produced guitars will have defects. The trick is finding one with none. To do that you have to inspect and demo several. Ordering a new guitar sight unseen is probably the worst way to buy a guitar ever invented. Grain is present in most body tonewoods. In translucent finishes tightly packed grain is usually prized. On rosewood boards I hate it.

If they did that, I don't think they would ever admit it.

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Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.

Interesting concept.

Complete agreement, purchasing an instrument online sight unseen is THE worst way to do it. When one thhinks about the intimate, long relationship a player intends to have with their instrument, in this opinion...

...a "mail order instrument"...

...is like a male order marriage-mate.

In the world of manufacturing to spec/tolerances, the laws of production say in this instance, almost all most instruments off an assembly line will meet the specifications of the engineering drawings.

A few will exceed the quality parameters. A few will be inferior.

If Fender doesn't invest in tighter quality control, I doubt they would pay for someone to inspect and separate for different buyers. I think everyone gets what they get. I've noticed that US Fenders have more of a hand made look (or you can call it imperfections) than their imported guitars.

I can see how sight unseen purchases can be a bad idea, but I've had pretty good luck doing it myself. I had one Musicmaster bass that I just never "connected" with that went on to be sold, but I also have 2 basses, my Montara, and my Tie Dye Strat that were all purchased off the 'net and love to death. So it can be done.

I've bought a lot of stuff from MF but never a guitar so don't know about that.

Isn't MF a subsidiary of GC? Aren't many online sellers a subsidiary of GC?

It's been my experience that the online sellers will distribute junk with known issues, and the prime stock makes it into the retail showrooms.

It's much easier to return an item to a retail store than it is to ship it back and wait for a replacement or a refund so more attention is paid to satisfying the local shopper instead of the internet shopper, obviously.

...when I ordered my last guitar online cuz of the financing (couldn't afford it any other way), I had to send one very defective guitar back and demand that they inspect the replacement before sending it out! Of course, this won't be done for just anybody. I placed many orders with the online seller and apparently, they wanted to keep my business! Now? They know better to send me junk or it goes right back.

On several occasions, an online seller sent me "B" stock and open stock as new whereas at the store level, this would not fly -- we'd see the open box, etc.

...based on my experience: Yes, online sellers take advantage of online buyers by knowingly sending defects (Mustang series fizzers, heavy or defective guitars, open or "B" stock as new) to online buyers. However, they do make good if you complain, usually, and if you've complied with the company rules (keeping original packing, etc.).

...either way, I don't know of many retail shops that will let you inspect and play 100 new guitars (boxed stock, not what's on the floor already) to find one that fits and is not defective and has the perfect wood, etc.!

C#m
Even on American Standards there can be cosmetic imperfections in the wood. If you have a maple neck on yours and the dark streak is showing on the fretboard it is not unusual. One of my Strats has a similar condition but it never affected playability. It also makes that guitar neck uniquely identifiable. Look at it as a beauty mark. Any natural product will have what some might consider an imperfection, but from a production standpoint it would not be unless it affected the structual integrity of the product. The more choice pieces of wood are usually reserved for Deluxe, Artist, and Custom Shop models. Fender's final inspections are pretty good. They would not intentionally allow bad product out of the door because it's bad business for them as well as the retailer.You got a great price on your guitar if you choose to keep it. If not they've offered to replace it. Whatever you decide to do I wish you the best. BTW some pics of your new guitar would be nice.

Musician's Friend is part of the company that owns Guitar Center.

I just bought a 52 RI Tele from MF and its beautiful. It was in original box from Fender that was never opened. This is the 2nd guitar I bought from them with no issues at all. I don,t think Fender sells 2nds to anyone.

In my experience, 45+ years of playing, 65 guitars on hand; I think the spread of "quality" to "inferior" instruments is pretty even, whether you are at GC in person or buying online from MF or Sam Ash or Zzounds or wherever. The guitars are mass-produced and shipped out to all the various sales venues and from that point you are on your own.

I've bought a number of guitars in recent years from GC wall stock, both new and used. They frequently have just ONE example of whatever guitar you are looking at, not a bunch of new ones in the back room. On three occasions I bought the ONE guitar they had. I have also purchased several used guitars (and amps) from the Trade-In Corner.

I think the closest you are going to come to "factory seconds" is the "scratch & dent" stuff that is discounted as such, both at GC and online thru MF. I never mess with the S & D stock and usually the discounts for damage aren't worth getting a slightly beat up second-hand-looking guitar anyway.

As far as buying guitars you haven't held in your own sweaty hands, I don't have a problem ordering guitars online or off eBay for that matter. I have had just about zero problems (received one that was simply the wrong guitar) with any of my purchases, including a brand new trans-red Charvel Desolation 2 guitar that was waiting for me under the Christmas tree a few days ago, direct from Santa.

So, in answer to the OP's original question - I would say NO.

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Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963

I just bought a 52 RI Tele from MF and its beautiful. It was in original box from Fender that was never opened. This is the 2nd guitar I bought from them with no issues at all. I don,t think Fender sells 2nds to anyone.

To the best of my knowledge this is correct. I have read Fender employees on this site and quoted in guitar magazine Q&As saying that Fender don't sell seconds. The stuff that leaves the factory is passed as perfect - or it doesn't leave the factory.

I am told that Gibson do sell seconds which are clearly marked as such so there can be no confusion. But I've never seen that with my own eyes.

Two companies with two different policies. I don't see that one is better than the other; just different approaches, no doubt related to the relative cost of junking blemished parts.



Hi C#m: my US Strat has a similar mark. It is just a natural figure in the wood: consider it a distinguishing feature rather than a blemish. It makes your guitar unique to you - it's part of your guitar's fingerprint.

Cheers - C

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We're talking pic of the litter. When I ordered a Hwy 1 strat from an online seller, they confirmed they had a bunch of heavy specimens and one light weight specimen. Had I not insisted, they'd have sent out a heavy specimen not characteristic of floor stock or back-room stock, the heavy specimens form the online seller being exception instead of the rule, in most cases.

We're also talking batches and runs, some batches and runs are known problematic, I've suffered a few those as well seeing many defects in one run, but not in the first or another run.

...based on two Hwy 1 strats I purchased, I can say Fender don't have a 100% batting average for "perfect". The first Hwy 1 I received was not balanced, caused back pain and wasn't spec and wouldn't take spec due to being out of spec cuz the damn thing was so heavy and imbalanced, a clear reject that made it out of the Fender factory!

However, the Hwy 1 I kept...wow, ah-mazing guitar, thoroughly satisfied with my online purchase, thoroughly satisfied with the guitar, thoroughly, I felt Leo, felt him good too, he likes my playing!

Hi RCB-CA-USA: 'course, we all know that guitars vary one to another, and sometimes honest-to-goodness flaws get through. That's what the warranty is there for.

All I'm saying is that as far as factory QC is concerned if they spot a flaw it doesn't go out: they don't issue seconds. So far as they've said themselves, at any rate.

Cheers - C

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Hi Ceri! From my home, the shopping experienced yielded online sellers crossing a few lines; selling picked-over problematic batches and runs, with a better, in-store experience, with an online shop from inside the store to confirm the issue. I ordered an Ibanez in-store at GC to be delivered to my home via the online supply chain, it was abused via UPS and also arrived defective, same with the second one, ended up selling it back to the store, they stating..."that's Ibanez".

I'm saying...I've seen enough flaws to say Fender Squier, MIM Fender, and HWY Fender, and Mustang Fender need to get their quality control straight, I've seen way too many defects, more than the "perfect" specimens, and I'm saying...online sellers need to disclose..."picked-over, heavy, some quality control issues" instead of promoting..."new, better, wut u want".

...new longer lines and higher prices, less quality, less consumer satisfaction 's gotta change!

However, the weight of the guitar is a highly personalized thing. My Telecaster is heavy--a bit too heavy when my back or shoulder are hurting, and some people refuse to play it due to it's weight--but I like the way is sounds and feels. It's weight adds to my confidence in playing it HARD...I don't feel like I'm gonna break the thing if I dig in a bit.
Conversely, my Strat is lighter--not featherweight, but significantly lighter. Subsequently, I play it a bit more gently, with a lighter touch and feel.
If your HWY1 wouldn't "take spec" (and I'm not sure I know what that means), it was probably/possibly a different issue than just the weight of the guitar...that might just be your pet peeve that was amplified by other issues with the setup and construction.

So what you labelled as too heavy might be right for me, and what I label as a good feeling guitar might be screwed up for you...it's in the hands of the beholder.

With production line guitars, there's a world of difference between individual axes in weight, feel and tone. This is especially true of instruments from a lower price point. When I bought a Squier Mini-Strat for the Armadillo 'Tween a few years ago, I asked them to bring out several of them (in black); I played them all until I found the one with the best fret job, feel and tuning stability...interestingly enough, the tone didn't vary greatly between the five I tried...and it's a good-sounding little axe that I pick up and jam with for an occasional diversion (although I generally take off the Hello Kitty strap).

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Good Vibes To Y'all!



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