Ok you do need the correct hardware that belongs to that guitar, I'm not sure how valuable your time is but, as far as small claims court, you'll spend an awful lot of time thru the bureaucracy to get the issue resolved in your favor.(if at all)

I would return to the store with receipt, not the guitar, mismatched parts and demand restitution from either the owner or the head mngr.
Actually get hold of the owner, He/She/Them are the one's who stand to lose if you squack loudly enough.
You'll have to be insistent but polite and accept no compromise but the correct items listed for that guitar. As is doesn't cut it. The merchant has insurance to cover losses, so if he has to order the missing parts than too bad.
Whatever you bring to the store, do not leave it behind with them if they offer to look into it and for you to return at a later time.

Also, do you have a good connection in SF in the commerce dept. of the city GVT. ?
No merchant wants their name with a red flag at the office that renews their retail license because of dissatisfied customers, press the right buttons and things should get resolved quickly.

Don't give up, no matter how many times you have to call back or return to the store, it is bad publicity for them to have negative word of mouth.

You might want to mention to the store that you posted your grievance on this widely viewed forum for advice, however if this issue is resolved in your favor, you must post that also, it is proper ethics to do so.

Sometimes these salesmen make me want to puke! They are just a bunch of bums, who live off hype and myth and usually don't know much about the products they are selling just what some other salesman told them which is often Hype mixed with a good dose of Bull. The truth is if they don't sell they don't eat. Most of them don't qualify as a musician, shreding doesn't make you a musician. One of my friends is a retired GC salesman, did it longer than most, almost 15 years. Told me it's kind of cut-throat and gets worse when sales are down. He calls them bottom feeders, living off the crumbs spent in their stores, hoping for the big sales commission. He did well conning kids out of their money selling them cheap guitars and crappy amps at inflated prices, filling their heads with dreams and hopes. I told him if there is a Hell for salesmen he'll get a special place all his own. Now he sells washing machines at Home Depot.

So much for that.

I have an (1988) '62 reissue Strat it came with the 3 way switch and the 5 way switch installed. It also has a Tweed case and all the tags and hardware, allen wrench for bridge, ashtray and trem, 50's style guitar strap and 10' vintage cable, as well as extra trem springs, manual and even a bumper sticker. Very cool. I would bet if you didn't get all these things you bought a used guitar and they just grabbed a case and there you are.

Sorry about your personal emergency and wanting to return the guitar because of that issue. On that merit they won't budge. I think you have to go in there and raise some hell if you really want to get your money back, pointing out things that went wrong with the purchase, such as missing items and you think they sold you this guitar under false representation.

Good luck and don't back down, you always have the final option to file a complaint with the local Better Business Bureau, I know I would. And on the internet. [image][/img]

I think Vinny and Pablo might know each other too.

Anyway, good luck with it!!!

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Being able to play and enjoy music is a gift that's often taken for granted.

Don't leave home without it!

Make a concise list of all the issues discussed herein and advise the highest person on the food chain in that store that this is the consensus of
'your cousins' on the Fender Forum and at that you have yet to name the establishment to the world. Advise them that failing restititution for misrepresentation and substitution regarding case, and candy, among other things, Forum, Fender Consumers Affiars, and small claims court might be the next step. Enough information is available from the company to support how that guitar should have been accessorized and there seems to be nothing in the representation of the vendor that it would come other than correct despite the really paltry reduction in price.

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"Another day in paradise!"

Well, I've finally heard back from the owner. Does this sound reasonable?

Now you have the ball. Notice that he skirts around the issue of the guitar not being fitted out properly in terms of equipment. Only that it was clearance. Did 'clearance' in this case mean the 'as is' hodgepodge which accompanied it? Now,he focuses mainly on your plea of affordability which, perhaps should not have appeared to have been your prinicipal issue. If your are strongly of the opinion that the sale was misrepresented then it goes to small claims court which will oblige the vendor to have counsel represent him if he doesn't represent himself. If you prevail, you might be able to win restitution plus court costs. If you don't, he may ask for costs on your part.

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"Another day in paradise!"

My grandfather passed away on the 28th and we had his funeral yesterday. There is a considerable debt to pay.

At this point, I need to decide whether I should accept a refund of $1499($1641.40 with tax) minus 20%, or if I can sell the guitar for more with the original accessories(he hasn't stated yet whether he will give the original accessories.

It's unfortunate because although I'd like for the matter to be fully resolved, I also am a bit under pressure to do it rather quickly. I DO feel the sale was definitely misrepresented as I had been told by the salesman previously that it came with all the original accessories. No mention of a clearance sale was made until the night I picked it up, and no mention of incorrect accessories and incorrect case was ever made. I would have never purchased it for $1499 had I known that.

Does a 20% restocking fee sound reasonable?

It's your game. If a 20% payback is the price worth getting rid of the monkey its your call. Personally, I'd take them to court. You have enough supporting testimony in this Forum alone to outline what should have been expected in the sale of that Stratocaster and that what was offered was a hodge-pod of gear not described in the original offering. My deepest sympathies to you and yours on your loss.

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"Another day in paradise!"

It sounds to me like he's "jerkin' yer gherkin".

He might have a legitimate case for a restocking fee if the instrument was being returned because you simply didn't like it.

But you're returning it because the item was misrepresented by his sales associate.

Let that putz pay the restocking fee -- he's the one responsible for your disappointment.

JMO

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

Before you decide which option to take , can you get advice from someone in the legal field.
If you decide to take him to court, you need to be sure that the percentages for winning are in your favor, as he already knows of your plight that letter ( as crass as it is) sounds to me like they are playing hardball and they will attempt to make you back down first.

Personally, a 20% restocking fee is excessive, especially since the merchandise was misrepresented and sold under different terms.
I believe that since money exchanged at your first visit, that initial transaction set the terms of the sale and therefore the initial contract, verbal or not should stand.

I myself would not agree to the restocking fee, since when all is said and done, the merchandise was not as advertised upon initial transaction.
I would push on that basis, but leave out the personal side of losing your grandfather ( my humble condolences to you ) as that is a point they will use against you. The letter suggests that you should just suck it up!!!

They may be a large store with high volume, but so is Wal-Mart and their ethics don't rate very high. Success for some companies may be labeled under the old adage " The End Justifies The Means ".

If at all possible fight them for what was agreed upon at the first transaction, at 20% you are out $328 for them agreeing to take back the guitar. Not acceptable..
I would also be willing to bet that they will try to blame you for the missing hardware, incorrect case and attempt to renegotiate even lower.
I can think of many excuses such as, " We put this guitar, as a clearance sale but now we are going to find it difficult to resell this guitar as it is used so therefore we can only give you this much."

They screwed up and now want to recoup their mistakes at your expense.
You have to decide which avenue but keep in mind that you bought a guitar for $1641 and that number is your break even number, anything less is an additional loss out of your pocket.

AS i posted earlier, you need someone with clout from your area that can apply leverage in your favor.
They have a lot to lose if this goes to court, not the least would be if this story was to be portrayed in the local media.
Speaking of Media, any media watchdog in your town that you could get involved ??

[quote="53magnatone"]Before you decide which option to take , can you get advice from someone in the legal field.
If you decide to take him to court, you need to be sure that the percentages for winning are in your favor, as he already knows of your plight that letter ( as crass as it is) sounds to me like they are playing hardball and they will attempt to make you back down first......................

It appears that there is general agreement in your summation here. Unfortunately, and likely due to an emotional component, the weakest argument was emphazised in the appeal and as I review the thread, the misrepresentation issue comes in as a kind of after thought when it should have been the primary argument and the financial question none at all.
Contacted by an attorney, the vendor might be presented with an offer he can't refuse, i.e., it would be less bother refund the purchase price than to go through a small claims court defense. Of course, if the vendor wants to play hardball, my previous commentary reflects on that.

Doc

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"Another day in paradise!"

From a salesman's point of view:
I'm guessing that the original case was damaged in transit or something happened to it requiring replacement. Anyways, it was put in clearance for this reason (You can't sell it as a new 57 RI without the case). When you bought that strat you essentially signed the contract saying all clearance sales are final, there's no going around that.

From the financial side of things, the restocking fee makes sense. If he were to sell that guitar, he would have to sell it as a used or returned item and would list it for around $1200-1300. If he were to give you a full refund without a fee, he would lose a considerable amount of money, no way to run a business. Therefore, he wants to get the 20% to make sure he doesn't lose on the deal.

If anything, I'd try and negotiate to see if he can give you a 10 or 15% restocking fee due to the lack of clarity in the initial sale (lack of proper case etc...). That would be the best you can do if you were to go through the store IMHO. I don't think this would hold up in court too well due to the simple fact you agreed to the terms of sale when you bought the guitar (Plus court is a real pain in the $@!).

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I traded my car in for a microphone.

Sorry, but the case issue is competely bogus. You don't put an AV '57 Strat on "clearance" because the G&G tweed case is damaged, you order a replacement case for it from Fender. You sure as hell don't sell it with a brown tolex case and all accessories from an AV '62 Tele Custom. What about the person who buys that Tele? What are you going to tell them? Now one problem has become two problems.

Let me tell you how a local shop handled a Fender case issue for me. I had purchased an AV '52 Tele (with tweed case). When I picked it up (after having it changed to modern wiring and set up for my guage strings) I was walking out to my car when the handle snaps off.

The salesperson (actually not my saleperson, who was off the day I picked up the guitar) just grabbed the only other tweed case in the store and gave it to me. That case was supposed to go with an EC Strat; they pulled the EC off the floor (put it in a glass case) and ordered a replacement case. Now I didn't go in screaming for a replacement case that day; I would have been fine with them just loaning me a "generic" case while they ordered me a replacement, but they replaced it on the spot with the appropriate case.

Personally I think the OP should suck it up and keep the guitar because he didn't know what an appropriate price for the guitar should be and the appropriate accessories, but the shop should also suck it up and get him the appropriate Fender tweed case, a genuine Fender 5-way switch, and the appropriate accessory package for an AV Strat - which will include the proper ash tray and the trem arm - at their expense. $100 off what you could get one new in the box without any issues from Musician's Friend isn't a "clearance price deal".

True, that's what the shop should do. Customer service is what separates good music stores from the not-so-good. IMHO in this case (no pun intended) this store looks like one of the not-so-good ones <____<

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I traded my car in for a microphone.

I think from what the owner of the store wrote that he is making a fair offer, he doesn't even seem aware (from what's shown) to understand about the case issue, unless I missed something. He's in business for a reason, having owned retail before I am aware of slim margins and big expectations from customers for deals, I like deals too but you can only do so much before you lose. The guy should get his case and the right hardware and be happy or accept the offer. Sorry about your grandfather, good luck.