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Post subject: GE Smith Telecaster Warped Pickguard
Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 5:21 pm
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I am new here.

I have several guitars, but I made my first eBay purchase of a black GE Smith Telecaster last week. It arrived yesterday. I don't buy many things from eBay, so I was a little nervous with the purchase.

The guitar arrived on schedule, and while it looks good and plays great, the pickguard is warped.

A warped pickguard -- to me anyway -- is not "mint condition" as was stated in the eBay sale.

I wrote to the seller to ask him for a way to resolve this and he said this:

"the pickguard was as it is from the factory and many of the single ply guards are that way as the original where, this is why fender whent to a 3 ply in later years, that guitar is as mint as they get and factory freash, no Divorce after 30 years is why I sold it."

What is your take on this matter?

Is what he claims the truth or is he fuzzing me?

If he's not being truthful, what is the next step you'd take?

Thanks.


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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 5:56 pm
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He's telling the truth.

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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 6:05 pm
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bluestube wrote:
He's telling the truth.


So every GE Smith Telecaster has a warped pickguard? Why would Fender sell such an item with such an obvious and annoying defect? This isn't a relic or a rehash -- it's inspired by the past, but it's a modern guitar.

My Clapton Strat has a single-ply pickguard and it isn't warped.


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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 6:16 pm
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boles wrote:
bluestube wrote:
He's telling the truth.


So every GE Smith Telecaster has a warped pickguard?


That's not true but it's true that 1-ply pickguards warp very easy.

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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 6:19 pm
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bluestube wrote:
boles wrote:
bluestube wrote:
He's telling the truth.


So every GE Smith Telecaster has a warped pickguard?


That's not true but it's true that 1-ply pickguards warp very easy.


I appreciate your help and insight.

Okay, so we're back to my main concern: "Is a warped pickguard on a GE Smith Telecaster considered 'mint condition' or not?"


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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 6:33 pm
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I would say no, it should atleast have been written in the ad that the pg was warped.

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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 6:36 pm
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bluestube wrote:
I would say no, it should atleast have been written in the ad that the pg was warped.


I agree with you.

So what is a fair remedy? He tells me all the GE Smith pickguards are warped and I know they're not and that means his sale was false.


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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 6:53 pm
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Quote:
"...that means his sale was false.."




It means you got a 2K dollar guitar with a warped pickguard. Now what do you do? Declare the sale void and return the instrument, insisting upon a refund? Demand the seller buy you a pickguard? Or....just go and get yourself a new pickguard; maybe from a specialty place like Warmoth that sells nice thick single-ply pickguards that don't warp.

Since you likely spent a large sum of money I can empathize with your expectation that the guitar be everything that was described to you. But still, assuming that the pickguard is the only flaw...no more than 25 dollars will put it aright.

Your call.


~Sam


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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 7:21 pm
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scarroll1 wrote:
Quote:
"...that means his sale was false.."




It means you got a 2K dollar guitar with a warped pickguard. Now what do you do? Declare the sale void and return the instrument, insisting upon a refund? Demand the seller buy you a pickguard? Or....just go and get yourself a new pickguard; maybe from a specialty place like Warmoth that sells nice thick single-ply pickguards that don't warp.

Since you likely spent a large sum of money I can empathize with your expectation that the guitar be everything that was described to you. But still, assuming that the pickguard is the only flaw...no more than 25 dollars will put it aright.

Your call.


~Sam


I did a lot of research on the topic before I brought it up with the seller.

Yes, warped pickguards happen, but they are not intentional by Fender and they are not considered "mint" so, yes, I am disappointed that wasn't made clear in the ad. Warped guards also should not be left in place, it seems, because they can put undue pressure on the pickups.

This guard I have bows up and outward right where I strum, so if I'm not overly cautious, I get a hollow, plastic, "thwap" sounding as my pick hits the guard in the middle of a hot rhythm section. Un-fun.

The trouble is... the GE Smith pickguard is a non-standard Telecaster pickguard style from what I can intuit from images online and against my Nashville Power Tele -- so I haven't been able to find a replacement online and I'm not going to bake the one I have on a cookie sheet at 225 degrees to "flatten it out" like I've seen advised in other online forums for this problem. I'm also not going to re-drill new holes in this guitar so the guard fits -- as others online also suggest can sometimes remedy the matter -- with a "mint" guitar that is sort of hard to replace.

I agree getting some sort of money back is the quickest way to end the matter, but time is money, and I have already spent too much of my time on running this around! SMILE!

I really appreciate the feedback and help. I've been lurking for weeks and the user experts here are a refreshing delight.


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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 7:27 pm
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1-ply pickguards are almost "supposed to warp". I wouldn't find it anormal if I got a GE Smith and it had a warped pg. Nothing to worry about, the guy could have described that, but I dont see a reason to return the guitar if you liked everything else about it, or if it's all as described. Almost every Fender with a 1-ply guard I see around here has it a little warped... (my own Tele has a slightly warped 1 ply white guard). Probably this fact just escape from the seller's attention.

That's why Fender went for 3-ply, thicker guards in 1959, and more screws in most guitars. Vintage design-vintage issues.

You fix that with some double-face adhesive tape, cheap and easy. :wink:


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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 7:33 pm
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Iago wrote:
1-ply pickguards are almost "supposed to warp". I wouldn't find it anormal if I got a GE Smith and it had a warped pg. Nothing to worry about, the guy could have described that, but I dont see a reason to return the guitar if you liked everything else about it, or if it's all as described. Almost every Fender with a 1-ply guard I see around here has it a little warped... (my own Tele has a slightly warped 1 ply white guard). Probably this fact just escape from the seller's attention.

That's why Fender went for 3-ply, thicker guards in 1959, and more screws in most guitars. Vintage design-vintage issues.

You fix that with some double-face adhesive tape, cheap and easy. :wink:


That's a fascinating reply, thank you. Did you fix your warp or leave it as is? Why would Fender re-create what is obviously a design error -- a one-ply pickguard -- and include it on a new Telecaster? It's illogical. Who wants to deal with a plastic thwap when they play?


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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 7:37 pm
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The GE Smith has a standard 5 hole pickguard that is easily replaced. I went through this with my Baja Tele. I bought a thicker 5-hole PG from Warmoth and it fits just fine with no need for new screw holes.

Also, I have noticed on other guitars that sometimes if you loosen the screws a bit you can get the guard to flatten out.

You should consider the possibility that the holes on PG itself are misaligned, and not the holes on the body of the guitar (best case scenario). Sometimes things move around a bit.

Anyway, I hope you'll get this little thing fixed so you can fully enjoy that tele. :D


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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 7:47 pm
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scarroll1 wrote:
The GE Smith has a standard 5 hole pickguard that is easily replaced. I went through this with my Baja Tele. I bought a thicker 5-hole PG from Warmoth and it fits just fine with no need for new screw holes.

Also, I have noticed on other guitars that sometimes if you loosen the screws a bit you can get the guard to flatten out.

You should consider the possibility that the holes on PG itself are misaligned, and not the holes on the body of the guitar (best case scenario). Sometimes things move around a bit.

Anyway, I hope you'll get this little thing fixed so you can fully enjoy that tele. :D


Excellent, thanks! I'm new to electrics but not guitars. I will try your remedies and also look at Warmoth. Is replacing the guard difficult? Do you have to remove strings and pickups and such, or can you just unscrew it and replace?

I have five new electric guitars: A Nashville Power Tele, a Clapton Custom Strat, a Les Paul Standard and a Les Paul Custom 57 -- but this GE Smith is my overall favorite and I've only had it a day. The Clapton plays better, but the GE Smith has a sound unlike anything else I've ever heard. Delightful.

It was GE himself -- and the clean tones he gets out of his signature guitar -- that beheld and convinced me!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnQYoRYedF0&ref=mf


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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 7:54 pm
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scarroll1 wrote:
The GE Smith has a standard 5 hole pickguard that is easily replaced. I went through this with my Baja Tele. I bought a thicker 5-hole PG from Warmoth and it fits just fine with no need for new screw holes.

Also, I have noticed on other guitars that sometimes if you loosen the screws a bit you can get the guard to flatten out.

You should consider the possibility that the holes on PG itself are misaligned, and not the holes on the body of the guitar (best case scenario). Sometimes things move around a bit.

Anyway, I hope you'll get this little thing fixed so you can fully enjoy that tele. :D


Score!

Just tried your advice and loosened the top pickguard screw a breath of a bittle -- and the pickguard immediately "thwupped" down into place! Hoorah for you, my friend!

Problem solved and I told the seller to "nevermind."

Thanks!


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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 7:58 pm
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now, play that thang like there's no tommorrow!!!

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