Overthesummer Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 I'm not starting this topic because I have some vendetta against Heritage. I fully plan on getting a hold of one of their guitars because I think they play better then anything else. I'm starting this because I was wondering if people could shed some light on the situation. So I went to a Heritage dealer late June 2011 and asked him if he would be willing to put in a order for a Heritage 555. I only had 500 dollars at the time so our plan was to put the order into Heritage, and I would pay him 500 dollars each month, and by the time I had it payed off, the guitar would be done or be very close to being done. He explained to me that working with Heritage was unique. They're hard to get a hold of, and are also very difficult to impossible to get a exact estimation on when a guitar would be complete. By the time November rolled around I had the guitar payed off, which was 2900 total. I asked for dots instead of the standard inlays they come with, and also Almond Sunburst which was apparently more expensive. From November until February the dealer I've was working with kept telling me that it wasn't ready and I waited paitently. Earlier this week he informed me that Heritage completed my guitar but it was so bad that they needed to start completely over. He gave me the option of doing that, OR getting my money back. He tells me that Heritage feels no responsibilty in giving me a phone call, or an email. They have not responded to any phone calls thus far. Has anybody else had an experience like this? Does this sound like a plausible story from the Heritage dealer im working with? Any responses would be greatly appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbp810 Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 This story doesn't sound quite right to me, namely in the lack of specifics as to what exactly they "messed up on"... I would call the factory direcly - the best time to call is early in the morning, Monday through Wednesday. They are essentially a custom shop... so it is true that it can be tough to get a good time estimate... and also keep in mind they are building by hand, and while they are damn good at what they do, they are still human, so it is indeed possible that a mistake was made (though seems unlikely that something would have been so bad that they would have had to start again from scratch?) Like I said above, I would give the factory a call (I wouldn't email) and see if youc an find out whats going on there - depending on the answer, you might just want to take that dealer up on the refund and seek out another shop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Millennium Maestro Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Sounds like the Dealer was related to an exHeritage dealer here in Vegas, whom recently passed... Dealers have wholesale costs and should not charge full on the front end! Sounds way shady! As far as the guitar needing complete reconstruction... I did see several at the plant last summer that had unexpected flaws that deemed them second or bargain status which means each may have had prospective buyers that they could not deliver on and... being an Ebony/Dot neck, that would definitely delay construction and replacement. Funny thing... I always seem to be able to get through to the shop! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barrymclark Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Anything is possible, but something is off here. There may ne truth in there but I am thinking the dealer embellished the story a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DetroitBlues Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 After meeting the folks who own and operate the factory last summer, I really cannot believe they'd be like that. It does sound more like a dealer issue. There was another complaint about someone ordering through a dealer, the person waited and waited. They called the factory and found the dealer never placed an order.... I'd suggest you contact the factory direct too. A 555 with Dots is rather rare and in the Almond Burst, so it shouldn't be hard for them to find. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
golferwave Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Heritage is not hard to get ahold of via telephone. If you called them today one of the top dogs would answer. I would suspect your dealer didn't follow up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barrymclark Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Agree with what all have said here. These are real laid back folks and straight up to boot. It just isn't in Heritage's DNA to hose you out of a guitar. Something else is going on that maybe the dealer is unaware of or not 'fessin' up to. Definitely buzz them and ask. I agree that the 555 with dots should be easy to remember but... it isn't like you asked for something outlandish. As others have said, call the factory in the hours suggested. Calling on Friday is just a waste of your time. They aren't there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueox Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 From what you have written, I would definitely get all of your money back from your "dealer" and park it in your checking account. Call Heritage as suggested and explain your situation to them and ask for advice. The dealer is the weakest link when ordering a custom Heritage. There are some good ones out there. Others leave much to be desired. Your concern is with delivery of your order, but there are also pricing issues to be aware of. When receiving a quote for a custom Heritage, you have no idea how much extra the dealer is adding to Heritage's price for their profit, unless your dealer gives you an itemized list. It could be $100.00 for example, or it could be $1000.00, and so on. It would be in your interest to check around for off-the-shelf H-555 prices, then compare that average to your custom quote to see if the extra for a custom is acceptable or greatly inflated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FredZepp Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 The advise already given in this thread makes sense. It's time to do some investigation before you go farther. They don't have a staff answering the phones or email, so it's best to call them in the morning.. 9:00 or so... and let them check into it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitArtMan Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 I know I'm the exception to the rule, and I know I'm gonna get flack for this, but this sounds exactly like my two custom ordered Heritages, and I went with Heritages largest dealer. Now these were both years ago (late '90s early '00s) and I've heard they have improved immensely but I had very similar things happen. Guitar number one was a H-535, select flame maple, almond burst, trapezoid inlays, bound peg head and f holes, Duncan Seth Lovers (these weren't even an upgrade option at the time) and a nice medium C neck profile (I sent them the dimensions). I was quoted about 4 months. Well after 4 months I get a call the guitar is ready and the dealer ships it too me. Plain maple. Slim '60s neck profile. Not what I ordered. I return the guitar and was informed I would be rushed to the top of the list. This was early June and I was told sometime in August the guitar should be ready. August rolls around and passes, no guitar. September comes and goes, no guitar. October, still no guitar. Finally around Thanksgiving I'm informed what they thought was a finish flaw was actually a crack in the body and the guitar needs to be destroyed. I'm given the option to back out or continue with the order. I decide to hang in there and ask them if they can complete it by Winter NAMM and I'll pick it up at the show. Well, they missed by a week (it was in the finish room curing before final buff out). Guitar number two was a custom order Millennium model back in 2000. I forget all the details as I combined some elements from the different models. One thing I wanted was solid trapezoid inlays as I don't really care for the outline inlays. Well I get a call about a month before completion, they had goofed up. Because they don't normally put trapezoid inlays on ebony they had used a rosewood board by mistake. I was asked if I wanted to go forward with the guitar (about a month out from then) or get another with an ebony board. It was already a little behind schedule (but not bad) so I opted for the rosewood board. Since I don't have a local Heritage dealer that I know, I'm very hesitant to do another custom order. Donning Nomex suit and ready for the flames. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartyGrass Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 If it were me, I'd check out this eBay listing, which is over. Naperville Music has the guitar. It's a 535 but it has an ebony board with dots plus HRWs. I'll bet they'd accept $1500 for it. The store is brick and mortar, so probably you could charge it. And you won't have to pay state sales tax unless you live in Illinois. Plus, you could sell the HRWs for $300 if you preferred another pickup set. http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&_trksid=p4340.l2557&item=190641135954&nma=true&rt=nc&si=yniHrUBS0gb1lL79SzYBUtDlnAg%253D&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc Just search for their store and call them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mars_hall Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 They're hard to get a hold of, and are also very difficult to impossible to get a exact estimation on when a guitar would be complete. By the time November rolled around I had the guitar payed off, which was 2900 total. I asked for dots instead of the standard inlays they come with, and also Almond Sunburst which was apparently more expensive. From November until February the dealer I've was working with kept telling me that it wasn't ready and I waited paitently. Earlier this week he informed me that Heritage completed my guitar but it was so bad that they needed to start completely over. He gave me the option of doing that, OR getting my money back. He tells me that Heritage feels no responsibilty in giving me a phone call, or an email. They have not responded to any phone calls thus far. Has anybody else had an experience like this? Does this sound like a plausible story from the Heritage dealer im working with? Any responses would be greatly appreciated. Your relationship is with the dealer, not Heritage. What he tells you is what he tells you, and you can best judge your story's credibility. You have that direct contact and everything we'll hear is, well, hearsay with the normal human filtering. The dealer has held your money and there is no way for any of us knowing when your order was actually placed in the queue. There is risk on both sides of this customer/dealer relationship. Should he 1) order the guitar too soon and end up with a possible incomplete transaction from your end of the bargain and end up holding a one-off he must try to move or 2) should he hold off until the majority of the funds are delivered and execute then, or 3) should he go straight ahead and submit? Good faith suggests the latter, but there is really no way of knowing what has taken place. You may have the straight truth or a variation from a different perspective. If there was a true quality issue, then it was caught before it reached your hands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Millennium Maestro Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 If it were me, I'd check out this eBay listing, which is over. Naperville Music has the guitar. It's a 535 but it has an ebony board with dots plus HRWs. I'll bet they'd accept $1500 for it. The store is brick and mortar, so probably you could charge it. And you won't have to pay state sales tax unless you live in Illinois. Plus, you could sell the HRWs for $300 if you preferred another pickup set. http://www.ebay.com/...cvip=true&rt=nc Just search for their store and call them. Very sound advise! No longer produced and rare pups with upgraded D vip harness! This is it minus $1400+ and taxes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drfie Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Almond SB is more expensive than other bursts or just a burst is more expensive than a monochrome scheme? Also wouldn't dot inlays be less than the standard chevrons? just wondering. dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartyGrass Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 My experience has been that there is an upcharge for anything not standard. My non-cutaway Golden Eagle costs more than a cutaway. Natural finishes cost more than standard finishes. So my guess is that dots cost more than whatever is the norm on the ebony board. To my knowledge almond sunbursts are not upcharged, Look at the pickguard portion of this page. This lists the upcharge finishes. But things can change. http://www.heritageguitar.com/finishes.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killerblues Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 I'm not starting this topic because I have some vendetta against Heritage. I fully plan on getting a hold of one of their guitars because I think they play better then anything else. I'm starting this because I was wondering if people could shed some light on the situation. So I went to a Heritage dealer late June 2011 and asked him if he would be willing to put in a order for a Heritage 555. I only had 500 dollars at the time so our plan was to put the order into Heritage, and I would pay him 500 dollars each month, and by the time I had it payed off, the guitar would be done or be very close to being done. He explained to me that working with Heritage was unique. They're hard to get a hold of, and are also very difficult to impossible to get a exact estimation on when a guitar would be complete. By the time November rolled around I had the guitar payed off, which was 2900 total. I asked for dots instead of the standard inlays they come with, and also Almond Sunburst which was apparently more expensive. From November until February the dealer I've was working with kept telling me that it wasn't ready and I waited paitently. Earlier this week he informed me that Heritage completed my guitar but it was so bad that they needed to start completely over. He gave me the option of doing that, OR getting my money back. He tells me that Heritage feels no responsibilty in giving me a phone call, or an email. They have not responded to any phone calls thus far. Has anybody else had an experience like this? Does this sound like a plausible story from the Heritage dealer im working with? Any responses would be greatly appreciated. sounds like the dealer screwed up the order and is laying it on heritage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drfie Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 sounds like the dealer screwed up the order and is laying it on heritage. And he pulled a "Mom is on the roof" drawn out excuse? Could be. Maybe he never even ordered the guitar in the first place. Hope the guy gets his money back. dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HRB853370 Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 I know I'm the exception to the rule, and I know I'm gonna get flack for this, but this sounds exactly like my two custom ordered Heritages, and I went with Heritages largest dealer. Now these were both years ago (late '90s early '00s) and I've heard they have improved immensely but I had very similar things happen. Guitar number one was a H-535, select flame maple, almond burst, trapezoid inlays, bound peg head and f holes, Duncan Seth Lovers (these weren't even an upgrade option at the time) and a nice medium C neck profile (I sent them the dimensions). I was quoted about 4 months. Well after 4 months I get a call the guitar is ready and the dealer ships it too me. Plain maple. Slim '60s neck profile. Not what I ordered. I return the guitar and was informed I would be rushed to the top of the list. This was early June and I was told sometime in August the guitar should be ready. August rolls around and passes, no guitar. September comes and goes, no guitar. October, still no guitar. Finally around Thanksgiving I'm informed what they thought was a finish flaw was actually a crack in the body and the guitar needs to be destroyed. I'm given the option to back out or continue with the order. I decide to hang in there and ask them if they can complete it by Winter NAMM and I'll pick it up at the show. Well, they missed by a week (it was in the finish room curing before final buff out). Guitar number two was a custom order Millennium model back in 2000. I forget all the details as I combined some elements from the different models. One thing I wanted was solid trapezoid inlays as I don't really care for the outline inlays. Well I get a call about a month before completion, they had goofed up. Because they don't normally put trapezoid inlays on ebony they had used a rosewood board by mistake. I was asked if I wanted to go forward with the guitar (about a month out from then) or get another with an ebony board. It was already a little behind schedule (but not bad) so I opted for the rosewood board. Since I don't have a local Heritage dealer that I know, I'm very hesitant to do another custom order. Donning Nomex suit and ready for the flames. Mistakes can happen-but it sounds like kind of a crap shoot when you place a custom order. Sit back and pray that your guitar gets built and with the specs you ordered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HRB853370 Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Very sound advise! No longer produced and rare pups with upgraded D vip harness! This is it minus $1400+ and taxes. But the guy wants a new guitar. Is that too much to ask? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TalismanRich Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 My custom order was back in 2003. I placed the order with the understanding that it would take 6 months or more. Since it was for my July birthday, I ordered it plenty early. Turned out to take about 4 months to make the 157 in Almond Burst. I had the guitar in May. One reason it takes a while to make them is the finish. Nitro lacquer takes a while to dry and cure between coats. It needs to be completely dried before they get to the buffing and finishing stage. While a nitro finish will be dry to the touch fairly quickly, it can take weeks for a multilayer finish to dry completely. The special fretboard will mean that if the finish has a problem near the end, they might to start over from the beginning if the finish can't be sanded down and resprayed. The guys in K'zoo are good, but as the saying goes... S**t happens. It happens in guitars, it happens with cars (my white Taurus had a red "bloodspot" when it arrived.) Still, I would try to call the factory as the folks above have mentioned. (don't call Fridays, they are usually closed on Fridays). A dot necked 555 will stand out in the orderboard. They're usually very upfront about stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianToth Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 In 2006 I ordered my Prospect with the following: Chunky neck carve Ebony board Split block inlays Tone Pros hardware Ebony pickguard Cream binding HRWs with dual VIP Faded Cherry finish 4 months delivery. My dealer BS meter is pegged with this story. Sounds like the dealer is passing the buck, especially with the business about not being able to get in touch with the factory. Total and utter rubbish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gitfiddler Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 In 2006 I ordered my Prospect with the following: Chunky neck carve Ebony board Split block inlays Tone Pros hardware Ebony pickguard Cream binding HRWs with dual VIP Faded Cherry finish 4 months delivery. My dealer BS meter is pegged with this story. Sounds like the dealer is passing the buck, especially with the business about not being able to get in touch with the factory. Total and utter rubbish. Your Prospect is gorgeous!! There are three of them on this forum that kill me every time a photo is posted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianToth Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 Thanks man. It's been my #1 for quite a while now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kuz Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 Hey, this occational does happen. I will admit it. BUT it is by no way the norm for a custom ordered guitar. I have custom ordered FOUR guitars from Heritage and they are PERFECT!!!! I how no one is scared off from ordering the guitar of their dreams. Even if in this case, a new guitar needs to be built, 4-8 months is nothing to wait for a personal one-off custom guitar. I waited 22 months for a Fender Strat, and 1 year for a PRS,.... so 4-8months is nothing compared to other companies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HRB853370 Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 Thanks man. It's been my #1 for quite a while now. Well, lets see it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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