Guest HRB853370 Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 I picked up my 137 tonite, and it is quite lovely. But seems to be a small issue, not sure if seller was aware of it or not. This is the note I sent him a few minutes ago, copied and pasted below. Photos are supplied. Any advice on a bent POT shaft? "Hello Antonio. I picked up the guitar today from Fedex/Kinkos. The case is beautiful. The guitar is almost flawless, and I can only find one of the small finish checks that you described in the auction, the one close to the toggle switch. I cannot locate the other finish check. However, there is a another small problem. When I removed the guitar from the case, I noticed that one of the volume knobs (the one for the bridge pickup) was chipped off near the bottom of the knob, where the numbers are stamped. I didnt think too much of it until I pulled the knob off and I found that the shaft for that knob is bent and the paint on the guitar, next to the bottom of the shaft where it meets the guitar body, is chipped in a semicircle. What is weird is I don't see how this could have happened during shipment or in the guitar case as there are no broken pieces of plastic in the case that would be evident if the knob suffered damage while in the guitar case. I have a photo that I would be happy to send to you. Please advise at your earliest convenience. Sincerely, Will (skinslammer)" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
koula901 Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 woa! yeah, that's a pretty nasty looking shaft, let alone the paint job, and otherwise nice looking guitar, Will. I hope the person you deal with, and you, come up with a satisfactory solution. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DetroitBlues Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 What a bummer Will... The 140 I have was crushed in the case, there was some sign of it, but you wouldn't know except the toggle switch was pushed through the top of the case... Stuff like that happens. A good luthier can fix it right up, but you're going to need a new pot. That one is damaged... You could make a claim to FedEx, or ask for the seller to replace the knob and pot. The blemish is just going to be a beauty mark, unless you have a good luthier that can drop and fill the damage.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HRB853370 Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 What a bummer Will... The 140 I have was crushed in the case, there was some sign of it, but you wouldn't know except the toggle switch was pushed through the top of the case... Stuff like that happens. A good luthier can fix it right up, but you're going to need a new pot. That one is damaged... You could make a claim to FedEx, or ask for the seller to replace the knob and pot. The blemish is just going to be a beauty mark, unless you have a good luthier that can drop and fill the damage.... Not so much worried about the small paint chip as it will largely be masked by a new (speed knob) which is what I want on there. Its more about replacing the pot, the cost, and will the seller reimburse me. Sh** happens. But this axe sounds fantastic! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DetroitBlues Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 A replacement pot and labor involved should just be a $20 fix. But I'm glad you at liking it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
High Flying Bird Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 Stick a flat blade screw driver in there and straighten it up. Problem solved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretless Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 Stick a flat blade screw driver in there and straighten it up. Problem solved. I agree . I would inspect it on the cavity side , make sure it didn't push through at all , check it's sweep , make sure there is no scratching or noise etc etc . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretless Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 I would also inspect the case , make sure the face of it didn't get smashed in and broken around the edge . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HRB853370 Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 Stick a flat blade screw driver in there and straighten it up. Problem solved. What about the risk of cracking the surrounding wood by doing that? The pot works, already verified that. I still think the seller should compensate somehow, regardless of whether I fix it myself (by straightening it) or replacing it because it was not disclosed and this could not have happened during shipping. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PunkKitty Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 Nice guitar. The pot is just a minor problem. What about the risk of cracking the surrounding wood by doing that? The pot works, already verified that. I still think the seller should compensate somehow, regardless of whether I fix it myself (by straightening it) or replacing it because it was not disclosed and this could not have happened during shipping. There is a slight risk of scratching the wood if the blade slips. The bigger risk is breaking the pot shaft so it's worse than it is now. The pot can easily be replaced. That's how I would fix it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbp810 Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 Pot is cheap, crack is expensive Vice grips would probably work better for straightning the pot shaft (not over tight, with some cloth or rubber in between to keep from marring up the knurled surface); but pots are cheap, and probably not worth the risk of causing any more damage to the top, and even then there is no guarantee that pot will still work the same after it's bent back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steiner Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 A wise Man once said... Pot is cheap, crack is expensive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueox Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 " . . . it was not disclosed and this could not have happened during shipping." I agree with that assessment, as it would take a good side bang to bend a pot shaft like that and mar the guitar surface on the opposite side of the impact. Replacing the pot will set right an otherwise great-looking red rocker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HRB853370 Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 I agree with that assessment, as it would take a good side bang to bend a pot shaft like that and mar the guitar surface on the opposite side of the impact. Replacing the pot will set right an otherwise great-looking red rocker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pegleg32 Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 Take the pot out before you attempt to straighten it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PunkKitty Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 Take the pot out before you attempt to straighten it. It takes 3 or 4 solder joints to replace a pot. If you are going to pull it, you may as well spend $7 on a new pot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HRB853370 Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 Pot is cheap, crack is expensive Vice grips would probably work better for straightning the pot shaft (not over tight, with some cloth or rubber in between to keep from marring up the knurled surface); but pots are cheap, and probably not worth the risk of causing any more damage to the top, and even then there is no guarantee that pot will still work the same after it's bent back. That would be the only way to straighten it as the blow to the shaft closed up the slot entirely. That shaft is bent at nearly a 45 degree angle so it did suffer a whack of some sort to the knob. The paint is chipped and there is a small semicircle indentation in the wood too, and very very slight hairline stress lines in the nitro finish surrounding the washer. Would replacing the pot be an easy DIY or best left to a guitar tech? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pegleg32 Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 It takes 3 or 4 solder joints to replace a pot. If you are going to pull it, you may as well spend $7 on a new pot. I agree PK, replacement is the best option, BUT, if you wanted to try to straighten it, for heavens sake don't use the guitar body as your "vice", get it out and do it on the workbench. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PunkKitty Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 That would be the only way to straighten it as the blow to the shaft closed up the slot entirely. That shaft is bent at nearly a 45 degree angle so it did suffer a whack of some sort to the knob. The paint is chipped and there is a small semicircle indentation in the wood too, and very very slight hairline stress lines in the nitro finish surrounding the washer. Would replacing the pot be an easy DIY or best left to a guitar tech? If you have soldering experience this is a 10 minute job. If not, be careful not to burn the guitar with your soldering iron. If you have doubts, spend $20 and have a tech do it right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HRB853370 Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 $32 installed. Plus my gas to get there, which will be around $10 or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PunkKitty Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 It's worth spending the money if you have doubts. But ideally the seller should have disclosed this (if he knew) or he should reimburse you for your troubles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitArtMan Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 Stick a flat blade screw driver in there and straighten it up. Problem solved. I tried that once with a 535 and the shaft split in half. That was in the days Heritage was using cheap Made in Mexico pots, but it did happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PunkKitty Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 I tried that once with a 535 and the shaft split in half. That was in the days Heritage was using cheap Made in Mexico pots, but it did happen. It happened to me with good quality CTS, Bourns, and DiMarzio pots. It also happens with cheap Alphas. It's easy to break a pot stem regardless of how careful you are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpuma Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 But shaft or no shaft... That's a pretty cool axe you got there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HRB853370 Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 But shaft or no shaft... That's a pretty cool axe you got there! Thanks Gio, , think so too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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