Lets look at our guitars thread
Discussion
Not of the Tele (though I'll try and get one tonight with the amp).
That's a £69 Wesley T-STyle in the background. Amazingly good for the money and was what convinced me that I'd be happy shelling out for the real deal.
I know that fake relics are scorned, by me too, but I've always wanted an old beat up Strat and came across a faded pink Wesley on Ebay for £35. I couldn't resist getting it and giving it some abuse.
And an Epi Les Paul Std that had to make way for the new Tele:
That's a £69 Wesley T-STyle in the background. Amazingly good for the money and was what convinced me that I'd be happy shelling out for the real deal.
I know that fake relics are scorned, by me too, but I've always wanted an old beat up Strat and came across a faded pink Wesley on Ebay for £35. I couldn't resist getting it and giving it some abuse.
And an Epi Les Paul Std that had to make way for the new Tele:
Something older
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kempy535/3491597960/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kempy535/3491597960/
Edited by KemP on Thursday 14th May 17:20
My Organic Classic (now has Bare Knuckles instead of the Seymour Duncans)- stunning guitar!
Hmmm Paduak
And seeing as there's been a lot of Patrick Eggle love on this thread, here's a Berlin I had custom made in 2004...and rejected because of the dreadful quality of workmanship, a real disappointment having played Berlins from the 1990s. Had to get my money back through the small claims court as well, mofos...
Hmmm Paduak
And seeing as there's been a lot of Patrick Eggle love on this thread, here's a Berlin I had custom made in 2004...and rejected because of the dreadful quality of workmanship, a real disappointment having played Berlins from the 1990s. Had to get my money back through the small claims court as well, mofos...
Sure 
There were two main problems - time, and quality.
When I ordered it I was told it take something like 6-8 weeks to make. After about 8 weeks I started chasing them. At first it was "nearly finished", then it "just needed the final coat", then Gordon Tilley (the owner) became rather elusive - he stopped returning my calls and e-mails. After about 3 months of constant nagging I finally got to talk to him again, and he said they'd had a bit of trouble with the paint finish - apparently the paint had seeped into the wood on the back - the rest of it was done. I thought it was B.S. so asked him to send the guitar out, and that I'd send it back to get the back completed.
I eventually received it after something like 12 weeks, and quickly realised I could have put it together better myself. Blindfolded. Wearing wicket keeping gloves.
The fret markers were nowhere near the middle of the frets (the picture above actually shows that - it's not an optical illusion, they really were that far out), there were nicks out of the fret board, the edges of the fretboard weren't finished well, and the fretwork was awful - if you looked along the edge of the fretboard you could see they were all over the places. There were different angles on the edges, some were overhanging the edge, others were too short. Finally, the (fake) binding on the body had been really badly finished. Oh, and it was the wrong colour!
Shame really, as it did sound good and, from some angles (where you couldn't see the shoddy workmanship, looked very nice).
I sent it back saying there was no way I would accept something of that quality. I also explained that given it had taken them far longer than expected to build it, there was no way I would wait for another one, especially as I had little confidence they could do a better job.
They said they'd refund the money, but oddly enough became somewhat elusive again and appeared to have lost their check book...until the bailiff got involved. Apparently I wasn't the only person taking action against them either.
Sadly I went to the London Guitar Show the next year and wandered over to the Eggle stand. The quality of the guitars on their own stand was poor - cracked lacquer on headstocks, poor quality finishes etc. Very disappointing.
The contrast between their approach, and quality, and Organic's is immense. Duncan from Organic went to work on a Saturday twice for me - once when I bought it and once for a setup (free for life). The care and attention to detail he puts in is outstanding - even when he did my setup he dressed the frets and hand polished them.
There were two main problems - time, and quality.
When I ordered it I was told it take something like 6-8 weeks to make. After about 8 weeks I started chasing them. At first it was "nearly finished", then it "just needed the final coat", then Gordon Tilley (the owner) became rather elusive - he stopped returning my calls and e-mails. After about 3 months of constant nagging I finally got to talk to him again, and he said they'd had a bit of trouble with the paint finish - apparently the paint had seeped into the wood on the back - the rest of it was done. I thought it was B.S. so asked him to send the guitar out, and that I'd send it back to get the back completed.
I eventually received it after something like 12 weeks, and quickly realised I could have put it together better myself. Blindfolded. Wearing wicket keeping gloves.
The fret markers were nowhere near the middle of the frets (the picture above actually shows that - it's not an optical illusion, they really were that far out), there were nicks out of the fret board, the edges of the fretboard weren't finished well, and the fretwork was awful - if you looked along the edge of the fretboard you could see they were all over the places. There were different angles on the edges, some were overhanging the edge, others were too short. Finally, the (fake) binding on the body had been really badly finished. Oh, and it was the wrong colour!
Shame really, as it did sound good and, from some angles (where you couldn't see the shoddy workmanship, looked very nice).
I sent it back saying there was no way I would accept something of that quality. I also explained that given it had taken them far longer than expected to build it, there was no way I would wait for another one, especially as I had little confidence they could do a better job.
They said they'd refund the money, but oddly enough became somewhat elusive again and appeared to have lost their check book...until the bailiff got involved. Apparently I wasn't the only person taking action against them either.
Sadly I went to the London Guitar Show the next year and wandered over to the Eggle stand. The quality of the guitars on their own stand was poor - cracked lacquer on headstocks, poor quality finishes etc. Very disappointing.
The contrast between their approach, and quality, and Organic's is immense. Duncan from Organic went to work on a Saturday twice for me - once when I bought it and once for a setup (free for life). The care and attention to detail he puts in is outstanding - even when he did my setup he dressed the frets and hand polished them.
Last time I went (2005), there were a few interesting makes/distributors there (Anderson, Suhr etc), but not many small luthiers. Organic were the only ones who attracted my attention. The rest of the show was the usual mass produced affair, lots of "this new digital widget will make you sound like Hendrix/Slash/Whoever" rubbish.
If you're interested in Organic, drop them a mail - they're always up for a chat.
If you're interested in Organic, drop them a mail - they're always up for a chat.
JimCross said:
The fret markers were nowhere near the middle of the frets (the picture above actually shows that - it's not an optical illusion, they really were that far out), there were nicks out of the fret board, the edges of the fretboard weren't finished well, and the fretwork was awful - if you looked along the edge of the fretboard you could see they were all over the places. There were different angles on the edges, some were overhanging the edge, others were too short. Finally, the (fake) binding on the body had been really badly finished. Oh, and it was the wrong colour!
That's a real shame, although if you ended up with the Organic (which I've never heard of, but looks great) then I guess it's a bit of a silver lining.My Berlin is a '91, and I think it's a shame how the company sort of fizzled out.
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