The Electra Forums

Just as well I'm not buying any more, or I'd be all over that like a fat kid on an M&M!! I lust over Tele Deluxes, and to have a Matt version would be über-cool!

However, I think shipping would kill it for me!

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I got it, always wanted one ever since high school. The guitarist in the stage band had one, I played bass. Now I have buyers remorse. The sellers detailed description didn't really list any problems. First off, all the fret ends were sharp enough rip your hand open then I found the neck pickup wasn't working and the tuners are extremely stiff. I noticed a back bow in the neck and the bridge pieces were all adjusted pretty high. At least it didn't have any buzzing frets ad the intonation is near perfect. I spent several hours working out the problems, dis-assembled the tuners, cleaned and lubed, pulled the neck and filed the fret ends. I got into the electronics and found the neck pickup open so I pulled it apart. Luckily the wire was broken at the lead so I was able to fix it. When I went to loosen the truss rod I realized it was already loose so I took the slop out of it and left it alone. Got her al re-assembled and now she plays well but the tuners still don't work very well. Guess I'll be dropping some more bucks on that. Hopefully if I string it up with some heavier gauge strings the back bow will eventually work itself out.

That's a shame, and one of the things that we all worry about with buying guitars online, compounded when we sometimes get into bidding wars only to find out the problems when it shows up. Having bought dozens of guitars long distance, my experience has been that about one in five have issues that the seller didn't reveal, so it's kind of like gambling in that respect. We've also had those unexpected gems too though, guitars that are in better shape or better players than we thought. You'll find yourself looking closer at photos and wondering if there is a reason that the photography is so bad and out of focus! Don't be afraid to ask lots of questions in the future, some sellers will be forthcoming, others won't even bother to reply, so that helps weed out the questionable guitars out there.

Glad that you were able to get the pickup working, and yeah, that's something that should have been included in any description. Not certain what to advise as far as the back bow, maybe Thorny can chime in. It may need to have the fretboard re-planed, and I guess its conceivable that the truss rod was over tightened and it got stuck in that position, in either case it's a lot of work to get 'straightened' out (pun intended!). Best of luck and post some photos if you get the chance, Mike.

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I think putting on heavier strings and seeing if you can force a correct bow on it won't hurt as long as you are not overboard about it. You can manipulate it by hand to some degree. I have also heard of people blocking the ends of the neck and putting a "bag of shot" (bunch of lead BBs) and laying them on the center. I'd try the moderate and easy stuff first. You just might get good results. Once it is tensioned up properly and persuaded to go into the right direction, it just may correct itself the rest of the way. At least, it costs next to nothing to try and should not hurt anything.

There might be better solutions online that I have not found yet, but you should look. Follow up and let us know how it works out. Electras are pretty good guitars, but every maker has one that goes to the dark side on them. Luckily for me it has not happened much with the Electras. Planing is an option but is certainly has its drawbacks as the guys here on the forum know (expensive, neck still not bowed the right way, and would be thinner in the middle and weaker). It is a heckova lot of work on a guitar, and getting a maple one to look right after a job like that will really be challenging. I HAVE done this on one that had a bump in it or a slight twist and it works and is super slight I'd just level the frets. But I did it on rosewood boards and those don't have to refinished when you work on them (at least not usually). Sounds like you are back bowed so leveling the frets still isn't a good option without all that additional work, and you'd need that neck bowed in the right direction. Be careful. Let us know. Stewmac may be a place to see if they have posted any how to videos, but if they did, it probably would be straightened with some tool they sell for it. Still, does not hurt to look as they have a lot of excellent info on their sites usually.

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Thorny

Well since I strung it with 9-42s, a little heavier would get it up to regular slinkys. It plays fine, intonation is as good as anything else I have so I'll probably let it mellow out for bit before trying to get the correct relief. I guess my real complaint is the misrepresentation by the seller. There is just no way the pickup failed in shipment or the frets grew longer. I know it's a rare model and I've wanted one for 40 yrs but if it had been represented accurately I don't think anyone would have paid their asking price. I'm not sure a pristine one with OHSC and paperwork would be worth much over $600. I could be wrong.

Well, I agree, they should have correctly represented it. If it was sold by the player, there is simply no excuse other than they are a bit shady. Sorry. Now if it was sold because the player passed away or moved away, left town, or is in jail (insert reasons here), well, then the person selling it might not know any better. I agree, I think you paid too much given all of that - for sure. I think you could even go back to the seller and mention the issues and ask if they could help you out a bit. They may surprise you and hand you some cash, they may tell you to take a hike. But it is worth a shot. To have repairs done like that would have cost a bundle. They really misrepresented the product by "failing" to mention the pickup didn't work and it had a serious neck issue. But if they don't, people that buy and sell on craigslist do all sorts of things. So I would not be surprised to see them tell you no too.

I'd even go with some heavier strings to straighten it out - some 11s - which at the time those guitars came out were not heavy strings. Super light strings were new, even uncommon back then. Get that bow in the right direction again. If you don't like those strings, once it is back in shape you can go back to the gauge you want.

But lets look on the bright side now. You have a fairly uncommon model that is a good guitar, and now it sounds like it is in good shape playing wise too. That is important. So - with some effort - you actually have what you wanted and it is worth what you paid for it now. I am glad it is good for you. It could have easily gone the other way. All is well that ends well.

As for the guitar again. I had one of those myself but sold it when I needed some cash. It was really nice too. But my finances at the time was the only thing keeping me from keeping it. It was a fine guitar. It had no problems for me. I hope to think that yours will straighten out for you now and be a good guitar. It just needs some time to settle and then to check that neck again. Keep that truss rod loose to give it room to move. Then after the bow gets back to where it should be just snug it back up enough so it won't rattle once it goes fully back into shape.

It is nice to see a great guitar fixed up and playable again. You did relatively minor repairs that don't really change the collector value of it too. We like to see that - even if you didn't plan on having to do it. I am glad you are getting it right without more drastic measures. Once it is right it probably should stay there.

Good Luck!

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Thorny

I actually got on ebay but the seller double listed it on cl. Pawn shop in Normal, IL. I would have left negative feedback but I can't for a week. Guess I'm supposed to contact the seller first to see if they want to help me out. I'm unsure of the procedure as I've never had a seller fail to give accurate details.

Wow then you will have ebay on your side. Did you get good feedback from the seller? Anyhow, ebay will back you up. They just about ALWAYS take the buyer's side. What is the places feedback? Do they have negatives? Usually they will really try to make it right. If you got a quote from someone on what it would have cost to repair that might help you but still, they should know better. See if they will give you a partial refund. They may have a no partial refund policy but offer you a complete refund if you send it back. But hey, you don't know if you don't ask. And if you make your case and ask nicely you may get something.

Good luck.

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Thorny

Called the seller and got $100 refund. Had a nice chat with him. Turns out he has an X730 MPC so he know a good bit about Electras. Feel better about the deal now.

awesome!

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Thorny

A while back I bought a hondo 767flying V and asking questions before buying and getting positive answers, the nut was broken and the neck was badly back bowed. I did get it for a lower than usual price so I kept it. I tried with success something I saw on YouTube. I had the neck off, clamped it with a heat pad around it on med high for 4 hrs and had a straight neck. Gave it a 2nd round next day and got a little more. Hondo necks are like baseball bats so you might try it on a lower setting for less time.

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SlmGuy

Brilliant. I was trying to come up with a safe way to add some heat if I decided to attempt straightening.

I replied to this so not sure what happened to my reply?

Oh well! That is something I never tried and so that is what is so good about this forum. You get the collective knowledge of everyone. I'll be eager to try that one out myself next time I run into this.

Thanks guys.

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Thorny

I was gonna point out that the couple times I've gotten something disappointing on eBay, the buyers usually give something back, especially if it was bid up in price. But then I got to the post that said you got $100 back, so that's cool.

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