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A mysterious chip appears on your brand new bass guitar.... you....


DDR

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F.  You were abducted by Aliens, who strongly resembled large woodlice, on the way home from your rehearsal.  They carried out non-invasive procedures upon you and your bass but the small mark managed to slip by un-noticed.  They then wiped your memory of the incident, leaving nothing but a nagging half-recollection of seeing a bright light and a tendancy to curl into a tight ball on the floor when startled.  If you were to get the mark analysed it would be shown to have traces of elements not found on Earth.  Remember, the truth is out there...

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In those rare instances when I have had a brand new expensive toy (car, sax, bass) I’ve deliberately made a tiny hidden mark before using them for the first time, to get the newness worry out of the way. The feeling of relief is blissful! However, I do not recommend this approach with new cats or human partners...

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E: Take your bass to the nearest shop that sells make-up and beauty supplies. Find a nail polish that's the closest match to the colour of your bass. Carefully apply the nail polish to the chip, building it up in layers if the chip is deep. You may need to gently sand it with a high grade of sandpaper to smooth it out. It might not be perfect, but your eye won't be drawn to the dink. Keep the nail polish to treat the inevitable dinks and scratches that a gigging bass will get.  

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Just now, rushbo said:

E: Take your bass to the nearest shop that sells make-up and beauty supplies. Find a nail polish that's the closest match to the colour of your bass. Carefully apply the nail polish to the chip, building it up in layers if the chip is deep. You may need to gently sand it with a high grade of sandpaper to smooth it out. It might not be perfect, but your eye won't be drawn to the dink. Keep the nail polish to treat the inevitable dinks and scratches that a gigging bass will get.  

Have you done this? I think it could be a good way to get arrested. Offensive instrument brandished in public.

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Seriously for a moment. And disregarding the fact that eventually any instrument will pick up a good "collections" of dings and scrapes during its life time.

 

You're big problem is that you didn't notice when the damage was done, and therefore have no way of knowing who is responsible. In this case put it down to experience.

 

However... IMO there is no way that it would be acceptable for a tech to inflict any damage on your instrument. If this happened to one of my instruments and it was 100% attributable to the tech while they worked on it, I would demand that the damage be made good in a way it would be impossible to tell it had ever happened. If this meant that the bass need a complete respray - then so be it. Maybe they will be a bit more careful in the future when working on something that is not theirs.

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How could you show the damage "was 100% attributable to the tech while they worked on it," 

I'd be concerned about ruining a good relationship with my luthier over something that may not have been their fault.

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3 hours ago, rushbo said:

E: Take your bass to the nearest shop that sells make-up and beauty supplies. Find a nail polish that's the closest match to the colour of your bass. Carefully apply the nail polish to the chip, building it up in layers if the chip is deep. You may need to gently sand it with a high grade of sandpaper to smooth it out. It might not be perfect, but your eye won't be drawn to the dink. Keep the nail polish to treat the inevitable dinks and scratches that a gigging bass will get.  

 

Or get B&Q to colour match it.

 

And paint your music room to match...

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1 hour ago, BigRedX said:

However... IMO there is no way that it would be acceptable for a tech to inflict any damage on your instrument. If this happened to one of my instruments and it was 100% attributable to the tech while they worked on it, I would demand that the damage be made good in a way it would be impossible to tell it had ever happened. If this meant that the bass need a complete respray - then so be it. Maybe they will be a bit more careful in the future when working on something that is not theirs.

 

That would mean both of you inspecting the instrument with a magnifying glass and taking photos of any existing damage. 

 

I don't think I'd be interested in doing any work for a customer like that.

 

It's down to anyone who has your property in their care to take good care of it and notify you if its been damaged in any way. 

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18 hours ago, TheGreek said:

How could you show the damage "was 100% attributable to the tech while they worked on it," 

I'd be concerned about ruining a good relationship with my luthier over something that may not have been their fault.

 this is true, but actually this is the first time i went to this place as my old tech moved away. So I guess the new question is : if you were 99% sure the new tech did it, would you bring it up and or would you ever go back to him?

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I would question whether it ever was 'gloriously perfect' when you got it. The only way it could be 100% attributable to the tech was if you could have seen him do it. 100% is a statistical certainty, and you can't say that, however much you may suspect. Even if you are sure, what would they say? "Yes, I noticed that when you brought it in".

 

Whether you suspect them or not, using them again is your choice. You seem to like the work they did, so enjoy a great instrument.

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C. You have absolutely no way of knowing where the chip came from. Take it on the chin, chalk it up to experience, etc etc. They all pick up dings eventually. I remember being heartbroken when my gorgeous Shuker got its first tiny ding, through a stupid moment of clumsiness at home, and I beat myself up about it for some time. But then I looked at it philosophically and realised that Sh*t Happens, it would've happened sooner or later anyway. The two or three it's picked up since have been met with some choice Anglo-Saxon vernacular but that's all. 
 

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If you're worried about your brand new bass getting chipped, then don't buy a brand new bass. Instead buy secondhand, pre chipped bass, or if you have to buy brand new buy a roadworn bass, where every new chip just adds to the mojo. :)

 

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