Ali Express, that's definitely not graphite, mate!

[HeadlessBassist]

Nope, definitely not graphite. Can someone pop to China and teach them how to correctly mount Monorail tuners, please?

 

 

[jd56hawk]

Why bother?

People will buy it and say "Just bought this from AliExpress and it's worth every penny!"

I'd like to post this on Talkbass, unless you plan on doing it.

Edited Monday at 11:51 by jd56hawk

[HeadlessBassist]

Be my guest... Would you like the link?

[tauzero]

I don't see the problem. Nowhere in the description does it say that it's graphite.

 

Those tuners, incidentally, have their pros and cons. Stringing is dead easy, you just put the string through the middle of the knob. Saddle height adjustment is more awkward, you have to screw the actual saddles up and down, like a Warwick Just-A-Nut I. Intonation is also awkward, as the anchor screw is under the string so you have to move the string out of the way to adjust it.

[Bassassin]

To be fair, if it was a 4-string (there doesn't seem to be one) & £100-odd cheaper, it could be the basis for an interesting project.

[hiram.k.hackenbacker]

‘Solid wood quality, fine workmanship, quality guarantee, free delivery’.

 

Well, I guess the free delivery statement could actually be true 😂.

[BassAgent]

On 21/04/2025 at 13:50, jd56hawk said:

 

People will buy it and say "Just bought this from AliExpress and it's worth every penny!"

 

I really and truly will ever understand why anyone would buy a (ripoff) bass from AliExpress. There are a gazillion arguments against buying from Ali, Temu, Shein and the works, and only one pro: 

 

Edited Tuesday at 13:49 by BassAgent

[jd56hawk]

I hate to say it, but I have absolutely no sympathy for anyone who gets ripped off...in today's world where one can easily look before they leap via the internet, they get what they deserve.

Right now, I own five basses, I purchased four online without being able to plug in and play first.

I did it the smart way, of course.

[tauzero]

Would there be this amount of whinging if it was a FSO instead of a Status-alike that nobody would take for a genuine Status? If not, why not?

[Kiwi]

To be fair, there is a certain amount of micturational extraction by Aliexpress sellers. 

 

I have found the sales people are often obsessed with commission at the expense of everything else, including their jobs.  In their minds, so long as they are selling something that looks like the photo, any deviation in materials from the agreed specification isn't important to them.  Their mindset is opportunistic, irresponsible and at times disingenuine...a bunch of cowboys.  I had dealings with a company called Shenzhen Grand which left me out of pocket and with a bitter taste in my mouth at the games they were playing.  They were good at making amps but their instruments were less playable than a wishbass.

The good luthiers in China (and I have found one that could rival Fodera) don't need to sell on Aliexpress.