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Re: Thai Custom Guitars
I wanna tell you that I have nothing related to the company what i shown you and Atlas guitar company. I respected to Thai people, but this is the true story that my buddy and I have met before.
My friend wanted to make his own custom guitar in 1995 and we went together to Atlas company. My friend wanted to make a strat with some custom inlay and some custom specs. He asked for Alder body + Blue 5A flame maple top, birdeyes neck and fingerboard + abalone inlay, Kahler tremolo, DiMarzio pups and some special wording inlay. They quoted him for $ 2000 (that time Gibson custom costed only $ 1400 - 1500) They asked my buddy to pay 50% deposit and 3 months production time.
After 3 month, on the promised finishing date. We went there with the rest 50% of the payment, but we found that they had not done yet anything since 3 months. They shown us only the pieces of wood and postponed another 1.5 month to finished, but they wanted my buddy to pay the rest that day otherwise they will not do further step. Sure, my buddy paid.
1.5 months later, we came back again. We see nothing further, just body and neck had been cut in shape. You know what they just told my buddy that the cost is higher than what they think. They needed $ 1000 more. My buddy got frustrate, but he paid already $2000 and did not to loose them (they said they wont refund.) Then he paid $1000 more in the next few days and they made sure that guitar will ready within a month.
A month later - not finished and asked for 2 months postpone. My buddy got angry and told them a month only otherwise he would sue them.
The next month - my buddy got his guitar, but poor! He ordered DiMarzio, but he got Atlas pickups which they said they were much more expensive then DiMarzio. Kahler was not installed, but Gotoh which they said its better !! Guitar was buzzy and they did not setup for him, but informed that twang sound comes from little buzzy guitar. We were son young (18 years old) that time and believed them.
I remembered that we went to get the guitar resetup somewhere else after my buddy took for awhile. You know what, the lutheir we went to made the resetup told us that body is poplar not alder, 5A maple topped was just a quilted maple, magnet of the pickups were lost the power (we went to our teacher in our university later and he told us that it is the poorest quality.) and Gotoh is much cheaper than Kahler!! Inlay was not abalone, but plastic... (we burned one to test.....yeah..it was a real plastic.)
We went back to them and complainted. They just said you paid $3000 and what did you expect? They did not worry if my friend was gonna sue them. (That time Thailand did not have a department to help consumer like today.) My buddy was just suffered.... poor him.
Few years later once internet came to Thailand. There is a website call guitarthai.com which a big Thai guitar society. My buddy raised this topic .... and you know what ... more than 50 people had the same probem like what my buddy had!
I tell you frankly that Atlas guitar can not sell anymore locally. We know today his son run the company on marketing side and his father who cheated my buddy is sitting on factory side. They are now buying bodies (not cut their own) , hardware and pickups from Shenzhen, China. (The provice that produced Chibanez, Chibson and more.) No real flame maple anymore, just a quilted which dyed the color similar to flame maple to make their guitars.
If you guys here wanted to order with them. Please make sure and pay attention to all the details you order and what you get. Its just your information if you want to order guitar from them.
Last edited by here.choo; 08-29-2009 at 12:00 AM.
Reason: correct the spell of Shenzhen
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