The Steel Guitar Forum

When you purchased your guitar,from the manufacturer, was it everything you expected,{finish,fit,pedal setup,etc}
How was the service?{delivery time,follow up,was dealer there for you, if you had any problems?}were you happy enough, to refer your friends, to that brand? Thanks >au

Yes

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Playing PSG keeps you on your toes.

Yes to all the above.

Excellent service! Excellent product!
Perfect fit! Needs operator !
GFI fred jack

Yes to JCH & Jimmie Crawford
Yes to Carter & John Fabian
Yes to Zoom & Bruce Zumsteg
HELL NO to Emmons & Jim whatzisname!

The people skills played out perfectly in the above first three but went to hell in a hand cart on the forth. Ask me if I'll ever buy another new Emmons and the answer will be "not in this lifetime!"

I ordered a new blue birdseye maple Emmons LeGrande II in 1996 and it was perfect in every way and still is. Everyone who worked on it did an excellent job. It is so nice I am reluctant to take it out to play it for fear it will get "dinged". I received a 2000 Emmons LeGrande III black mica about a year ago and it is perfect in every way. I requested 19,000 ohm pickups and the guitar sounds and plays great. Jim Aycoth has always treated me super, in fact he called my office Monday to see how I was progressing following heart surgery. Joanne, Jim's wife is as sweet a person as you will ever talk to on the phone. My answer is YES, I am a very satisfied Emmons customer.
Would I buy another Emmons guitar? Yes, I would but I have 7 of them I need to put some wear on first!
Jerry Roller

....that's really not fair, Mike. You chose a line of business that gives you immunity from customer satisfaction polls..Jim AYCOTH is OK with me...

Pat, I'm still laughing over the customer satisfaction poll I've missed out on. You do have a valid point, I don't receive any complaints but neither am I asked for refunds. As for people skills, I'm well versed in that field and that is where my complaint came from, not the guitar. I stand by my first post as I was treated maybe one step above a red headed stepchild on the purchase and manufacture of my guitar. I'm glad for those who have good dealings with the company but I was left a dissatisfied customer so I have moved on to greener pastures!

Carter - a huge YES great people, customer service is as good as I've seen for any product. Keep it up Ann, John, Bud.

I've been a satisfied Sierra customer for decades. Don Christiansen has always been helpful whenever I had questions about my guitar.

Recently I bought a new Williams and was very pleased with how Bill Rudolph kept me informed as the guitar progressed.

Carter treats me like a customer (which is to say very well) even though I've never bought anything from them. If they made a keyless crossover guitar, I'd buy one in a minute!

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<small><img align=right src="http://b0b.com/b0b.gif" width="64" height="64">Bobby Lee - email: quasar@b0b.com - gigs - CDs
Sierra Session 12 (E9), Williams 400X (E9, D6), Sierra Olympic 12 (F Diatonic)
Sierra Laptop 8 (D13), Fender Stringmaster (E13, A6)

Franklin - 200% customer satisfaction. The guitar is almost 19 years old and Mr Franklin still treats me the same way as when I first got it.

When you have a guitar built by a master craftsman, there are no faults with it when it's delivered.

I can't say the same thing about the "Brand X" PP that I bought new in 71.<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Jack Stoner on 21 July 2001 at 08:14 AM.]</p></FONT>

absolutely yes on everything about my zum and bruce zumsteg....bought new 19 years ago...still feel the same.

i must mention that last sunday i saw jim gray's new mullen...he must feel the same..it's a beautiful jewel!<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by chris ivey on 14 July 2001 at 11:42 AM.]</p></FONT>

I've been playing Emmons Guitars for many years, and I must say that I've only had one that wasn't everything that I thought it should be......I presently own an '85 Legrande, and it's one of the best I've ever had.....and when I've called for tech questions or service, I've always been treated very well.....looking to get one of John Hughey's Legrande II's very soon. Luv my Emmons

Once while playing in Burlington, NC I called the Emmons factory on a Saturday and Ron Lashley was there and he said come over. I was looking for a handle for a case I just had redone and he gave one to me free. The man had never met me before. When I need parts for my Emmons guitar Jim calls me on his dime and takes all the time I need to explain what I'm trying to do. The guitars are great and so is the service.

I've only had two pedal steel guitars in the 28 years that I've been playing.

The first was a Sho~Bud Professional that had a beautiful tone and finish, but was mechanically in a league with the Chevrolet Corvair. It was probably the worst piece of machinery I've ever owned in my life.

Seven years after that, in 1980, I replaced it with a brand new Emmons. The Emmons was almost flawless except for one minor complaint; The screws that hold the tabs that lock the rods to the pedals kept coming loose. I fixed that by removing them and replacing them with an arrangement consisting of a machine screw with a spring around it with washers at each end. This worked really well and completely solved the problem. I talked to Ron Lashley at the ISGC one year and he pretty much blew me off and said that "loc-tite is the way to fix that." I was a bit taken aback by his attitude.

A couple of years ago, while driving to Florida, I decided to stop by the Emmons factory in Burlington. I had called Jim Aycoth to find out when they'd be open. It turned out that the morning that my wife and I arrived, they had some other pressing matters and said that they couldn't stay long. Well, despite that, they did stay long. Both Jim and his wife were most gracious hosts. I was thoroughly impressed!

I'll probably never buy another steel as I've yet to outgrow my old P/P D-10, but if I ever do, Emmons will definitely be in the running.

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Rick Richtmyer
Good News

A BIG YES for Carter. Sales, service, quality - all excellent. Bud, John and Ann all great to work with.

What else could I say that isn't well known or been well said here on the Forum ? I'm a Carter man and I'll tell the world too !!
Thanks to Bud, Ann and John for a really World Class Steel Guitar !!

Regards, Paul

Well I have only owned one steel to date & its a SD10 GFI 3&4 I bought it second hand...after getting it I called GFI about getting a tuning key for the changer from them. I spoke with Mr. Fields himself. A very nice man,he sent me a key & upon being asked about his warranty on his instruments he replyed. If anything on my steels break & its above normal wear, you send it on to me & I will make it right.I was very impressed with the man & like his guitars

Max Rowe

The folks at Carter Steel Guitars gets my VOTE. Anytime I have ever had a question, I get to talk to a real person not some answering machine, they do return phone calls within minutes of an inquiry. I've been back on Carter since December, 00 and am very satisified.
ZumSteel is very reliable also in responding to your needs. These 2 get my votes.

John Buffington
Carter BCT D-10, 8/6
ZumSteel D-10, 8/6

You couldn't ask to be treated much nicer than Mr. Herb Remington treated me. What a gentleman... and WHAT a guitar!!! I'm a newbie and this was my first new guitar. He treated me as if I was a pro. I can't say enough good things about Herb Remington and Remington guitars. I never got to meet him, but I've been told that Mr. Bobby Bowman has a lot to do with the building of these guitars... and that sure can't hurt.

If I needed one, I buy another Remington in a heartbeat.

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Dave Burr
Remington Sustainmaster S-10 w/pad 3x4

yes to my 1981 MSA Vintage XL yes to my 1991 Sierra Gearless yes to my 1996 Zumsteel,all 3 are Double-10's

I've had nothing but good experiences dealing with Mr Gene Fields. It's always fun tapping into his vast store of technical knowledge, and he tells some great stories of the PSG industry, without ever saying anything bad about anyone or their product.

The few times I've needed parts, he's always gotten them to me PDQ, and has yet to charge me for them. One time, he gave me some parts for a knee lever I was adding, and when I asked him what I owed him, he said "Lunch."

When I worked at a music store, I persuaded the manager to become a GFI dealer. The only problem any of my customers ever had was when they tried to adjust their guitars before they learned how, and that's a nice testimonial for the product. I once told Gene about that and he offered to pay me for adjusting their guitars for them.

Last year, an overseas airline dropped my guitar so hard it damaged the inside of the case, but when I set up the guitar it was still in tune and in perfect adjustment.

I've played other brands, and I don't have anything bad to say about them or their builders. But, I haven't played anything I like better, or that (to me, anyway) sound or play better than GFI's. And no builder will give you better service or treatment than Gene.



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GFI S-12 extended E9, GFI D-10, Sho-Bud S-10 3X2
'83 Fender Twin II
with 15" Peavey BW

<SMALL>Ask me if I'll ever buy another new Emmons and the answer will be "not in this lifetime!"</SMALL>

Mike....

Lets not judge the axe by the stupidity or lack of customer handleing of the "seller" or factoery reps.

Many a good axe has been tanked by bad press. Your experience with the "seller" has nothing to do with the craftmanship of the PSG. I purchased a "Marrs" S-10 3p/4K on a double frame and am most satisfied with it. Other people who have played it say it's too light to the touch, In my opinion, they are hard players who pick the strings too hard and stomp down on the pedals,so therefore,the axe is far too light (cheap) for them. As for me,I set up the touch and feel for my style of pickin' and the axe dosen't walk around or jerk left and right as I play on it.

Rethink the axe, and mabe it isn't set up for your method of playing.

(BTY, if you wish to sell it (The Emmons) "CHEAP", I mean real Cheap, I'll take it)

<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Bill Crook on 13 July 2001 at 07:38 AM.]</p></FONT>

Bill, the guitar was fine. It was everything I had expected of it but the customer service left alot to be desired. That is what soured me on the company. The guitar is still my main guitar even above my push/pull.