I guess I should have looked at the details and asked for more close-up pictures of the guitar I just received the other day from a seller on Reverb in Huntsville. I have a friend who is meticulous about ordering Yamaha guitars from Japan and other high-end guitars from various places. I should have followed his lead and paid more attention to what he was doing, asking for more detailed pictures and asking questions that make a difference when purchasing a guitar thousands of miles away. The inexpensive Martin I saw for sale I snatched it up thinking I was getting a good deal. I received the guitar quickly and it came to my house very dusty, slobber and sweat stains all over it, god-awful strings, and the weird thing is that the saddle was installed 180° opposite of what it should have been. The fretboard was disgusting. So the box was unplayable. I corrected the saddle and pulled off the old strings and put on a set of new. A meticulously cleaned the fretboard and body, neck, changed the transistor battery (8.6 VDC shipped installed in the sound hole). Tuned it up and it was okay. Then I noticed the fret bars were basically spent, having ridges under all six strings up to at least the fifth fret. I played it anyway hoping that it would sound okay and it did sound okay thanks to the Fishman pickup. After about 2 days of hitting it hard, the high E string started to buzz pretty bad around the first second and third fret. So I thought I could buy some time by putting in a little relief in the neck by tweaking the truss rod. I am limited on my knowledge but have watched enough videos to choke a mule. So I dig out my trusty 5 mm wrench and go to put it in the truss rod hole inside the sound hole and there is no truss rod. I shine a flashlight up in there and take a couple of pictures and send it to the seller in Huntsville complaining there is no truss rod. He immediately insults me, cursing me through the messaging on Reverb, telling me I am as dumb AF. Then tells me he has written albums with that guitar. Along with the frets worn down like someone took a hammer and chisel to them, I calmly ask for a refund through the website and he immediately declines it. A couple of things about this story, one is to know your guitar model really well. This particular model of Martin dx1 Custom was sold by Musician's Friend at the time. A lot of modern Martins, if not all to my understanding, take a special longer shanked 5 mm wrench to gain access to the truss rod end so as to adjust the relief in the neck. It's way down in there. I did not know that at the time. But he didn't have to curse at me. He could have told me that the truss rod was further down in the hole, something common with Martins. Two, I should have asked for more pictures so I could tell what shape the body, the strings, and the fretboard was in. I probably would have just saved my $450 and time. I had a dx1 before but it's been about 9 years ago and I can't remember what the guitar was all about. All I remember is that it sounded really good and played well. I guess in some ways it's my bad. I guess I'll deal with it. Anyone's thoughts are appreciated by the way. Life is a big old lesson to be learned. One big thing I have learned is I don't care what other people think about me and another is I treat people the way I want to be treated. This particular individual I dealt with owns a high-end guitar shop, too. I really wish we could have ended our relationship amicably.
Hey David, Sorry to hear about the bad experience. I have purchased 1/2 dozen instruments thru Reverb with not issues.
I would DEFINITELY Leave a review about the way he dealt with you. Describe the poor condition the guitar was in; how he was unprofessional with you etc....
Also, it is too late now, but I always buy guitars that have a free returns policy - JUST in case, I don't like it.
So did you get it adjusted so it plays good now?
@lbtzevte I left a review about my experience. Too late to change the 5 stars to less stars though. Can't edit it. Not sure why that happened. I clearly left 2 stars. I'm going to practice shortly. I'll update the forum soon. My backup is my Eastman PCH-1 Dreadnought but the LR Baggs pickup I installed is a good bit quacky but it'll work in case. I wish my Yamaha FG830 had a K&K in it. Unplugged it sounds awesome.