BEWARE of buying from Rick Turner Guitars/Ukes

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jklaus

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I know I'm a 1st time poster, which always has issues, but I have no where else to turn. I have been (and remain) a fan of Rick Turner's ukes and guitars for years now. I've owned a Model 1 for 20 years and have two other of his guitars. I'm so much of a fan of his work that I went to the Bay Area one summer to take his "make your own mandolin/uke" class and got to know him personally.

Over 3 years ago - April 2011 - I placed an order for a custom acoustic guitar and gave him thousands of dollars in a deposit. He claimed to be hard at work on it, and that I'd have it by Christmas 2011. Then he dropped COMPLETELY off the face of the map. Wouldn't return calls, emails - anything. I tried contacting him on his Facebook page (where he still posts, but never answers me. Notice he's also a pretty active poster here) Sporadically, I'd be able to somehow catch him by surprise on his cellphone, where he'd make personal excuses, but the guitar I had given a deposit for never arrived. This has been going for the PAST 3 YEARS.

This summer, I got new hope as an employee at his company named Jayme absolutely promised it was being manufactured and I would have it within a few weeks. She said she'd send pictures. Then she disappeared. Now for the past 3 months Jayme has stopped responding - maybe she was fired.

I'm in disbelief about this - he still has thousands of dollars of my money for a guitar he never delivered. He obviously thinks he can just keep my money and walk away. I'm now going to start looking into taking him to small claims court - something I would have done years ago, had I not been so shocked that this would happen with someone supposedly so reputable.

This is a fair warning for anyone considering purchasing a uke or guitar from Turner Guitars - from someone who loves the actual equipment but has been dealt with dishonestly for the past 3 years. Feel free to PM me if you need more information.
 
I walked into a guitar shop 3 months ago and said "How much for that ukulele hanging on the wall?"
The salesman told me "It'll run you about $160 after tax. Will that be cash or charge?"
I said "Cash." then handed the salesman 8 $20 bills and walked out the door with my new uke.

Thus endeth the lesson.
 
@jklaus

Wow.

Sorry for your troubles.

I understand your frustration, and your intent to warn others, but hope that your public message here does not start a flame war.

Were I in your shoes, I am not sure how I would handle it, but I'd be pretty upset too.

Might I suggest that maybe it would have been better for you to send him a Private Message first here on UU before making a public indictment?

(If you did so, you did not share that in your original message here)

I sincerely hope that you can find a peaceful remedy for this situation.
 
I'm sorry to hear of your problems jklaus. This thread will surely create a firestorm of responses, especially as a first time poster. Be prepared to get bombarded with suggestions of what you have done wrong in posting this here, as well as a few sympathizers.

What is your ultimate goal to end your stalemate? Do you just want your deposit back,(as I would), or do you still want the guitar?

Hang on to your hat. Here we go!
 
Turner Guitars

As much as I dislike Rick, his company AFAIK is called "Renaissance Guitars" or "Rick Turner Guitar Company"

I call bullshit.
 
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jklaus, your should know that Rick Turner is a trusted member on this forum. NO ONE is going to take your word for it as to what happened in your case. Everyone will wait to hear what Rick has to say before drawing ANY conclusion. This is something your really need to sort out with Rick Turner. Dissing on him here will get you nowhere.

Anthony
 
I don't know anyone involved in this, and I had never heard of Rick Turner or his company(s) before reading this post. So, I have no axe to grind here. I just want to caution my fellow UUers that accusations like this one are more and more frequently becoming the basis for business libel lawsuits. Angry business plaintiffs who feel they or their businesses have been wrongfully maligned are seeking revenge and compensation in the courts. Savings accounts are being attached, wages are being garnished, and properties are being seized to pay outstanding judgments. The bottom line is that accusations like this one need to be absolutely true, with very little room for any argument, with no reasonable excuses or explanations, and made without any malicious intent, or else the person making the accusations may be in unexpected trouble. My thought: A public bulletin board like this may not be the best forum for airing such grievances. Going through a small claims court, and turning the judgment over to a collection agent would be a much wiser way to go. I'm just trying to be helpful. If you disagree with me, for whatever reason, that's fine too.
 
I have no sympathy for you. You've handled this disgustingly and I hope your post is deleted.
 
This thread is now closed.
 
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