My Ovation/Guitar Center Repair Saga Continues…..

This ongoing situation with my Ovation Guitar and Guitar Center takes a new turn every week it seems.

Briefly, the bridge had separated from the body of the guitar and fortunately for me this is under warranty because it’s a craftmanship issue.  Great!!  Ovation get the bridge to the Guitar Center in Baton Rouge about 3 weeks later (this all started Jan. 11th), and when the Guitar Center received it they let me know.  I was in Mexico at the time and figured once my 3 week stay was done they would call and I’d pay and have my guitar back!



It didn’t happen that way….  There was no contact, I wasn’t in too much of a rush so I decided to spend three weeks with our daughter in Baytown, Texas.  Once again, I never heard anything and I’m getting close to March.

I stop by the Guitar Center coming into town and the clerk sternly told me that if there was anything that I needed to know that I’d have received a call. Hmmmmm.  He graciously checks on it in the back and tells me that the part hadn’t come in but, the part had been in since the later part of January.  I didn’t argue.

Let’s fastforward a little bit.

The guitar tech contacts me to tell me there’s another problem with the guitar.  Once the bridge was attached, he notice with tension the top of the guitar around the bridge warped.  He wanted permission to send it to their store in in New Orleans which had the equipment to work the problem.  I said, “Okay.”

I hear nothing like for three to four weeks.  Then I get an email from the guitar tech in New Orleans.

You’re no gonna believe this…

Everything is looking good!  The bridge is secured he’s gonna do some testing on the tension and if everything is okay it gets shipped back on the 12th of April and expected in Baton Rouge on April 13th.  Super!!

I checked with the store manager in Baton Rouge on the 14th…..no guitar and he said he’d contact New Orleans store for me…

Hang in there I’m almost to the last status which was today when I got to actually ‘touch’ my guitar!



On the 17th of April I get an email from the guitar rep in New Orleans as follows:  “Here is the update on the guitar. It was sent out from our location on April 12th with an expected arrival on Friday, April 13th at the Baton Rouge store (TRK1ZE60W260357934999). It arrived back at the New Orleans location on Monday with no explanation as to why, I assume this was just a shipping error and it will go back out promptly.”  There’s more but that’s the abreviated version, but note the dates.



One of the things that The Guitar Center was complaining about to me is that they were calling me but no one ever answered.

So today, I figured that guitar HAS to be at the Baton Rouge store by NOW!!!  But, for some reason, a call from them doesn’t work.  I’m driving over there today.

The manager isn’t in……(I found out his wife was having a baby!) so I give the clerk a copy of my email and then it seems that confusion ensues.  The search is on!!!

Some Good has to come!!

HERE IT IS!!!!  My Ovation REPAIRED!!!  IN MY HANDS!!!  My heart just leapt!  As the tech was removing the guitar from the case (which they gave me…yeah!) I notice a HUGE HOLE in the back of the guitar!!  That’s right a HOLE!!!
This is a rare ovation that has an access panel that is removed to do the service work.  It’s GONE!!!  They can’t Find it!!!  There were no Ovation guitars with that same access in Baton Rouge or New Orleans!!!  Can you believe this!!!

So, now the search is on for that access panel in New Orleans…and Baton Rouge.  I didn’t take the guitar out of the store, I left it with the understanding they would find or replace the panel.

I’m sure the next update will be much shorter….I’m sure.



Hey!  Just want to give you an opportunity to visit 2 other sites http://www.peaceloveandbeaches.com and http://www.60plusandfearless.com.  And please take a moment to visit my daughter’s GoFundMe page, it’s for a good cause: https://www.gofundme.com/single-momkids-with-car-debt.  And thank you for your consideration.

Peace and love,

John