HELP! USPS Killed my new Lonestar.

[vitor gracie]

I purchased a beautiful LSC off of ebay in a Mesa Rack kit. It arrived dead. Not only dead, but it must have been dropped so hard that the rack ears on both sides are bent in to where they are almost touching the chassis. The amp will not power up. I am sure that the seller would not sell me a dead amp in the first place and it is obvious to me that it completely happened during shipping. The rack ears cut through the box when it was dropped or bumped or whatever.

So, i would assume the shipping insurance will cover the purchase price and not the "replacement price" for a new LSC and rack kit right?

Any wisdom on this would help.

I am going to my garage now to kick my Muay Thai bag..... a LOT! :evil:

 

[derekjason]

my condolences man. thats a sad story. :| hope you get reimbursed.

 

[user 16490]

So, i would assume the shipping insurance will cover the purchase price and not the "replacement price" for a new LSC and rack kit right?

It'd be nice if it worked out that way, but my guess is that the amp isn't going to be considered "totaled." Regardless, you wouldn't get a new amp out of the deal. The shipper is the one who files the claim. You'd get your money back and the seller would get whatever he gets. That's how it's worked when I've had issues in the past.

 

[madryan]

So, i would assume the shipping insurance will cover the purchase price and not the "replacement price" for a new LSC and rack kit right?

It'd be nice if it worked out that way, but my guess is that the amp isn't going to be considered "totaled." Regardless, you wouldn't get a new amp out of the deal. The shipper is the one who files the claim. You'd get your money back and the seller would get whatever he gets. That's how it's worked when I've had issues in the past.

This

Additionally, you need to make sure amps get packed better. If the ears cut through the box it wasn't packed well enough.

If you're a member at Harmony Central check out this thread about me packing up an Orange to ship. This is the way an amp needs to be packed.

http://acapella.harmony-central.com/showthread.php?t=2405019

 

[vitor gracie]

Seller insured it for $500.00

Amp sold for $900

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160357961540&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT#ht_500wt_1182

We are figuring out if it would be smarter to just have the seller pay for it to be fixed. I am touring within weeks of this. This is really rough. I even bought a BB Preamp pedal to go with the Lonestar so I could get those classic Andy Timmons tones off of Resolution. UGH! :evil:

More Muay Thai.

 

[user 16490]

Seller insured it for $500.00. Amp sold for $900

Seller curses self for trying to save a few bucks (literally).

What a costly mistake.

 

[MusicManJP6]

Seller insured it for $500.00. Amp sold for $900

Seller curses self for trying to save a few bucks (literally).

What a costly mistake.

+1!!! That was stupid on his part. Good luck getting it staightened out...

Where in SC are you located?

 

[madryan]

It's not your problem. Seller and you have contract. You sign up to buy amp. Seller consents to sell you amp. You as the buyer have every expectation that the amp will get to you in the condition it was advertised to be in. Seller needs to do whatever it takes to ensure this. He didn't do his due diligence. You need a full refund and Seller needs to fight it out with USPS or whomever smashed the amp. You don't want an amp with shock damage. All sorts of crap can go wrong down the road.

 

[vitor gracie]

My wife and I moved to Beaufort SC from downtown Milwaukee.

The amp is consistently blowing fuses, I replaced all the tubes and its blowing them w/out even powering on. It powered on the first time I changed the tubes but that was it. Stayed on for a few seconds then nothing. Output transformer?

Even more Muay Thai. :evil: :evil: :evil:

 

[madryan]

My wife and I moved to Beaufort SC from downtown Milwaukee.

The amp is consistently blowing fuses, I replaced all the tubes and its blowing them w/out even powering on. It powered on the first time I changed the tubes but that was it. Stayed on for a few seconds then nothing. Output transformer?

Even more Muay Thai. :evil: :evil: :evil:

Did you even read my post?

It's not your problem. You need to contact the seller and tell them to refund your money 100% including any associated costs (including PP fees) and if they don't do it you need to get paypal to do it. The amp is the sellers problem since they didn't pack it properly nor apparently insure it for what it's worth.

If you don't do this you're just getting scammed. There's a bunch of stuff inside a Lonestar that can be damaged by shock. If you plan on keeping the amp I'd not settle for for anything short of a complete once over by Mike B himself at Boogie.

 

[212Mavguy]

I would NOT want to be that Muay Thai bag, the Gracie clan in well known in the MMA world... :wink:

 

[Turumbar82]

Yeah, this is definitely the sellers fault on at least two accounts. The packing was bad. Typically USPS has you box it twice if it's going to be insured. At least that's what I had to do to send an LCD panel and insure it. The rack ears shouldn't have broken through the box if it was packed right.

Also the insurance should have covered the cost of the item and the shipping you paid for it. The difference between paying for $500 of insurance and $900 is like Chugga-Chugga said, a matter of a few more dollars that the seller would have had to pay. So unfortunately since the guy only paid for $500 in insurance, all you will get is around $500.

Actually, either one of you can file the claim with the USPS. You can even do it online and upload pictures of it. They will need proof of how much you paid for it and proof of the insurance receipt. All of this can be uploaded to the USPS website or mailed their claims division.

I just went through this whole process with USPS regarding my g-major that I got on here. The seller was great and packed it great. When I got it, it wasn't working properly. It wasn't trashed like it seems your amp is. I filed with USPS and within a month I got all my money back.

IMO he needs to give you a full refund for bad packing and for not paying for enough insurance to cover the price of the amp and then he should file with them and worry about getting his money back and losing that difference because he didn't pay for enough insurance.

None of this is your fault.

 

[Armando]

S I even bought a BB Preamp pedal to go with the Lonestar so I could get those classic Andy Timmons tones off of Resolution. UGH! :evil:

More Muay Thai.

I think Timmons stated that he used a Marshall Plexi to record Resolution(studio version) but uses Mesa's live(he's a Mesa endorsee...)

How heavy was that shipment? Doesn't the USPS have a 70lbs. limit? Maybe it weighs less than 70lbs?

 

[Silverwulf]

Sorry to hear that. This is a random side note, but never use USPS for high dollar domestic shipments. You're just asking for trouble. I'll only use them if I'm shipping FX pedals and the like (or internationally). Their claims resolution center is horrible...not what you want to hear, I know.

 

[babow2]

I had UPS destroy a custom Taylor T5-C2 hand picked from the factory. I also happen to be a lawyer.

UPS is obligated to pay the shipper for the repair/replacement cost, whichever is cheaper, only up to the insured value placed on the instrument. UPS inspects the item and determines its repair or replacement cost. If they total it out, they keep the item. They pay the shipper. That is UPS's responsibility with the party they contracted with- the shipper. You have no contractual relationship with UPS.

You do have a "contract" with the seller, but that contract depends on whatever terms were agreed upon or implied in the ebay system or however you bought it. Risk of loss is a negotiable issue. If you paid $900 and did not receive the item, then the seller is obligated either to deliver the item or refund your money. Of course, the reality is how to collect that if they are anything less than "up front and ethical." By all rights, he should send you your money back. I suggest immediately filind a dispute claim with ebay, paypal, or whoever you used to do the deal. There is a limited time in which to file a claim. Paypal has a guarantee in some situations.

If you paid by credit card, call your credit card company and dispute the charge or stop it from processing, so that you have some leverage or control. If the seller has your money already, you don't have much leverage.

 

[Turumbar82]

Sorry to hear that. This is a random side note, but never use USPS for high dollar domestic shipments. You're just asking for trouble. I'll only use them if I'm shipping FX pedals and the like (or internationally). Their claims resolution center is horrible...not what you want to hear, I know.

I had no issues with my claim being resolved. I filed online, uploaded pictures, a screen shot of my receipt on paypal and I asked the sender to mail me the insurance receipts to me then I mailed them off to the USPS claims division. In less than a month I had a check in my mailbox for the whole amount I insured it for. I didn't talk to one person on the phone. I didn't go to my local post office. I did it all online. One of the easiest things I've done. I was really surprised because I have always heard that it is horrible. Maybe I was lucky! Which doesn't make sense because I never have good luck! lol

 

[vitor gracie]

I am pleased to announce that the problem was with the rectifier tube. It had some sort of short in it that was blowing fuses. I replace all the tubes in the amp and left the rectifier tube to be replaced last. Once I put a brand new one in it worked perfectly. I am still going to get it checked out but I am relieved that it was just a tube. I never knew they (rectifier tubes) could actually blow fuses. you learn something new every day.

As for the rack kit, the seller is going to buy me a new one covering my costs nicely. He is also relieved that he doesn't have to try to come up with $900. He is going to work out getting his money from USPS but understands that its on him to pursue that cost. A new rack will be sent to me regardless.

I gave this guy the benefit of the doubt as I would someone on this forum. I know that some may feel I gave in, but my guts said he was a guy of character and wanted to do the right thing. Yes, I should have just sent the amp in to USPS and screamed/cursed/kicked him in the head with my shin, but sometimes that stuff is avoidable. I am positive that, despite some people disagreeing, I did the right thing.

Now, if Monsta Tone can just mod this Lonestar to my taste..... Monsta?
:lol:

 

[Turumbar82]

That's great that everything worked out. It's really good to hear that the guy on the other end is of good quality. I'm glad everything is working out.

 

[thejay]

Crazy story but glad it worked out in the end

 

[Koreth]

Glad it worked out for you.

However, I think it would still be a good idea to take the amp to a local Mesa authorized tech and have him do a full inspection on it. If the rack was damaged and the tubes were damaged, who knows what else inside the amp got damaged by shock and is waiting to fail? Better safe than sorry.