Remember the Letter To Fender ?

Rick Alexander · From: Florida, USA, R.I.P.

About replacement Stringmaster Tuners . .

I mailed it almost 2 years ago - it's all in the Letter To Fender about Stringmaster Tuners thread.

Imagine my surprise when I received this email today from Rose Bishop, the Senior Administrator of Marketing for Fender Musical Instruments:

quote:
Hi Rick:

Your letter addressed to our Consumer Relations Department has found its way to my desk and I apologize if this response is delayed. I'm not sure when you wrote the letter as I cannot find a date and I wanted to ask if anyone from Fender® has contacted you regarding the replacement 4-in-line tuning assemblies for the Stringmaster D8? Unfortunately, I cannot address your concerns, however, I do have access to the marketing managers who might be able to help but needed to determine if it is still necessary to involve them.

Please let me know if this is still an issue and I will see what I can do. Thank you for your loyalty to Fender and its products.

Sincerely,

Rose Bishop
Sr. Administrator/Marketing
Fender Musical Instruments

and here is my reply:

quote:

Hi Rose,
Thank you for the email. I wrote that letter almost 2 years ago. Finding replacement tuners for Fender Stringmasters is still an impossiblility - nobody makes the 4-in-line assemblies to fit them. The only solution is to find a "parts" guitar and rob it. Every time somebody does that there is one less Stringmaster in the world.

There is a big resurgence of non-pedal steel guitar, and the Fender Stringmaster is generally considered the holy grail of this type of guitar. I have several of them, and I use them extensively for recording and live performance.

Many of us steelers feel that Fender should support its products and manufacture replacement tuners for these wonderful historic steel guitars. The reply I received at the time gave little hope of that. The existing tuners tend to give out with use, and many a Stringmaster player has found himself in a bad situation because of it. I eventually managed to find tuners on eBay that came from a parted out Stringmaster, but I would rest a lot easier if I could purchase a couple of extras. I know for a fact that there is a significant demand for them. I frequently receive emails from desperate Stringmaster players. This thread about the letter on The Steel Guitar Forum tells the tale.

Fender Japan makes Deluxes and Stringmasters, but they won't sell tuner assemblies seperately. If anyone at Fender cares enough about us Steel Guitar Players to facilitate a solution to this ongoing problem, that would be wonderful.

Thank you for your kind attention,
Rick Alexander http://rickalexander.com

What do you think of that?

Rose Bishop's email is deleted@fender.com
Now might be a real good time to let Fender know that there is definitely an ongoing need for replacement Stringmaster tuners. I don't know if it'll do any good, but I do know nothing will happen if we don't try.

[This message was edited by Rick Alexander on 21 June 2006 at 05:45 PM.]

Gary Boyett · From: Colorado

I will be glad to send an email requesting the pans. If they are being used in Japan then Fender should be able to get them easily.

String covers would be nice too. And while they are at it why not just make NEW STRINGMASTERS! I mean, after all, now they have the parts..........

Rick Alexander · From: Florida, USA, R.I.P.

Alright G-Man! A flurry of emails clearly stating that there is an ongoing need for replacement Stringmaster tuner assemblies (upper and lower) might spur some action.
So all you Stringmaster players, here is your opportunity to be heard. This is the most interest Fender has ever shown about this problem.

It would give Ms. Bishop something to show the marketing managers.

[This message was edited by Rick Alexander on 21 June 2006 at 08:06 AM.]

Bill Leff · From: Santa Cruz, CA, USA

OK, I'll drop Rose a line as well about this.

Bill

Andy Sandoval · From: Bakersfield, California, USA

Rick, I bought a Fender Deluxe 8 last year and also had to find some better tuners on eBay so this is great news! I think few letters from our Stringmaster bros here might just have an impact on this issue.

Bill Hatcher · From: Atlanta Ga. USA

We will be awaiting the answer two years from now!

Ron Victoria · From: New Jersey, USA

email sent

Ron

basilh · From: United Kingdom

Likewise.
Baz

Jason Weaver · From: Topeka, Kansas

WOW Rick, I had no idea Fender Japan was making steel guitars. All I could find on Fender Japan's site was this Deluxe 8.

It is 189,000 yen, which is currently about $1,640. Too bad they are so pricy. I have seen some Tokyo-based shops selling Fender Japan guitars on eBay, maybe they could get tuner assemblies?

Just a thought,

Jason

Rick Alexander · From: Florida, USA, R.I.P.

Okay, I just got another email from Rose:

quote:

Hi Rick:

I am trying to find out what I can about this situation but I would greatly appreciate it if you would refrain from giving out my e-mail address to the rest of the Stringmaster community. I am getting bombarded with e-mails and while I would like to, I am not in a position to respond to everyone.

Thank you for your understanding.

Rose

and I replied:

quote:

Okay Rose, sorry about that. I just figured if you had some corroborating emails to show the marketing execs it might provide a clearer picture of the situation. That way they wouldn't have to wonder if it's just an isolated situation.
The fellers don't expect individual responses, they just wanted their voices to be heard.
We appreciate your concern very much. I'll ask them to stop.

best,
Rick

So essentially, the point has been made.
Now if she chooses to, she can tell them about the response to this.
Thanks fellers!

Earnest Bovine · From: Los Angeles CA USA

If you pay for a thousand of them, Fender will probably make them.

Rick Alexander · From: Florida, USA, R.I.P.

Rose just anwered:

quote:
No problem and assure them that their concerns have been heard.
Thanks,
Rose

I thought that went well . .

John Bushouse · Posted 21 Jun 2006 3:53 pm

How about removing her e-mail address in the original post?

Rick Alexander · From: Florida, USA, R.I.P.

We're good. Nobody needs to email her anymore now the point has been made.
This is the closest we've ever come to having this ongoing concern actually addressed by anyone at Fender.
It'll be interesting to see if anything comes of it . .

Bill McCloskey · Posted 21 Jun 2006 5:03 pm

A marketer has an opportunity to hear from potential customers, capture their email addresses and use it to continue to market to them. And she cuts it off?????

What an amazingly boneheaded move on Fender's part.

What she could have done was capture everyone's email address and then sent them a mailing on the new tuners and info on new lapsteel products.

Quite honestly, I'm stunned at the lost opportunity.

Jody Carver · From: KNIGHT OF FENDER TWEED

Bill
All is not lost,Fender has a golden opportunity to do what they do best, keep the faith my friend. The time will come.

Mark Eaton · Posted 21 Jun 2006 9:26 pm

Jody - and I'm not being a smart aleck here - what exactly is it that they do best?

And as a sidebar, if for example, they were going to start building American made Stringmasters again, I wonder how many they would have to sell in a year for it to make sense to the bean counters?

------------------
Mark

Loni Specter · From: West Hills, CA, USA

Mark,
How many Stringmasters? Hummm, I'm guessing 5,000 single necks, 2,500 doubles, 1,000 triples and 250 quads. Do you think there are enough players out there to warrant such a production? Hey how about stretching the time table to have that production run spread over 10 years. Do you think Fender would step up to the plate?
Just how many steelers are there anyway?
Oh yes. What would a triple neck need to sell for? Maybe $3,000. street?
Hey Jody. What do you know oh great Knight of Steel. Shed some light on the faithful.
Look at it this way. At 56 years of age, I'm one of the youngest people I know (outside the Forum) who even knows what a Stringmaster is.
Maybe if some of you who are still creating original music would record some "Hula Hip-Hop" and get a record deal...

Mark Vinbury · From: N. Kingstown, Rhode Island, USA

I agree with Loni.
Stringmasters would be an expensive instrument to tool up and build.I just don't see the market for it.
My guess is a good percentage of the steelers out there are members of this forum (about 5,700).We would all have to buy one to make sense to Fender.

[This message was edited by Mark Vinbury on 22 June 2006 at 01:34 AM.]

Ron Brennan · From: Orlando, Florida, USA; Formerly, Edison, NJ

Rick,

Excellent strategy!!!

And thank you for pushing the boulder's up a Colorado Mountain and a hot summer day!!! TX
Rgds,
Ron

------------------
JCFSGC member 2005 "Be of Good Cheer"
"55" Stringmaster D8,
"67" Telecaster,
"60"Fender Concert Amp 4-10's

Rick Collins · From: Claremont , CA USA

Fender should have no problem finding market volume for the tuners, if they are constructed exactly as the original ones __ and of the same materials. They'll have to be changed on every third string change.

Mark Vinbury · From: N. Kingstown, Rhode Island, USA

Can someone post some closeup pics of these tuners?
What about the Kluson tuner replacement that was mentioned in another post?

[This message was edited by Mark Vinbury on 22 June 2006 at 08:54 AM.]

Rick Garrett · From: Tyler, Texas

Fender could maybe hire a small guitar shop to build Stringmasters and associated parts. Fender would get their cut, the luthier would get his cut and we'd all be posting pictures of our brand new Fender Stringmasters. Sounds like a plan to me!

Rick

Mark Eaton · Posted 22 Jun 2006 8:09 am

Back to how many Stringmasters.

I think for Fender sales and marketing to get behind a revival of the Stringmaster, it would have to be based on the idea that along with folks who are members here, there would be new blood brought into the equation.

It wasn't from the Oahu people, but as a 10 year old back in 1964, I was probably on the very tail end of that era where my parents signed me up for lap steel lessons from a door-to-door salesman. I still have my Supro from those days, but within a few years that company was out of business.

Due to a number of factors that most of us are aware of, lap or non-pedal steel was going through a decline in popularity in those days.

Didn't Fender still produce Stringmasters up until about 1981? If I have my date correct, I am actually amazed that they kept production going that long.

If the instrument was losing popularity in the 60's, I'm surprised Fender kept them going until '81.

It's a whole different ballgame nowadays. The instrument has enjoyed its greatest popularity in years, and the quality guitars are being produced by small builders, in the same way the dobro is becoming increasingly popular, and the waiting lists from the top dobro luthiers are getting pretty lengthy.

The big player, Fender, has the goods on what is arguably the most coveted non-pedal of all time. It sure hits me to strike while the iron is hot.

Jody Carver · From: KNIGHT OF FENDER TWEED

Mark
I undertand your comment, what has Fender done? Look at the revolution and sucess Fender has enjoyed over the past years. I am
myself trying to help this cause. I am trying as best as I can.

Loni, Good to see you posting again my friend
Ron Brennan, Keep em flying buddy.

Dont ever give up the faith. Please bear with those like Rick who is the spearhead in this situation and I have promised Rick I will do all I can.

Jody PS I'm all shook up.

Wait, I am in touch with those who can offer some explanation as to a YES or NO.

[This message was edited by Jody Carver on 22 June 2006 at 10:00 AM.]

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