Hi guys (and gals) My name is Danny Thompson, I use to post quite regularly on the *original* TDP with a lot of the old timers on here (Hi Fuzzy!) I’m posting under Mandy’s name because I can’t for the life of me remember my password… but the Screen name was Fatocaster! Many of you that know me and my wife Mandy (who I actually met on the original TDP) also know our story, or should I say nightmare, that began on June 7th, 2001 when I decided I wanted to get a custom built Telecaster from Vintique by Jay Monterose. Mandy & I both play music for a living and $1,800 is a LOT OF MONEY to us. We're always hand to mouth, there's good months and there's bad months, and getting this guitar was a
huge deal to us financially.
A short recap:
Initial order placed June 7th, 2001 with delivery of guitar by March 3rd 2002 for a Butterscotch finish with Joe Barden Pickups.
1 piece Tele body purchased 6/7/01 - Neck ordered and paid for 6/13/01 -
30% down payment sent 6/13/01 - 30% additional Payment sent 1/29/02 -
Guitar Case (thermometer) shipped by request to Jay 1/29/02.
On July 9th, 2002 Jay called and said the Tele would be ready “in about a month” that he was “waiting on a bridge”. In the mean time I had aquired a 1994 Gatton Sig Tele and also bought my wife a 1951 Telecaster… I no longer needed or even wanted the Vintique Tele.
In April of 2003 I sent a letter to Jay requesting the Tele or a refund. Other people were bad mouthing Jay and I was still standing up for him… It wasn’t easy, but I was. But by Sep. 29th 2004 with $1800.00 spent and nothing to show for it and after no contact what so ever in over a year, I had finally lost all faith in Jay Monterose and pretty much had written it all off to an expensive lesson learned.
Then around July of 2005 I found a contact number for Jay, and thought what the heck… I called it and he ANSWERED! Apparently expecting a call and not realizing it was me.
I confronted him about my guitar/money and he said he remembered me and still had my Body and Thermometer case!...yeah, right. I begged him to send me my case at least and he said “I’m going to finish it for you as soon as things get settled.” Well, I had heard that before and INSISTED that he send me a refund or at least have the decency to return my guitar case. I will admit, I was less than friendly and his reply to me was that “if I fu#@ed with him, nobody would get nothing!” On that note I hung up the phone with the thought (or hope) that someday, Jay Monterose would get what he deserves. If not from me, then by someone else that he has done this to.
That brings us to Oct. 20th 2006. A full 5 years, 4 months, 1 week and 6 days since my initial encounter with Vintique and… there’s an e-mail for Mandy titled: Vintique
The content says it’s ” Jay” looking to buy some bulk parts… needless to say I was FURIOUS! He obviously didn’t realize that Mandy was MY Mandy. So I sent back a very, very, nasty response assuming I’d hear nothing back. Which I didn’t.
Then on Nov. 18th, still having the “new” e-mail address for Jay/Vintique I sent a much simpler e-mail saying “if you want to make things right, you know how to get ahold of me” and included my phone number. This time… I got a reply, but not from Jay. It was from Jay’s new business partner Chihoe Hahn. He said that he had talked to Jay about me and Jay still had my Thermometer case and the one piece ash body I originally purchased and he could send pics of them if I’d like. He also said the Jay was fully aware of our past situation and was willing to complete my guitar!
My first reaction was absolutely NOT! I wanted my case back and I wanted my money back ASAP! But Chihoe was very persuasive and sent me his personal phone number and invited me to call and discuss the situation with him. He also included several photos of my Guitar Case and the ash body… I was absolutely amazed to say the least. The body is actually THE same body that they had sent me photos of in 2001. My name is even still written in the pickup cavity! My thermometer case still looked brand new and had my address tag tied to the handle!! So I called Mr. Chihoe Hahn
Chihoe was very professional and friendly and was also very understanding of my concerns. After a few minutes of explaining myself he offered me a solution. Jay would finish my Tele within 3 months time. They would gladly disregard the balance that I owed from the original purchase price and if I was not satisfied with the guitar, they would give me a complete refund. Again, I was somewhat speechless. After a few moments of processing all this new information I gave him my terms. Have the Tele in my hands by March 3rd 2007 (my birthday) and if it’s not here, then just send me a refund of my $1800.00. He agreed and said that if I wasn’t 100% satisfied with the guitar he would gladly purchase it back from me for a complete full refund. But the other thing he wanted me to do, was talk about it. Regardless if I kept the guitar or not. He wants people to know that Jay and Vintique are back in business and it’s a company that people can trust and a product that is unbeatable. He also invited me to keep in touch over the next few months and he would send me pics of the Tele as it was being completed!
So here is the first installment of my story including the first photos.
The one thing I have said all along about my experience with Jay wasn’t so much that he didn’t complete my guitar, but that he didn’t just tell me “Hey, I have some problems and I may not be able to finish your guitar and I don’t have the resources to give you a refund, but someday I’ll make it right.” That’s all I wanted… well that and my Tele and or refund! So here’s to the NEW and IMPROVED Vintique. Welcome back Jay, and welcome aboard Chihoe Hahn! I'd like to add that Chihoe has been very professional and quick to respond to my e-mails...if this is an indication of how the new Vintique will operate, I'll be very happy.
Look for future updates as I get them!
Danny Thompson
Fatocaster@aol.com
Here's two of the first photos I recieved :
