Lock Up Your Guitars

[chasea]

Guitar Frets: Environmental Enforcement Leaves Musicians in Fear | Postmodern Times - WSJ.com

As far as I know, both the Memphis and Nashville Gibson factories are shut down for now.

[54ny77]

That is one really fcuking stupid law if its applied retroactively to a vintage guitar made of now-illegally imported exotic wood.

At what point has big brother gone too far?

Common sense, man. Common sense.

[Dorman]

I'm so glad our government doesn't have anything better to do. They'll never find my Les Paul.

[armagh]

Two words: National Resophonic.

[WadePatton]

leave it to the feds to fuck up anything. wtf bust in and raid like it's a black market operation. stupid effing feds. saving the world one fingerboard at a time. moronic. and my last gibson moved to Denver recently.

[ergott]

There are 7 different woods used in my bass. I guess I have my homework cut out for me.

-Eric

[djg714]

Appears that Gibson screwed up...

btw read this...

Why Gibson Guitar Was Raided By The Justice Department : The Record : NPR

[Too Tall]

(Prisioner #234) "'Sup Too tall, what they get you for bro? Probably something BA like armed robbery right?".
(Prisioner TT) "Rosewood Coffee table was my downfall, it all began with walnut dining room chairs." (cough) "yo yo yo".

[XR2]

The government will make every possible effort to cash in on anything they can. And is not above breaking the law to do so.

[R.Liverman]

I have to imagine there's more to this than is present in those articles. I'm not sure how confiscating wood is "cashing in." That said, a retroactive application of the law seems like bullshit. Besides, who could ever conceive of a corporation breaking the law to increase profits?

[WadePatton]

my point is that the whole heavy-handed, para-military, hut hut hut attack process often employed by the feds is just over-the-top expensive and stupid in many cases.

two reasons they do it this way. to spend money (justify budgets) and to cause a distraction from the real corruption and slight-of-hand going on.

oh yeah, we shut you down, sent your employees home, took your materials, and well--we're working on the charges. so that's all we can say. we'll get back with you!?

and how is this Lacey act applied in "off-shore" facilities? where most guitars are made. answer- it's not.

are they going to storm the stages and bandstands and studios and rip instruments from performers hands now? there go some more domestic j-o-b-s down the shitcan.

[R.Liverman]

Wade, musicians are dangerous people who are at best mentally unstable. Would you have gone in with less?

With respect to the potential loss of jobs, just think of all the new jobs that will be created as they hunt down these clearly illegal instruments.

Ryan "fret inspector" Liverman.

[Bob Ross]

Two words: National Resophonic.

...or "Modulus Graphite"

[DougS]

i like to think the lesson here is ya'll shoulda bought fenders

[chasea]

'66 Hollow body bass. Anyone wanna start a contra-band?

[WadePatton]

more of the story has unfolded in the local (nashville) talk-radio market:

clerical documentation error wrt where the fingerboards were "finished".

seems that is perfectly okay for the indian worker to finish the fingerboards and then ship them to us.

we otoh aren't supposed to do that sort of thing here. no sirree bob!

federal RAID!!!

shit, burying guns is easy (i hear). burying a couple 335's takes a backhoe. what stable?

[dang]

more of the story has unfolded in the local (nashville) talk-radio market:

clerical documentation error wrt where the fingerboards were "finished".

seems that is perfectly okay for the indian worker to finish the fingerboards and then ship them to us.

we otoh aren't supposed to do that sort of thing here. no sirree bob!

federal RAID!!!

shit, burying guns is easy (i hear). burying a couple 335's takes a backhoe. what stable?

Nashville talk radio? Is that like talk radio everywhere else, in that it's meticulously researched, balanced, and dispassionate reporting, only more so?

[EricKeller]

i like to think the lesson here is ya'll shoulda bought fenders

Leo made my guitar with a rosewood fretboard.

[chasea]

The Lacey Act is going to be the subject of the keynote discussion at the upcoming NAMM. Its apparently quite vague and possibly retroactive. This is a problem for ANY instrument EVER made with wood from a country that later becomes illegal to harvest.

Its weird, because the wood in question, Madagascar Rosewood can be harvested both legally and illegally. It is an available option on Martin's Online Custom Guitar Shop. So it looks like the feds burst in, shut down operations, and then asked for proof the wood wasn't harvesteed illegally. Isn't this on the shoulders of Gibson's suppliers? And why only target the one company?

And for this to be the burden of secondhand buyers in the used market or owners returning to the country from touring is just ridiculous. Do you know who chopped the wood of the fretboard of the guitar you bought off that guy who got it from a pawn shop who got it from the original owner back before you were born? No? Then its ours now.

[chasea]

Update: Gibson knew it was importing illegal wood.
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2012...?_r=1&emc=eta1

Word from some of the Memphis employees is that the wood was sent over from Nashville before the raid. They were told to get rid of it (read: make guitars and get them out the door quick) and shut up about it. this is disappointing. I almost took a job as a finisher in that factory.