Shipping Pit Bull kit to the US

Has anyone ordered a Pit Bull kit from the U.S.? Did you have any customs issues? Any recommendations before I order?

I have. There were no customs issues.

You should be aware that there will be a heavy shipping fee. I think Pit Bull is still roughly competitive with equivalent US shippers. I don't think anyone can beat their selection. The heavy shipping fee does mean that it will be cost prohibitive to ship things back to them, unlike the case for the Aussies.

I emailed Adam before purchasing, and I recommend doing that. He inspected my kit to make sure t he neck was straight, and their were no major issues. I still had a few issues with the way my ES body lined up, but Adam could not have seen that without doing a full mock build. If you have major issues with something (I had a part that was not right that I needed to replace) Adam is very good about reimbursements or credits, but you can't expect him to eat the cost of shipping it back.

I had an ES kit, and there have been some issues with the way the neck and pre-drilled holes line up. This is not unique to Pit Bull, however. I have one from US shipper now with exactly the same issue.

My impression is that the folks who have purchased solid body kits have rarely had problems with fit and having pre-drilled holes line up. I would not hesitate about getting a solid body kit, but I'd ask Adam to take a good look before shipping.

The quilted maple tops are pretty, but fragil. Remember if there's an issue with it you won't be able to send it back.

Consider carefully if there is anyting that you might want from Pit Bull to be shipped with it... upgrade parts...bone nuts...stuff like that. Adam may be willing to package them together and save you on additional shipping.

It bears noting that the cost of shipping a guitar back to a US shipper is not free either. If you have to send something back to a US shipper you'll pay at least half what you pay to Pitbull. The forum here is great. Superhelpful, so that's something to think about as well. There seem to be lots of folks in Europe, UK, CDN, and a few diehards in the US as well as the Aussies on the board.

Hope this helps!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by fender3x

I have. There were no customs issues.

You should be aware that there will be a heavy shipping fee. I think Pit Bull is still roughly competitive with equivalent US shippers. I don't think anyone can beat their selection. The heavy shipping fee does mean that it will be cost prohibitive to ship things back to them, unlike the case for the Aussies.

I emailed Adam before purchasing, and I recommend doing that. He inspected my kit to make sure t he neck was straight, and their were no major issues. I still had a few issues with the way my ES body lined up, but Adam could not have seen that without doing a full mock build. If you have major issues with something (I had a part that was not right that I needed to replace) Adam is very good about reimbursements or credits, but you can't expect him to eat the cost of shipping it back.

I had an ES kit, and there have been some issues with the way the neck and pre-drilled holes line up. This is not unique to Pit Bull, however. I have one from US shipper now with exactly the same issue.

My impression is that the folks who have purchased solid body kits have rarely had problems with fit and having pre-drilled holes line up. I would not hesitate about getting a solid body kit, but I'd ask Adam to take a good look before shipping.

The quilted maple tops are pretty, but fragil. Remember if there's an issue with it you won't be able to send it back.

Consider carefully if there is anyting that you might want from Pit Bull to be shipped with it... upgrade parts...bone nuts...stuff like that. Adam may be willing to package them together and save you on additional shipping.

It bears noting that the cost of shipping a guitar back to a US shipper is not free either. If you have to send something back to a US shipper you'll pay at least half what you pay to Pitbull. The forum here is great. Superhelpful, so that's something to think about as well. There seem to be lots of folks in Europe, UK, CDN, and a few diehards in the US as well as the Aussies on the board.

Hope this helps!

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Very helpful, thank you f3x. I may send you more questions, if that is okay. You have a wealth of information to help a beginner like me. I will check for your builds on this forum. If you have any thoughts or other ideas that you think will help me, pls send my way and thanks so much for your input.

Rokitrik, I'm also a U.S. buyer, and I've had good luck mostly. I always order the "two for 1" shipping price, I've gotten 6 now. Only 1 shipment was screwed up, by Customs somewhere (probably Chicago). 1/2 of my order arrived. Adam made good on the missing unit with zero hassle. You just have to be patient.

But then again, that's what leads to a great guitar anyway. Patience gives you plenty of time for vision, and when you finally get excellent materials, you've got it in your head. And then the wood tells you where you screwed up your vision, but it is all part of it. ;)

First off - my philosophy on these is - "if it looks like factory, why bother?" so I generally take an artistic approach. I built a couple "standard" just so I knew I could, but then, I generally go rogue. I'll post galleries soon.

Back to the point - I've ordered and built, ESB4, HB4s, ATL1QW, and TLA 1 (quilted, which doesn't seem to be in the catalog right now).

Currently working on an AG1F and HB4 (flame maple).

Plus some other non PBG stuff. And that's an important note.

The build quality Adam is providing here exceeds what you'll get from U.S. outlets of similar for anything that isn't intended to be painted. Dramatically. I know, I've tried. ;) Worth the $$ in shipping by far.

Next to scratch building, which happens where I live smack here in the center of the U.S., this seems to be the best option. I'm just not quite ready for scratch... yet ;)

I ordered a Klein Headless kit back in December. It took exactly seven days to arrive, which included a few days sitting in Customs in Chicago. It was a completely painless experience.