# Strandberg #6 on Ebay



## Syriel (Sep 15, 2013)

$15,000?

Wait wut.

Who owns this right now lol.

Strandberg 6 Headless 7 String First Neck thru Ever Built Incredible RARE | eBay


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## The Spanish Inquisition (Sep 15, 2013)

Isn't that Rook's Strandberg?

EDIT: nope, it's Zack Khoury's. Don't know his username on here.


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## xzyryabx (Sep 15, 2013)

engage


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## SavM (Sep 15, 2013)

I actually searched for Strandberg yesterday and saw this! Looks amazing, although only slightly out of my budget


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## ElRay (Sep 15, 2013)

He's pulling his admitted "Over price it on eBay to get offline solicitations" aka "advertising on somebody-else's nickel". And Zack/Engage757/skicom claims to be a good christian.

And before his sycophants start accusing me of making-up lies, these are all things that Zack's posted on THIS forum, never-mind the other forums he's been banned-at/chased-off.

Ray


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## Syriel (Sep 15, 2013)

ElRay said:


> He's pulling his admitted "Over price it on eBay to get offline solicitations" aka "advertising on somebody-else's nickel". And Zack/Engage757/skicom claims to be a good christian.
> 
> And before his sycophants start accusing me of making-up lies, these are all things that Zack's posted on THIS forum, never-mind the other forums he's been banned-at/chased-off.
> 
> Ray



Ohh. I get it now.

Just had a good laugh out of it.


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## Rook (Sep 15, 2013)

I sold it to Zack, this was actually a joke between myself and him, makes me laugh he actually did it hahaha. Surprised though.

It was mine though and it is legit. As much stick as Zack gets, jokes and the like aside he's extremely good to deal with.


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## mnemonic (Sep 15, 2013)

Ola doesn't build the guitars though, does he? Wouldn't this be an S7G? 

Granted I'm no expert on strandbergs.


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## The Spanish Inquisition (Sep 15, 2013)

mnemonic said:


> Ola doesn't build the guitars though, does he? Wouldn't this be an S7G?
> 
> Granted I'm no expert on strandbergs.



It carries his name because he started building those guitars by himself. Later he had Strictly7 to build a productionline which was more affordable, which he does the same with Washburn now. But the legit Strandbergs are still made by him.


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## Rook (Sep 15, 2013)

This is absolutely not a Strictly 7. It was built by Ola himself in 2010 as a twin to #5 owned by Chris Letchford. It then followed him round the world and became his demo as well as his icon - it's on his business card for goodness sake haha.

Fred Brum bought it in '11 when Ola had a new demo and that started their relationship, he then got his new new bergs (or was about to) so kindly sold it to me in '12. Now I'm in the same position, my slot's come up and I've paid half of it, since I'm not particularly well off I sold it on and Zack wanted to see how he got on with them. I sold it to him a little while ago but I know for a fact he doesn't like 7's so obviously he's done with it now.

It's an amazing guitar, believe me if I could have afforded to keep it I would, but I'm working in the assumption the build I spec'd out myself is gunna be everything I loved in #6 and more.

As my two choices were buying #6 and having to sell to pay for #55 and never owning #6 at all, I'm certain I made the right choice, and for all I knew a year ago I might have gotten lucky and been able to afford em both. Guess not though.

#6 was a huge inspiration to me, anyone who gets it will be lucky and will love it, nothing else like it exists. People wrongly say that about blackmachine, which in my opinion is a tweak on existing designs and sounds, #6 truly is it's own thing.

Brb weeping


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## narad (Sep 15, 2013)

Zack's pictures really sell it - straight-on it didn't appeal much to me, but when you see the figure (Zebrano?) wrap around the contours on the sides and back...dayumm. But my slot is up as well.

As to the ebay strategy, I don't care at all, but then some idiot's going to go running around saying you need $10k to buy a Strandberg merely because he saw this listing. Same thing happened when Zack put up that blackmachine.


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## mnemonic (Sep 15, 2013)

YJGB said:


> It carries his name because he started building those guitars by himself. Later he had Strictly7 to build a productionline which was more affordable, which he does the same with Washburn now. But the legit Strandbergs are still made by him.



ah, good to know, I thought he was just the brains behind the operation, rather than a luthier aswell.


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## ElRay (Sep 15, 2013)

Rook said:


> As much stick as Zack gets, jokes and the like aside he's extremely good to deal with.


Yes, along with the original snake-oil salesmen that were very nice to deal. Just because Zack's usually nice to deal with (however, there have been comments/complaints about him changing deals after they've been made), doesn't excuse the too-common insane mark-ups, the hiding of defects, the outright lies (e.g. James Hetfield played this guitar), intentionally violating eBay's TOS to get advertising on their nickel, the greasing of Alex's palm and/or kissing of other body-parts to undo multiple perm-bans here, Zack's current banned state (here), constant flipping, claims that he doesn't have time to play-while claiming to be in one ore more bands, etc., etc., etc.

Ray


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## The Spanish Inquisition (Sep 15, 2013)

mnemonic said:


> ah, good to know, I thought he was just the brains behind the operation, rather than a luthier aswell.



Nah man, Ola is a masterluthier. But he is the mastermind as well, he thought of a lot of the Strandberg things, as well as co-operated with other masterluthiers for other options, for example the trapezoid neckprofile.


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## The Spanish Inquisition (Sep 15, 2013)

Also, talking about Zack being banned and stuff:


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## vinniemallet (Sep 15, 2013)

If I win the euromillions next tuesday I'll buy this thing.


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## Rook (Sep 15, 2013)

ElRay said:


> Yes, along with the original snake-oil salesmen that were very nice to deal. Just because Zack's usually nice to deal with (however, there have been comments/complaints about him changing deals after they've been made), doesn't excuse the too-common insane mark-ups, the hiding of defects, the outright lies (e.g. James Hetfield played this guitar), intentionally violating eBay's TOS to get advertising on their nickel, the greasing of Alex's palm and/or kissing of other body-parts to undo multiple perm-bans here, Zack's current banned state (here), constant flipping, claims that he doesn't have time to play-while claiming to be in one ore more bands, etc., etc., etc.
> 
> Ray



As someone who doesn't spread things that aren't my own experience, I can only say Zack seems to be one of those people who people love to hate and spread crap about. He's not the usual 'snake oil salesman', really if people disagree with stuff he does just don't buy stuff from him.

He also absolutely is not in Alex's pocket believe me.


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## Jonathan20022 (Sep 15, 2013)

I'd advise someone lock this, name calling and shit talking gets you nowhere. If you have an opinion of someone and want it voiced, contact them and work out whatever negativity you have with them in private. Instead of posting snarky remarks here in a cheap shot way to get "likes" and humor yourself. It's not that hard to get ahold of him if you really have something to say, but this isn't a forum where we just spread gossip about people and try to enact internet justice.

If he's violating eBay's TOS, then let that be their issue and let them handle it. It seems like controversy is the only thing that makes people want to actually discuss things on this forum. Some of which I've personally also posted in and contributed to, not to come off as a hypocrite, but cut the bullshit.

I've spoken to Zack a couple of times and he was a nice guy, never dealt with him so I honestly have nothing against the guy.


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## JamesM (Sep 15, 2013)

engage


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## technomancer (Sep 15, 2013)

Wow and I thought he was out of his mind when he listed it for $6k on the forums


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## Cloudy (Sep 15, 2013)

I saw this the other day when I was doing my weekly search all really nice custom guitar companies on Ebay.

Ridiculous price but hell its a damn nice guitar.


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## Gilbertsgotbrootz (Sep 15, 2013)

I have dealt with Zack multiple times and hes by far one of the best people to deal with ....... How is there anything wrong with him buying a guitar and flipping it the next week ? I do the same shit I just don't have the same amount of guitars to flip . Its his guitar he bought it with his money just because you guys are all butthurt about a strandberg coming up for sale and zack asking a high amount for it doesn't mean hes a shitty person . What if he does get a offer from a guy in some country we have never heard of for 12k then what ? Then is his ''snake oil tactic'' still gonna be wrong ? Because then hes gonna buy a few more nice guitars and you guys will all get jealous and hate on him some more when he goes and sells them . So unless you have dealt with Zack don't talk shit . Theres some people on here I don't like but you don't see me going and attacking them in there posts every chance I can bringing up shit thats completely irrelevant to the post ..


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## User Name (Sep 15, 2013)

Gilbertsgotbrootz said:


> I have dealt with Zack multiple times and hes by far one of the best people to deal with ....... How is there anything wrong with him buying a guitar and flipping it the next week ? I do the same shit I just don't have the same amount of guitars to flip . Its his guitar he bought it with his money just because you guys are all butthurt about a strandberg coming up for sale and zack asking a high amount for it doesn't mean hes a shitty person . What if he does get a offer from a guy in some country we have never heard of for 12k then what ? Then is his ''snake oil tactic'' still gonna be wrong ? Because then hes gonna buy a few more nice guitars and you guys will all get jealous and hate on him some more when he goes and sells them . So unless you have dealt with Zack don't talk shit . Theres some people on here I don't like but you don't see me going and attacking them in there posts every chance I can bringing up shit thats completely irrelevant to the post ..



...... whoa bro


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## Winspear (Sep 15, 2013)

Having played this guitar I almost want to say it's worth it haha


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## Rook (Sep 15, 2013)

Zack's pricing aside, anybody who ends up with this guitar will be extremely lucky to do so, wonderful piece of engineering.


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## jfrey (Sep 15, 2013)

vinniemallet said:


> If I win the euromillions next tuesday I'll buy this thing.



yes me too


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## flexkill (Sep 15, 2013)

Gilbertsgotbrootz said:


> I have dealt with Zack multiple times and hes by far one of the best people to deal with ....... How is there anything wrong with him buying a guitar and flipping it the next week ? I do the same shit I just don't have the same amount of guitars to flip . Its his guitar he bought it with his money just because you guys are all butthurt about a strandberg coming up for sale and zack asking a high amount for it doesn't mean hes a shitty person . What if he does get a offer from a guy in some country we have never heard of for 12k then what ? Then is his ''snake oil tactic'' still gonna be wrong ? Because then hes gonna buy a few more nice guitars and you guys will all get jealous and hate on him some more when he goes and sells them . So unless you have dealt with Zack don't talk shit . Theres some people on here I don't like but you don't see me going and attacking them in there posts every chance I can bringing up shit thats completely irrelevant to the post ..



What you forget is that if people can come in here and blow smoke up Engage's ass, then people who have bad experiences/dealings with him have the right to come in here and drop the dirt as well. Not only do they have the right but they have a responsibility to do so for the sake of the community.

I have had a couple talks with Engage when he has contacted me about a bass I had for sale....totally tried to lowball me and then was very, In my opinion, very snooty and patronizing. He is very arrogant and he is bullying in his tactics.

I wouldn't buy a pack of strings from the kid.....but that is just my thoughts and opinions.

EBAY is exactly where Engage belongs IMHO....not here.


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## Rook (Sep 15, 2013)

This is the last time I'm getting involved in anything like this, but purely in the interest of fairness:
- People get lowballed, he didn't screw you because in the same way that nobody has to buy his stuff, you didn't have to sell to him
- The complaints started before the alleged ass-smoke-blowing; complaints from people who haven't dealt with him (with actual transactions) and people who have generally been, at the very least, satisfied.

I don't see how people liking the guy means that someone else has to balance it out with criticism, that's all.

And with the last thing I'm saying on that subject out the way, honestly let's just discuss this guitar because it really is worth discussion.


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## Gilbertsgotbrootz (Sep 15, 2013)

flexkill said:


> What you forget is that if people can come in here and blow smoke up Engage's ass, then people who have bad experiences/dealings with him have the right to come in here and drop the dirt as well. Not only do they have the right but they have a responsibility to do so for the sake of the community.
> 
> I have had a couple talks with Engage when he has contacted me about a bass I had for sale....totally tried to lowball me and then was very, In my opinion, very snooty and patronizing. He is very arrogant and he is bullying in his tactics.
> 
> I wouldn't buy a pack of strings from the kid.....but that is just my thoughts and opinions.


 I specifically said if you haven't dealt with him don't talk shit . I didn't say if you have ever had a problem with the guy keep it deep down inside lock it and throw the key away .


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## Negav (Sep 15, 2013)

15K with a big chip... How much are Strandbergs?


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## User Name (Sep 15, 2013)

hey guys ELE, everybody love everybody


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## narad (Sep 15, 2013)

Negav said:


> 15K with a big chip... How much are Strandbergs?



3-5k...but again, do not let a listing price reflect the intent of the auction or the worth of an instrument...


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## gunshow86de (Sep 15, 2013)

Negav said:


> 15K with a big chip... How much are Strandbergs?



Neck-through 7 model starts at $4,653.57 at today's exchange rate. 

Pricing | .strandberg* Guitars

$15,000 is ludicrous, but he certainly could/should charge a premium for skipping the waitlist (which is over 500 people now, it seems).

Wait List for a Made to Measure Guitar | .strandberg* Guitars


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## jfrey (Sep 15, 2013)

gunshow86de said:


> Neck-through 7 model starts at $4,653.57 at today's exchange rate.
> 
> Pricing | .strandberg* Guitars
> 
> ...


alright i need to spec out a strandberg #999 for my grandgrandgrandgrandson


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## Seanthesheep (Sep 15, 2013)

Rook said:


> I sold it to Zack, this was actually a joke between myself and him, makes me laugh he actually did it hahaha. Surprised though.
> 
> It was mine though and it is legit. As much stick as Zack gets, jokes and the like aside he's extremely good to deal with.



Whyd you sell it to Zach? 

EDIT: nvm


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## Señor Voorhees (Sep 15, 2013)

15k or best offer seems perfectly legit to me. It's like bartering, you ask a stupid high price and whittle it down to something you're willing to accept, only nobody is aware of what others are offering. This way the guy can ditch it for, let's say for example, 10k when if he set the opening bid to 4-5k, that might be all he gets. 

Perhaps I'm just dumb and unaware of how eBay works since I typically only go via buy it now or through ebay stores, but it doesn't seem that bad to me. And for the record, I have no idea who this guy is so I don't know why I should or shouldn't be hating him.


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## Rook (Sep 15, 2013)

gunshow86de said:


> Neck-through 7 model starts at $4,653.57 at today's exchange rate.



This has:
Stainless frets
Neck Thru
Chambered Zebrano wings
Moulded flightcase
Trapezoid Neck Profile

You're looking at close to $5500 if you ordered now plus either 25% tax in the EU or the $350 fully insured shipping and tax in the USA, $6500-7000.

That's assuming 500 (SEK) for the frets, 2000 for NT, 2000 for the timber and chambering, 3500 for the case (that's how much it cost) on a base price of 27500. Ola will only ship UPS worldwide express fully insured and no questionable declarations for anyone wondering.

The FX rate was from XE.com which is trade, the rate you actually get will vary. 

Just to be realistic, as someone who's just paying for their order now there were a lot of little costs I hadn't taken into account, they add up quick.  Be under no illusion about how much these actually cost, $4-5k doesn't get you much.


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## User Name (Sep 15, 2013)

Rook said:


> This has:
> Stainless frets
> Neck Thru
> Chambered Zebrano wings
> ...


thats still a ways from 15k, i dont think there will be any proper justification for such an insane price


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## Watty (Sep 15, 2013)

ElRay said:


> Yes, along with the original snake-oil salesmen that were very nice to deal. Just because Zack's usually nice to deal with (however, there have been comments/complaints about him changing deals after they've been made), doesn't excuse the too-common insane mark-ups, the hiding of defects, the outright lies (e.g. James Hetfield played this guitar), intentionally violating eBay's TOS to get advertising on their nickel, the greasing of Alex's palm and/or kissing of other body-parts to undo multiple perm-bans here, Zack's current banned state (here), constant flipping, claims that he doesn't have time to play-while claiming to be in one ore more bands, etc., etc., etc.
> 
> Ray



+1

While I never actually bought anything from him, there was some information that I was privy to as the result of one of his deals here that demonstrated just how true this sentiment is (Alex placating aside) let alone how douchey his antics in general (cough - Blackmachine April Fools -cough) happen to be. Good riddance to his banned status.

And all else aside, he's shown time an time again that he has plenty of money to throw around for gear. I understand that the guitar is worth a fair amount, but when money means little to you insofar as its actual worth is concerned, why bother with the situation that will inevitably arise when you post an asking anywhere near that number?

At the end of the day, I hope that someone deserving scores this guitar for a fair price and is able to effectively showcase their use of Ola's hard work to create some beautiful music rather than allowing it to be a showpiece for a man clearly concerned with flexing his financial muscle for no other reason than he can.


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## Rook (Sep 15, 2013)

User Name said:


> thats still a ways from 15k, i dont think there will be any proper justification for such an insane price



I was in no way attempting to justify the price, if I were I'd have made a better argument than 'but guise, dis costs l3ss than half as much new!!' haha.


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## ElRay (Sep 15, 2013)

Jonathan20022 said:


> I'd advise someone lock this, name calling and shit talking gets you nowhere.



Look, you don't get to make that decision. Zack's posted his lies here, he's been caught in lies here, he's had more perma-bans reversed while many longtime, valuable posters have had their accounts perma'ed over trifles with no reversal Any crap he pulls is open. It doesn't mean that he gets a buy just because he's got plenty of sycophants groveling at his feet and drinking his Kool-Aid.

Oh, in case you hadn't noticed, Ola Strandberg (the builder) has already called-out Zack and Zack's minions have posted to defend Zack.

Ray


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## ShawnFjellstad (Sep 15, 2013)

ElRay said:


> Look, you don't get to make that decision. Zack's posted his lies here, he's been caught in lies here, he's had more perma-bans reversed while many longtime, valuable posters have had their accounts perma'ed over trifles with no reversal Any crap he pulls is open. It doesn't mean that he gets a buy just because he's got plenty of sycophants groveling at his feet and drinking his Kool-Aid.



Daaaaaaaang! Proper burn!


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## ElRay (Sep 15, 2013)

Gilbertsgotbrootz said:


> How is there anything wrong with him buying a guitar and flipping it the next week ?



Dude, have you not read the posts here? Have you not done any research? This is one of those times when the fact that you have only been here a short time and have less than 300 posts is relevant. You don't know what you're talking about.

Zach/Engage/Skicom has been caught in lies on this forum and other forums. Zach/Engage/Skicom has been caught hiding flaws on this forum and other forums. Zach/Engage/Skicom has admitted, on this forum and other forums, to over pricing on eBay to solicit deals outside of eBay, in violation of eBay's TOS. Zach/Engage/Skicom has been perma-banned on this forum and other forums. Zach/Engage/Skicom has been caught on this forum shafting somebody over shipping. 

It is our responsibility to police this forum. This isn't a witch-hunt, this is just plain, simple reporting of actual events, of ways that Zach/Engage/Skicom has cooked his own goose. If his sycophants/minions want to post glowing "reviews", flood his profile to keep all traces of red from being visible, fine, but doesn't give them any grounds to demand that those that have seen the real Zach/Engage/Skicom not post the truth.

Ray


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## mcd (Sep 15, 2013)

ElRay said:


> Oh, in case you hadn't noticed, Ola Strandberg (the builder) has already called-out Zack .
> Ray



where was this? I love these I hate *enter username here* threads, they get my goat.


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## ElRay (Sep 15, 2013)

mcd said:


> where was this?



Go to Facebook, look for "Ola Strandberg" and read Ola's Wall.

Ray


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## User Name (Sep 15, 2013)

ElRay said:


> Dude, have you not read the posts here? Have you not done any research? This is one of those times when the fact that you have only been here a short time and have less than 300 posts is relevant. You don't know what you're talking about.
> 
> Zach/Engage/Skicom has been caught in lies on this forum and other forums. Zach/Engage/Skicom has been caught hiding flaws on this forum and other forums. Zach/Engage/Skicom has admitted, on this forum and other forums, to over pricing on eBay to solicit deals outside of eBay, in violation of eBay's TOS. Zach/Engage/Skicom has been perma-banned on this forum and other forums. Zach/Engage/Skicom has been caught on this forum shafting somebody over shipping.
> 
> ...


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## Gilbertsgotbrootz (Sep 15, 2013)

ElRay said:


> Dude, have you not read the posts here? Have you not done any research? This is one of those times when the fact that you have only been here a short time and have less than 300 posts is relevant. You don't know what you're talking about.
> 
> Zach/Engage/Skicom has been caught in lies on this forum and other forums. Zach/Engage/Skicom has been caught hiding flaws on this forum and other forums. Zach/Engage/Skicom has admitted, on this forum and other forums, to over pricing on eBay to solicit deals outside of eBay, in violation of eBay's TOS. Zach/Engage/Skicom has been perma-banned on this forum and other forums. Zach/Engage/Skicom has been caught on this forum shafting somebody over shipping.
> 
> ...


Again like I have said I have dealt with him a few times and never had a problem.. Everytime I ask him about a guitar I get 40 pictures of it and he discloses any dings scratches etc ... I don't understand all this minion crap . People that have actually done deals with him , that are standing up for him doesn't make them minions . I said what I have to say I am out .


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## ElRay (Sep 15, 2013)

Rook said:


> I don't see how people liking the guy means that someone else has to balance it out with criticism, that's all.



He's been caught lying about guitars he's selling on multiple forums.
He's been caught hiding flaws of guitars he's selling on multiple forums.
He's been perma-banned on multiple forums.

He's stupid/arrogant enough to lie on the ESP forums about an ESP he's trying to flip. 
He's stupid/arrogant enough to lie, on this forum, about flaws on a guitar he's flipping, that he bought on this forum.

If people want to sing his praise on a public forum, then the crap he's pulled is fair game too.

Ray


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## Watty (Sep 15, 2013)

Glad Ola noticed and that he elected not to resort to anything lower than some minor humor; respectable for sure.

Provided that thing sells for anything over what the original price was, I sure hope Zach has the decency to pay a commission to Ola. I always hate seeing the artists of exclusive "things" getting shafted by scalpers who seem to have nothing better to do than make money off the hard work of others. Even if I had the money, I'm not sure I would give it to Zach in exchange for this guitar. Then again, I suppose buying it to give back to Ola to resell on his own terms would be an appealing way to support him and his work.


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## narad (Sep 15, 2013)

Watty said:


> Provided that thing sells for anything over what the original price was, I sure hope Zach has the decency to pay a commission to Ola. I always hate seeing the artists of exclusive "things" getting shafted by scalpers who seem to have nothing better to do than make money off the hard work of others. Even if I had the money, I'm not sure I would give it to Zach in exchange for this guitar. Then again, I suppose buying it to give back to Ola to resell on his own terms would be an appealing way to support him and his work.



That's a bit extreme, isn't it? Zack didn't get it straight from Ola, and any one of us had the chance to nab it at a lower price when it went up for grabs here on the forum. I really can't think of a single industry where such a commission would be expected - it's out in free market world now.


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## Watty (Sep 15, 2013)

narad said:


> That's a bit extreme, isn't it? Zack didn't get it straight from Ola, and any one of us had the chance to nab it at a lower price when it went up for grabs here on the forum. I really can't think of a single industry where such a commission would be expected - it's out in free market world now.



Not necessarily an expectation in general, but it's something I'd practice if possible. I really like Baizley's work, for example, but I'd never pay a scalper on eBay 3x the original print price to get ahold of one after they sell out. Seems silly to pay that much for something and not have a cent of it go towards the artist. I realize it's not a direct parallel, but given that the price in this instance is solely warranted based on the fact that Ola's involved, I'd be giving him a piece of the pie if I managed to buy and sell it for more. Call me a romantic in that regard if you must, but I think we can try to keep capitalism's influence as null as possible when it comes to this arena of "business."

And I think the operative part of your post here is that "[we] had the chance to nab it at a lower price." This is exactly the crux of the matter. If Zach was posting it anywhere near the price he paid for it, there wouldn't be as much of a fuss. But given that he's on a fishing expedition for money at the mention of Ola's name, I can't support it in any capacity. If he genuinely wanted to own it for a bit, that'd be somewhat less of an instigation of jackassery on his part, but I know for a fact that he's sold guitars while they're in transit from the seller and this seems counterproductive to the luthier culture at best, and ________ (insert derogatory term here) at worst.

Edit: And it's not necessarily only on the "free market." It's on the "Zach" market, which is a whole different ballgame. Different rules, different expectations, and sometimes, a different outcome.

Edit2: I also find it funny that he listed its having been owned by Fred and Nick. I strongly believe that no one on here is going to pay him anywhere near what he wants even if they did have the capital to do so and the folks who might be stupid enough to indulge him aren't liable to know or care who these people are. (Even Tosin might be a toss-up in this regard). In short, he's actively catering to an audience that seems to want nothing to do with him.


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## Rook (Sep 15, 2013)

ElRay said:


> He's been caught lying about guitars he's selling on multiple forums.
> He's been caught hiding flaws of guitars he's selling on multiple forums.
> He's been perma-banned on multiple forums.
> 
> ...



I think you missed my point. Completely.


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## Lorcan Ward (Sep 15, 2013)

That is one hell of a guitar! If I hadn't some customs on the way I would have been all over this when you were selling it.


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## RagtimeDandy (Sep 15, 2013)

That's a pretty scumbag move there. Clever, but still underhanded.


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## StevenC (Sep 15, 2013)

drawnacrol said:


> That is one hell of a guitar! If I hadn't some customs on the way I would have been all over this when you were selling it.



If I hadn't a 'berg on the way, I too would have tried to get it from Rook.



drawnacrol said:


> some



Right...


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## Rook (Sep 15, 2013)

^

n.b. Zack put my name in the listing to make me laugh, nobody's under the impression anybody gives half a shit who I am


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## Jonathan20022 (Sep 15, 2013)

ElRay said:


> Jonathan20022 said:
> 
> 
> > I'd advise someone lock this, name calling and shit talking gets you nowhere.
> ...



Nothing against you, because we've never spoken nor had an exchange of words prior to this. But refrain from throwing my name under someone else's "minions" and equating it to being someone else's bitch, groveling and name calling is immature and pointless other than to feed a fire. I'm sure you can at least agree with that correct? Especially when a simple search will give you results of his bad transactions on this forums for you to make your own judgement. 

And yeah, I don't get to make that decision that's why it was a suggestion  because like I predicted this thread has gone nowhere. And it will continue to not go anywhere productive, there's a reason drama and personal shortcomings get put on shit low time shows like Murray.

But either way, reread what I said. I'm not defending his actions prior or present, and don't feel the need to waste my breath doing so. I'd just rather not see this community turn out to be a place like a couple other forums that I won't name.

And yeah I did notice, good on Ola.


----------



## Chuck (Sep 15, 2013)

Ray showing his ass ITT. 

Enough is enough let it die dude. Jesus Christ


----------



## Slunk Dragon (Sep 16, 2013)

"Includes the .strandberg* stand which is the only stand this guitar will work on, and believe it or not, is over $100 USD!"

Serious or not, that last bit made me laugh hard. That stand's made out of the cheapest plywood! Really?


----------



## skeels (Sep 16, 2013)

the .standberg*


----------



## SamSam (Sep 16, 2013)

Rook said:


> This has:
> Stainless frets
> Neck Thru
> Chambered Zebrano wings
> ...



I don't believe he is charging 2000sek for the zebrawood. It's comparable to two tops I ordered for mine which realistically would be harder to obtain than that wood...

I'm extremely curious to know how much extra he has added to the price compared to what he paid for it. But it's none of my business and I certainly wouldn't press for such information.


----------



## EvilPopsicleDog (Sep 16, 2013)

Slunk Dragon said:


> "Includes the .strandberg* stand which is the only stand this guitar will work on, and believe it or not, is over $100 USD!"
> 
> Serious or not, that last bit made me laugh hard. That stand's made out of the cheapest plywood! Really?


You mean chipboard?


----------



## TomAwesome (Sep 16, 2013)

I'd rather buy a Jackson from Christian Wolbers.


----------



## fortisursus (Sep 16, 2013)

Well i've never had any exchange with the guy. Only his annoying posts on Guitar Porn page on facebook constantly trying to sell his stuff(doesn't outweigh the fact that I like seeing random sexy guitars). 

But here is a novel idea. Lets be happy nice community and forget the guy ever existed.


----------



## Rick (Sep 16, 2013)

TomAwesome said:


> I'd rather buy a Jackson from Christian Wolbers.



Tom wins.


----------



## Drew (Sep 16, 2013)

ElRay said:


> Oh, in case you hadn't noticed, Ola Strandberg (the builder) has already called-out Zack and Zack's minions have posted to defend Zack.



If I were Ola, I'd be feeling a little dirty right now. I think he's handling himself pretty well here, all things considered. 

I've never personally dealt with Zach, but I've seen enough deals he's involved in go south that I wouldn't choose to deal with him. And even 2-3 years ago back when he was still a semi-regular at Metalguitarist.org, his pricing was already pretty "optimistic," though back then it was generally limited to selling used Carvins for a couple hundred over new pricing. Lately, it's like he's lost what little shame he had left. Buyer beware.


----------



## Fred the Shred (Sep 16, 2013)

WTS playing your custom guitar - massive upcharge guaranteed, will include video. 2k or 50% of upcharge to apply.


----------



## silent suicide (Sep 16, 2013)

Tbh, let him sell what he wants. I feel sorry for the dumbass buying it.


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## eaeolian (Sep 16, 2013)

TomAwesome said:


> I'd rather buy a Jackson from Christian Wolbers.


----------



## Drew (Sep 16, 2013)

Fred the Shred said:


> WTS playing your custom guitar - massive upcharge guaranteed, will include video. 2k or 50% of upcharge to apply.



 Come up to Boston, and I'll pay in beer.


----------



## SavM (Sep 16, 2013)

How could I not post this?? Hah


----------



## Negav (Sep 16, 2013)

Fred the Shred said:


> WTS playing your custom guitar - massive upcharge guaranteed, will include video. 2k or 50% of upcharge to apply.



Fred, could you play my Schecter? I'd like to sell it for 15k.


----------



## Andromalia (Sep 16, 2013)

Fred the Shred said:


> WTS playing your custom guitar - massive upcharge guaranteed, will include video. 2k or 50% of upcharge to apply.


If you wear corpse paint, I might take you up on this. 

On topic, I didn't do any deal with him, but when I enquired about the price if the Jake E Lee charvel the price he gave me was...er...no.


----------



## gunshow86de (Sep 16, 2013)

TomAwesome said:


> I'd rather buy a Jackson from Christian Wolbers.



But COW has already saturated the market.


----------



## BlackWinds10 (Sep 16, 2013)

Guys, what happened to the days where we were all friendly to each other? I feel in the years I've been in this forum, it's members have de-evolved. This forum used to feel friendly, welcoming, and helpful, but now it just seems that there's always some sort of drama and slandering. Stuff like this ALWAYS gets dragged out and turns into a pissing match on this forum now...


----------



## Andromalia (Sep 16, 2013)

Did you ever see a family without pointless bickering ?


----------



## HeHasTheJazzHands (Sep 16, 2013)

TomAwesome said:


> I'd rather buy a Jackson from Christian Wolbers.


----------



## Watty (Sep 16, 2013)

BlackWinds10 said:


> Guys, what happened to the days where we were all friendly to each other? I feel in the years I've been in this forum, it's members have de-evolved. This forum used to feel friendly, welcoming, and helpful, but now it just seems that there's always some sort of drama and slandering. Stuff like this ALWAYS gets dragged out and turns into a pissing match on this forum now...



Not saying this regarding solely this situation, but at what point are you allowed to disown a friend for their bad behavior? From what I've seen, there hasn't been much in the way of unjustified "issues" between the forum populace and a given member...always warranted given past events.

Edit: Also, Colbert gif? Win.


----------



## Drew (Sep 16, 2013)

BlackWinds10 said:


> Guys, what happened to the days where we were all friendly to each other? I feel in the years I've been in this forum, it's members have de-evolved. This forum used to feel friendly, welcoming, and helpful, but now it just seems that there's always some sort of drama and slandering. Stuff like this ALWAYS gets dragged out and turns into a pissing match on this forum now...



From a guy with a join date of 2010, that says volumes.


----------



## capoeiraesp (Sep 16, 2013)

As much as I enjoy the pics coming through my FB from Guitar Porn, and as much as I hate the 'buy my guitar' advertising that occurs, the thread below speaks clearly about how Engage deals, at times. 
http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/ge...e-silver-bluetooth-keyboard-leather-case.html

What was even more manipulative was how he created a photo thread soon after of a nice ass Mayones just so he could clear the neg rep he'd recently received from different threads/posts, such as the iPad thread.


----------



## ShawnFjellstad (Sep 16, 2013)

TomAwesome said:


> I'd rather buy a Jackson from Christian Wolbers.





/thread


----------



## flexkill (Sep 17, 2013)

capoeiraesp said:


> As much as I enjoy the pics coming through my FB from Guitar Porn, and as much as I hate the 'buy my guitar' advertising that occurs, the thread below speaks clearly about how Engage deals, at times.
> http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/ge...e-silver-bluetooth-keyboard-leather-case.html
> 
> What was even more manipulative was how he created a photo thread soon after of a nice ass Mayones just so he could clear the neg rep he'd recently received from different threads/posts, such as the iPad thread.



This was a good one. 

http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/guitars-sale-trade-wanted/230951-ft-ibanez-j-custom-gold-ii-very-rare-jcrg.html

Has shady story and doesn't describe all issues....only mentions EBAY when called out on it....then when starts catching guff he says "never mind....after playing this thing it is so awesome I am keeping it" LMAO.....so he bought a 4000 dollar guitar and never played it before he marks up the price and tries to pass it on to the SS community. AWESOME!

EDIT: Look folks...I don't want to beat a dead horse here about Engage and his character. My thing is, If you can not be banned for being caught on several occasions flat out lying in FS threads...how can anyone be banned for anything? I have seen people banned for far less crimes around here. I am not a Mod and I don't pretend to know better than them what goes on around here.....so there must be more to it than we all know.....right?


----------



## Suho (Sep 17, 2013)

I have never dealt with engage and won't comment on that, but what I love most about this listing is that with the $15K asking price, he is still charging a shipping fee on top of that! Amazing.


----------



## Pikka Bird (Sep 17, 2013)

gunshow86de said:


> Neck-through 7 model starts at $4,653.57 at today's exchange rate.
> 
> Pricing | .strandberg* Guitars



This has me confused... Boden and Varberg? Where's the Ola-built option?


----------



## StevenC (Sep 17, 2013)

Pikka Bird said:


> This has me confused... Boden and Varberg? Where's the Ola-built option?



Production models are Washburns.

Made to Measure are Ola built.

Boden and Varberg are shapes.


----------



## Pikka Bird (Sep 17, 2013)

^Ah, thanks... I didn't hear the name "Boden" until S7 got the contract, so I figured it was the name for the production line, like Suhr Rasmus or something.


----------



## Majkel (Sep 17, 2013)

StevenC said:


> Boden and Varberg are shapes.



And if you're not Swedish and didn't know - Boden and Varberg are both places in Sweden


----------



## Drew (Sep 17, 2013)

flexkill said:


> This was a good one.
> 
> http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/guitars-sale-trade-wanted/230951-ft-ibanez-j-custom-gold-ii-very-rare-jcrg.html
> 
> Has shady story and doesn't describe all issues....only mentions EBAY when called out on it....then when starts catching guff he says "never mind....after playing this thing it is so awesome I am keeping it" LMAO.....so he bought a 4000 dollar guitar and never played it before he marks up the price and tries to pass it on to the SS community. AWESOME!



It gets better - he just listed it over at Jemsite for $10k a week or so ago, only to have the thread closed for not complying with reseller rules there. 

My favorite part in that thread is that he implies he took it to band practice - this is the guy who once told me he changed his picking technique so he wouldn't get pick marks on his guitars. That was the point where I lost all respect for him.

I just don't get why you would jeopardize your reputation by pulling stuff like this - getting an absolute steal and then turning around and selling immediately for fair market value is a little iffy to begin with, but buying something at fair pricing and then asking for what's probably a $6k/150% upcharge a couple months later is ....ing nuts. Anyone know what he paid for the Strandberg in this thread? Rook, would you mind sharing?


----------



## SamSam (Sep 17, 2013)

Drew said:


> Anyone know what he paid for the Strandberg in this thread? Rook, would you mind sharing?



I doubt we will ever find out... I will say that #56 which is pretty well decked out is costing me far far less than half that. Much closer to a third of that price. Even if he would get half that he making of like a robber


----------



## The Spanish Inquisition (Sep 17, 2013)

TomAwesome said:


> I'd rather buy a Jackson from Christian Wolbers.



I think I'm missing something. Did he overprice them?


----------



## downburst82 (Sep 17, 2013)

^^ yes would be the short answer..


----------



## The Spanish Inquisition (Sep 17, 2013)

downburst82 said:


> ^^ yes would be the short answer..



Give me the long answer, please. I haven't learned from the internet today, and my goal is at least once a day.


----------



## downburst82 (Sep 17, 2013)

http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/ge...n/30163-christian-olde-wolbers-gear-sale.html

http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/se...itar-christian-olde-wolbers-worth-4500-a.html



I swear there used to be a couple other threads as well but I cant find them right now.

Basically he was kinda notorious for selling his various jackson custom and signature models at inflated prices. If I remember right for awhile it seemed like he was just getting his free sig guitars from jackson then throwing autographs on them and selling them whenever he needed rent money.

If I am mistaken or anyone( a veteran perhaps)wants to clarifying anything please do.

ps: no disrespect to Mr COW intended, I got to meet him years ago and he was a really nice guy. These are just some of the details of his mythology on the forums


----------



## The Spanish Inquisition (Sep 17, 2013)

downburst82 said:


> http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/ge...n/30163-christian-olde-wolbers-gear-sale.html
> 
> http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/se...itar-christian-olde-wolbers-worth-4500-a.html
> 
> ...



Thanks!


----------



## Jakke (Sep 17, 2013)

Majkel said:


> And if you're not Swedish and didn't know - Boden and Varberg are borth places in Sweden



Det finns en plats på jorden där solen aldrig ler, den platsen heter Boden, och dit vill jag aldrig mer.

/It's an old military rhyme (Boden has a fortress) which says that Boden is the least likeable place in the world
^Just for the foreigner that for some reason is interested.



BlackWinds10 said:


> Guys, what happened to the days where we were all friendly to each other? I feel in the years I've been in this forum, it's members have de-evolved. This forum used to feel friendly, welcoming, and helpful, but now it just seems that there's always some sort of drama and slandering. Stuff like this ALWAYS gets dragged out and turns into a pissing match on this forum now...



SSO.. You've changed man... Whatever happened us man?


This all reminds me that I have to contact Ola one of these days to come visit, as I live in the same city as he has his workshop in.


----------



## Jeff (Sep 17, 2013)

Drew said:


> From a guy with a join date of 2010, that says volumes.



Yeah, coming from someone far before 2010, this place is pretty much unrecognizable.


----------



## Overtone (Sep 17, 2013)

I think it's cool that Zack managed to find a way to get his hands on such a plethora of guitars and enjoy their character for a while even if he doesn't hang on to them very long. Enjoy the finer things in life, and their variety. I wouldn't do the same because the longer I have a guitar the more I like it (hell, I never sold/traded an instrument, in fact, though I would consider it) but I don't judge. The only thing that doesn't seem right to me is that he would list stuff here at prices higher than his ebay Buy it Now prices, which seems to really disrespect the community no matter how many times you say OBO. And being less than clear about potential issues is another big NO. 

But this ebay listing... I couldn't give a shit if it was $4k or $15k. If you are upset by a buyer flipping the instruments you sell them then do your due diligence. If you are a buyer and you don't like the price, don't buy. If you MADE the instrument, then I do sympathize because someone else is profiting from the arbitrage opportunity, but try to feel flattered instead of robbed.


----------



## skeels (Sep 17, 2013)

I haven't been here for a while. 

Did I miss something? 


Is Djod not cool anymore?


----------



## Overtone (Sep 17, 2013)

nop. all about 80's big dick vibrato now


----------



## The Spanish Inquisition (Sep 17, 2013)

skeels said:


> I haven't been here for a while.
> 
> Did I miss something?
> 
> ...



How dare you doubt our one and only Djod.


----------



## Jakke (Sep 17, 2013)

YJGB said:


> How dare you doubt our one and only Djod.



Djod is the opium of the people


----------



## skeels (Sep 17, 2013)

Well what the hell is NSTLPWPFICDIRA then?

Jakke, I'm looking in your direction. ..


----------



## skeels (Sep 17, 2013)

More importantly, how in the hell did it take me twelve minutes to type NSWTLILPWPFICDIRA?


----------



## Jakke (Sep 17, 2013)

skeels said:


> Well what the hell is NSTLPWPFICDIRA then?
> 
> Jakke, I'm looking in your direction. ..



We are a revolutionary marxist-leninist-stalinist front to protect the proletariat from djodist reactionary religious attacks.



skeels said:


> More importantly, how in the hell did it take me twelve minutes to type NSWTLILPWPFICDIRA?



The awesomeness of a movement is directionally proportionate to the length of their acronym. That is the reason why NSDAP never lasted.


----------



## Pooluke41 (Sep 17, 2013)

Jakke said:


> We are a revolutionary marxist-leninist-stalinist front to protect the proletariat from djodist reactionary religious attacks.



I thought we were Trotsky-Leninist anti-revisionists for the cessation of Djodist reactionaries and the Djodist establishment.

Or at least we were last week.

How are we going to attract the sexy, voluptuous Red Rosa to our house party if we can't decide on a definition?!


----------



## Drew (Sep 17, 2013)

Overtone said:


> If you are a buyer and you don't like the price, don't buy. If you MADE the instrument, then I do sympathize because someone else is profiting from the arbitrage opportunity, but try to feel flattered instead of robbed.



Trust me, I'm probably not the one you want to discuss arbitrage with.  Calling this an "arbitrage opportunity" implies there actually IS a market where that guitar is worth $15k. I don't think anyone in this thread has seen that. 

I also don't know how much time Zach had to "enjoy the character" of this guitar, if he bought it a week ago and it's already for sale.


----------



## Jakke (Sep 17, 2013)

Pooluke41 said:


> I thought we were Trotsky-Leninist anti-revisionists for the cessation of Djodist reactionaries and the Djodist establishment.
> 
> Or at least we were last week.
> 
> How are we going to attract the sexy, voluptuous Red Rosa to our house party if we can't decide on a definition?!



I was him a shorter summary


----------



## Pooluke41 (Sep 17, 2013)

Jakke said:


> I was him a shorter summary



I better see this face at our party..


----------



## Jakke (Sep 17, 2013)

You will.


----------



## SamSam (Sep 17, 2013)

Overtone said:


> I think it's cool that Zack managed to find a way to get his hands on such a plethora of guitars and enjoy their character for a while even if he doesn't hang on to them very long. Enjoy the finer things in life, and their variety. I wouldn't do the same because the longer I have a guitar the more I like it (hell, I never sold/traded an instrument, in fact, though I would consider it) but I don't judge. The only thing that doesn't seem right to me is that he would list stuff here at prices higher than his ebay Buy it Now prices, which seems to really disrespect the community no matter how many times you say OBO. And being less than clear about potential issues is another big NO.
> 
> But this ebay listing... I couldn't give a shit if it was $4k or $15k. If you are upset by a buyer flipping the instruments you sell them then do your due diligence. If you are a buyer and you don't like the price, don't buy. If you MADE the instrument, then I do sympathize because someone else is profiting from the arbitrage opportunity, but try to feel flattered instead of robbed.



I think the point is that this guy doesn't guy guitars for the pleasure of owning them, it's effectively a business for him. Hell, he should be paying ....ing taxes on his profits.


----------



## Overtone (Sep 17, 2013)

Drew said:


> Trust me, I'm probably not the one you want to discuss arbitrage with.  Calling this an "arbitrage opportunity" implies there actually IS a market where that guitar is worth $15k. I don't think anyone in this thread has seen that.
> 
> I also don't know how much time Zach had to "enjoy the character" of this guitar, if he bought it a week ago and it's already for sale.




He hangs on to _some_ of them for a bit longer if he gets attached 

I didn't ever say $15k was the market value. If you find someone who wants to sell at a fair and honest price without pricing for the fact that there is limited supply and a long waitlist, and you buy at that price, and then sell to somebody at a price that DOES reflect the limited supply and long waitlist, how is that not arbitrage?


----------



## mcd (Sep 17, 2013)

this is still going?

Who cares? He scum bags people not much use talking about it for 5 thread pages.


----------



## MF_Kitten (Sep 17, 2013)

Isn't the idea of these kinds of crazy prices that it forces potential buyers to give offers? Like, he isn't actually expecting someone to pay him $15K for it, but rather expects to get offers?


----------



## skeels (Sep 17, 2013)

What was that thing about hats again?


----------



## Drew (Sep 17, 2013)

Overtone said:


> He hangs on to _some_ of them for a bit longer if he gets attached
> 
> I didn't ever say $15k was the market value. If you find someone who wants to sell at a fair and honest price without pricing for the fact that there is limited supply and a long waitlist, and you buy at that price, and then sell to somebody at a price that DOES reflect the limited supply and long waitlist, how is that not arbitrage?



Because, theoretically, if there was demand above the price that engage bought it at, then someone would have outbid him, no?

It's not arbitrage because arbitrage is simultaneously transacting in multiple markets to exploit pricing differences between the two: 

Arbitrage Definition | Investopedia

The idea is you buy low in one market while selling high in another, capturing a risk-free profit in the process. This is generally considered a good thing for the market because it helps eliminate pricing anomalies and mispricings between markets, and improves market efficiency. 

Considering it sounds like a new, built to order Strandberg can be had for maybe a 4th of the price of this, I have an awfully hard time considering this an improvement in market efficiency or a valuable step for price discovery. This is pure opportunism - hoping that by getting it up on eBay with a ludicrous asking price, some idiot who doesn't know any better will actually hit the BIN, or consider talking Zach down 33% to an even $10k a "good deal." Now, caveat emptor and all that, but intentionally trying to defraud someone is a far cry from arbitrage. 

If you want to improve market efficiency, better price transparency (you know, like what we actually have in the finance world, where you're borrowing the concept of arbitrage) would be a great first step. So too would be tossing guys like Zach out of the market.


----------



## Drew (Sep 17, 2013)

MF_Kitten said:


> Isn't the idea of these kinds of crazy prices that it forces potential buyers to give offers? Like, he isn't actually expecting someone to pay him $15K for it, but rather expects to get offers?



Yeah - and it gives him the opportunity to do the deal outside of Ebay, which saves him money and is a violation of their policies. It's unethical on about every possible level, save some vague talk of "sticking it to the man."


----------



## Overtone (Sep 17, 2013)

Drew said:


> Because, theoretically, if there was demand above the price that engage bought it at, then someone would have outbid him, no?
> 
> It's not arbitrage because arbitrage is simultaneously transacting in multiple markets to exploit pricing differences between the two:
> 
> ...


 
Zack probably found someone who was just trying to make a &#8220;fair and honest&#8221; deal without pricing for the waitlist, and is probably trying to find someone to sell it to who WILL pay up because of the waitlist issue. Those are your two markets. Come one man, you don&#8217;t have to go quoting investopedia to me of all people, especially when ticket scalping is a textbook example of arbitrage and this is not much different.


----------



## poopyalligator (Sep 17, 2013)

capoeiraesp said:


> As much as I enjoy the pics coming through my FB from Guitar Porn, and as much as I hate the 'buy my guitar' advertising that occurs, the thread below speaks clearly about how Engage deals, at times.
> http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/ge...e-silver-bluetooth-keyboard-leather-case.html
> 
> What was even more manipulative was how he created a photo thread soon after of a nice ass Mayones just so he could clear the neg rep he'd recently received from different threads/posts, such as the iPad thread.



THIS! 

I was asking questions about the ipad (stuff i already knew) just so people could see how much he was bullshitting. I already owned one and knew everything about them. I just wanted to see if he would tip toe around his bullshit price and try to justify it. Then he posted some off country website selling it for an out of country price to try and make his price look realistic. I understand that some people have had positive transactions with him, and I am glad that they got what they wanted, but I have seen in MANY occasions where he has lied, manipulated prices, didn't show damage, lied about shipping, and other things of that sort. I have never dealt with him before based on those principals alone. 

Also apparently every single guitar is the best one he has ever played (at least that is what he says in the sale ads for every guitar he ever sells). I know a lot of people here are friends with him, and you can say I am full of shit or whatever, but I have seen the threads on this and other forums, and everything that people have said about him are 100% true. Like I said before I have never dealt with him before, but I have see a lot of his shifty tricks and sales. Just something to think about.


----------



## Xaios (Sep 17, 2013)

The fact that Djod came up in this thread is just icing on the cake. 

Without getting into whether or not Engage is a jerkhole for his business practices, the price reflects a phenomenon that's been getting stronger thanks to the internet.

(Bear with me, as I'm having trouble properly verbalizing what I'm trying to say.)

Basically, the internet has allowed for communities with highly specific interests to form like never before. As a side-effect, it has allowed niche luthiers such as Blackmachine and Strandberg to focus their marketing and make their presence more well-known within that community than it ever might have been.

A side-effect of the side-effect, you might say, is that certain items are gaining status as being highly collectible faster than we'd have ever thought possible before. Let's face it, Strandberg, for all of Ola's undeniable talent as a luthier and business acumen, has not been particularly well-known for very long, maybe about 4 years. And yet, in that time, his reputation has grown to such a degree that his earlier guitars, which are only a very few years old themselves, can be sold on the secondary market for more than it would cost to build a new guitar exactly like it.

You've gotta wonder if the very existence of the medium by which these items are being sold (the internet) is having an effect on the market value of the items themselves by ensuring that vendors always have a willing audience and pool of buyers simply because they're now all concentrated together, even if there's not really anymore of them than there was before.


----------



## Watty (Sep 17, 2013)

Drew said:


> I also don't know how much time Zach had to "enjoy the character" of this guitar, if he bought it a week ago and it's already for sale.



I know for a fact he's sold/traded at least one guitar before it even arrived at his door. Had to give the buyer the pictures from the seller he'd bought it from and made up some excuse about why he couldn't take more...


----------



## Hollowway (Sep 17, 2013)

Overtone said:


> Zack probably found someone who was just trying to make a fair and honest deal without pricing for the waitlist, and is probably trying to find someone to sell it to who WILL pay up because of the waitlist issue. Those are your two markets. Come one man, you dont have to go quoting investopedia to me of all people, especially when ticket scalping is a textbook example of arbitrage and this is not much different.



I don't know if it's arbitrage (I don't even know what that is), if it's against Ebay's rules, or what it cost him to buy it. But after reading this thread, and the links to other sales, it appears that he's trying to make money off of people's ignorance, which is in my book unethical. I understand it's not illegal, but that doesn't make it right. To me, this would only be acceptable if there was something in the listing that said this guitar could be purchased new for $5500 or whatever, but that it could be had for more if someone wanted to pay to not have to wait for it to be built. You and I can disagree with whether it's OK to do that or not, but I believe that people should be open about what they're doing. Otherwise it's lying by omission. I don't think a caveat emptor approach to sales is a respectable method of doing business. And this is going to sound weird and rude, but I also believe that my way is right, and will always feel superior because my way is based on honesty. So this isn't a simple disagreement about two things of equal merit. It's a matter of doing what is right vs what is wrong.

(And none of this is to say I don't like him. He seems like a nice enough guy. But knowing this I won't ever buy or sell anything involving him.)


----------



## Bloody_Inferno (Sep 17, 2013)

Jeff said:


> Yeah, coming from someone far before 2010, this place is pretty much unrecognizable.


 
Dude get off my lawn!


----------



## Drew (Sep 17, 2013)

Overtone said:


> Zack probably found someone who was just trying to make a &#8220;fair and honest&#8221; deal without pricing for the waitlist, and is probably trying to find someone to sell it to who WILL pay up because of the waitlist issue. Those are your two markets. Come one man, you don&#8217;t have to go quoting investopedia to me of all people, especially when ticket scalping is a textbook example of arbitrage and this is not much different.



To "you of all people"? And why is that? 

If you want to get that technical, I'd model this as an example of a forward contract with an extremely high cost of carry rather than market arbitrage - tickets, for better or for worse, are a commodity and can be substituted easily, and Zach is presenting this one as a distinctly non-commodified guitar with no ready substitutes; as someone pointed out earlier in this thread, this is the one on all of Ola's business cards, it's "the first neck thru" and was played by the likes of Letchford and Brum. Pointing to the waiting list one ignores the fact that this guitar is being sold as a unique and non-replaceable item rather than a commodity with ready substitutes (as he's presenting it as unique even for a Strandberg), and two that even if it were the trade is temporal in nature; what you're buying isn't so much a (non-commodified) guitar so much as a guitar today, rather than one say three years in the future. 

Why we're having this conversation, of course, is beyond me, as we both know that this isn't what he's doing.


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## Blitzie (Sep 17, 2013)

My experience with Zach is consistent with everyone else's, it seems.

I traded him my Ibanez RGA121 in the rare "crushed deep ocean" finish. I wanted to trade him for a Carvin that he had set the value at $1000 for. He told me the RGA wasn't worth more than $600, so I would have to add cash on top of the Ibanez.

He said that I would have to add $250 on top of the Ibanez and he was "still taking a big hit" on it. I had no idea about the value of the Carvin so I agreed to pay the extra and we made the trade.

THE DAY HE GOT THE IBANEZ, HE SNAPPED PICTURES AND PUT IT UP IN ONE OF HIS GIANT FOR SALE THREADS. And to add insult to injury, he listed the trade value of the Ibanez at $850. So he made $250 off of me and then the "value" he told me it had was suddenly $250 higher.

I loved that guitar. I'll never forgive him for that.

I'm not trying to talk smack but I am very glad that he's banned from here. The things he did, like this eBay listing, are just wrong. I doubt he can even play guitar at this point.


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## GreatWhiteYeti (Sep 17, 2013)

He isn't in the TEA party he's safe as far as taxes go


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## flexkill (Sep 18, 2013)

Blitzie said:


> My experience with Zach is consistent with everyone else's, it seems.
> 
> I traded him my Ibanez RGA121 in the rare "crushed deep ocean" finish. I wanted to trade him for a Carvin that he had set the value at $1000 for. He told me the RGA wasn't worth more than $600, so I would have to add cash on top of the Ibanez.
> 
> ...


This right here is EXACTLY wtf I am talking about and it pisses me off real bad! I know people will say it is Blitzies fault for not knowing the value of his own instrument and that is a fact....but Engage has absolutely no problem taking advantage of another person here in this community and it should NOT be allowed. You don't put a pedophile in a playground full of kids...and IMHO you shouldn't let a con man prey on our Market Place/community here. There are a lot of newbies and younger people on this forum and he is just allowed to pounce on them like a lion on a gazelle!


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## Necris (Sep 18, 2013)

^ In no way is this a defense of his behavior, but he isn't the only member here who has taken advantage of a less informed member to make a bit of extra cash on top of a trade for a guitar that was going to be flipped to begin with.


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## flexkill (Sep 18, 2013)

Necris said:


> ^ In no way is this a defense of his behavior, but he isn't the only member here who has taken advantage of a less informed member to make a bit of extra cash on top of a trade for a guitar that was going to be flipped to begin with.



Your post is pointless unless you say a name. If you don't say who you are talking about it sounds as if you are saying what Engage does is OK because "other" people do it as well. I know of no other member who has had this much dirt swept under the rug....if you do by all means I'd love to know who so I can avoid him/her as well.


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## Blitzie (Sep 18, 2013)

In fairness to myself, I was aware of the trade value of my Ibanez, but I was unaware of the street value of Carvins. It was worth closer to $700 than $1000 and I really didn't know.

I trusted his judgment and that was my mistake. He should never have been willing to take advantage of that fact though, that's the problem.


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## SDMFVan (Sep 18, 2013)

Blitzie, your signature block is confusing.


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## xzyryabx (Sep 18, 2013)

SDMFVan said:


> Blitzie, your signature block is confusing.



hahahaha.

Look, engage/skicom/stealthtastic (?) is a flipper, he is in this to make cash (whether as a main business or side-business I don't know), simple as that. In any case, he has the right to do what he does, he has the cash (young kid so probably inheritance) to buy/hoarde/manipulate the market and obviously if he couldn't fnd customers to pay for overpriced guitars then he wouldn't still be doing this. He's been banned from here multiple times I hear, he's been chased off the ESP board, my personal opinion is irrelevant, but there is definitely something to be said for his business practices. Ppl seem to have an opinion both ways about this guy, but having so many negative reviews is not very comforting.


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## The Spanish Inquisition (Sep 18, 2013)

xzyryabx said:


> stealthtastic (?)



Wasn't that Mehtab?


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## skeels (Sep 18, 2013)

^His name is Methlab. 

Methlab Botox.


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## MFB (Sep 18, 2013)

Engage =/= Stealthtastic/Stealthdjentstic 

The latter is the minion of the former who did a total 180 and is just living off his parents wealth


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## Blackheim (Sep 18, 2013)

YJGB said:


> Wasn't that Mehtab?



Mehtab change to Stealthdjenstic or something like that while Stealthtastic or whatever was someone else... I don't know who though.


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## eaeolian (Sep 18, 2013)

downburst82 said:


> Basically he was kinda notorious for selling his various jackson custom and signature models at inflated prices. If I remember right for awhile it seemed like he was just getting his free sig guitars from jackson then throwing autographs on them and selling them whenever he needed rent money.
> 
> If I am mistaken or anyone( a veteran perhaps)wants to clarifying anything please do.



Yeah, that's about right. Jackson wasn't overly thrilled with it, either.


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## Drew (Sep 18, 2013)

xzyryabx said:


> hahahaha.
> 
> Look, engage/skicom/stealthtastic (?) is a flipper, he is in this to make cash (whether as a main business or side-business I don't know), simple as that. In any case, he has the right to do what he does, he has the cash (young kid so probably inheritance) to buy/hoarde/manipulate the market and obviously if he couldn't fnd customers to pay for overpriced guitars then he wouldn't still be doing this. He's been banned from here multiple times I hear, he's been chased off the ESP board, my personal opinion is irrelevant, but there is definitely something to be said for his business practices. Ppl seem to have an opinion both ways about this guy, but having so many negative reviews is not very comforting.



Stealthtastic is a different guy - they are/were friends, I think were going into business together at one point, and these days it seems like they've drifted apart a bit. 

yzy-whatever - I don't disagree with your assessment of the guy in the least, but IMO the fact he's a flipper who's in the market solely to buy low and sell high (often by misinforming people on both sides) is reason enough to ban him from boards such as this one, and strongly suggest people do not deal with him, either as a buyer OR a seller. Rook, if you're looking at this thread and not wishing you'd sold that guitar to someone who wasn't just trying to make a quick buck at your expense, you may want to rethink a bit.


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## Chris (Sep 18, 2013)

Hi. 

I didn't start this community so that it would become a springboard for shady assholes to 'F over guitar fans in one convenient spot. I started it because I love guitars, beer, strippers, big boobs and Motley Crue. 

Drink beer, play guitar, go to strip clubs and listen to Motley Crue. Don't empower dishonest gear flippers like this guy, and don't give them the chance to screw over your fellow metalheads.


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## ElRay (Sep 18, 2013)

xzyryabx said:


> ... he has the right to do what he does ...



Yes, Zach/Engage757/Skicom's relies on a "I'll take advantage of sellers who don't know the value of their merchandise, or have pressing financial needs and need to sell NOW, or easily give in to aggressive low-balling and then flip the guitar by lying/hiding defects and selling to folks that don't know the value of what they're buying." business plan. But that does not mean that WE AS A COMMUNITY have to tolerate it. And it sure as hell does not mean that he's immune from being called out for doing so. 

That's what particularly gets under my skin: The number of folks that will passive-agressively support his deceitful tactics by neg-repping anybody who complains, flooding Zach/Engage757/Skicom's profile with +rep to push the deserved neg-rep off the screen, claiming that members of this community have no right to complain unless they've engaged in a trade with Zach/Engage757/Skicom, etc. And in many cases, these sycophants are being hypocritical because they've never engaged in any transactions with Zach/Engage757/Skicom, yet they're pimping his sales.

Ray


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## Blitzie (Sep 18, 2013)

SDMFVan said:


> Blitzie, your signature block is confusing.



In all honesty, I forgot that was there. I put that in there right after we traded because I didn't yet know that I had been screwed. It's fixed now. 

Thanks for the neg rep though


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## technomancer (Sep 18, 2013)

Should probably note that the guy on here as Stealthtastic now is NOT the kid that went by stealthdjentstic on here and mehtab and stealthtastic on other forums


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## Drew (Sep 18, 2013)

technomancer said:


> Should probably note that the guy on here as Stealthtastic now is NOT the kid that went by stealthdjentstic on here and mehtab and stealthtastic on other forums



Jeez, THAT's confusing.


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## Xaios (Sep 18, 2013)

Drew said:


> Jeez, THAT's confusing.



<jeremy irons>You have no idea.


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## RevelGTR (Sep 18, 2013)

I definitely disagree with him being misleading, that is unacceptable behavior. It seems, however, that a lot of folks are upset because Zach gave them a bad deal. That's really your own responsibility. I've gotten screwed before, but you learn from it and move on. That certainly doesn't excuse his other behavior though.


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## jacksonplayer (Sep 18, 2013)

WSchaferJR said:


> I definitely disagree with him being misleading, that is unacceptable behavior. It seems, however, that a lot of folks are upset because Zach gave them a bad deal. That's really your own responsibility. I've gotten screwed before, but you learn from it and move on. That certainly doesn't excuse his other behavior though.



It may be "your own responsibility," but a community has the right and the responsibility to get rid of members who scr*w over other members. It's just that simple. 

Engage abuses the implied goodwill of forums like this--the notion that a fellow forumite won't screw you over the way a random a-hole on eBay will. 

Nobody's saying he lacks the legal right to do what he does (though the fake Hetfield-owned-this-guitar shit on the ESP board starts to smell like fraud), but forum owners/administrators should not permit his behavior, and it appears most are not.

As for the silly $15k Strandberg listing, eBay has never been serious about policing against offline deals. Whenever I've listed guitars that are sought-after or hard to find (not even very expensive ones), I get bombarded with requests to do a stealth BIN. I never do, because eBay's seller protections--as flimsy as they are--are worthwhile.


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## SDMFVan (Sep 19, 2013)

Blitzie said:


> Thanks for the neg rep though



Wasn't me.


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## Drew (Sep 19, 2013)

WSchaferJR said:


> I definitely disagree with him being misleading, that is unacceptable behavior. It seems, however, that a lot of folks are upset because Zach gave them a bad deal. That's really your own responsibility. I've gotten screwed before, but you learn from it and move on. That certainly doesn't excuse his other behavior though.



Part of that, however, is helping OTHER people learn from it - if a member has screwed one person, he's likely to screw someone else. You've mentioned getting ripped off in the past - I'm sorry to hear that, but if you'd known the other party had screwed someone ELSE before dealing with you, would you have approached the deal any differently? 

If that's the case, and I'm pretty sure it is, then we should be encouraging people to be open about bad deals _as well as _good ones, so we can all make more informed decisions. Defending any criticism of a guy who flips guitars like this by saying, "well, it's your own fault if you did the deal, and he has the right to charge or offer whatever he wants" misses the point; that he's a guy whose asking for sale price or any offer to buy is _highly_ likely to be suspect, and trying to shout that down is just doing the community a disservice.


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## jacksonplayer (Sep 19, 2013)

What engage apparently did with Blitzie in that Ibanez/Carvin trade was abusive behavior, period. If he wants to do that on Craigslist, fine. But I would never put up with that as a forum mod/admin. Members should be expected to give each other a square deal, not try to pull a fast one like that.

Hell, when I list stuff in forums, I usually discount it a little just in the hope of not having to mess around with eBay. I'm not going to give stuff away, but neither am I going to gouge members of communities that I enjoy participating in.


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## Overtone (Sep 19, 2013)

my post may have given the wrong impression. _Here_ I am all for fair deals. The people I've dealt with have never been the ones trying to profit (and even that's cool with me if you are transparent and forthcoming about the guitar's quality) but just long time gear freaks who need to move something or add something I'm looking to move. I think the code is generally to follow the golden rule and deal with each other fairly because it makes it not about profit but just helping each other out in our own personal tone quests. It seems pretty evident who is who by looking at threads posted, itrader rep, etc.. Just seeing the price Zack posts here vs. on ebay makes me immediately know that as much as i like his collection and have some appreciation for him being able to try out so much gear, that he's not the type of person I'd do business with. 

So that said, this whole thing is outside of the forum to begin with, and even outside of the forum it should be obvious he's trying to make some bucks by cashing in on wow factor and limited availability. He wouldn't be the first to try and hype up an instrument on those qualities and post a ludicrous price. I'm all for fair deals elsewhere too, of course, but seeing shennanigans on ebay is hardly an outrage to me.


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## Steinmetzify (Sep 19, 2013)

Wow......lot of hate in here. Never done any deals with him, but have seen the stuff on here and other forums. He's always been nice to me the couple times we've talked but the stories are horror.

I think the idea that you buy low and sell high is common enough business practice, and I've envied a lot of the guitars he's thrown up....part of the problem lies in screwing over forum members, where the above mentioned 'golden rule' applies....at least on most of the forums I'm on....I always try and give someone a decent deal, work with em for payments, whatever.....I think out in the world, shops, eBay etc would be more of the place to try and cash up for guitars/gear than on a forum.

One of my best bros in the gear world is a sick gearhead.....GAS will take hold and he'll lose his ass on stuff he sells just to try something new.....I've gotten great deals from him and same from me....I think gearheads should try and help each other out as much as we can, we all know GAS is a sickness and we've all fallen to it numerous times.....just saying what I'd do/like to see done.

My .02


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## Seanthesheep (Sep 22, 2013)

has anyone else noticed the guitar isnt listed anymore? dont know if it sold or the listing was just taken down


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## narad (Sep 22, 2013)

Seanthesheep said:


> has anyone else noticed the guitar isnt listed anymore? dont know if it sold or the listing was just taken down



Listed it as sold from one of the forum ads.


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## The Spanish Inquisition (Sep 22, 2013)

Seanthesheep said:


> has anyone else noticed the guitar isnt listed anymore? dont know if it sold or the listing was just taken down



The guitar was sold and I was 'd


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## Seanthesheep (Sep 22, 2013)

ah, I wonder who got it lol


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## jahosy (Sep 22, 2013)

I'm confused.

#5 (Chris Letchford) was spec'd as "Neck Thru" on the Strandberg website, yet #6 was listed as "first neck thru ever built" ?


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## Jonathan20022 (Sep 22, 2013)

jahosy said:


> I'm confused.
> 
> #5 (Chris Letchford) was spec'd as "Neck Thru" on the Strandberg website, yet #6 was listed as "first neck thru ever built" ?



^ Yoink, that's pretty bad.


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## narad (Sep 22, 2013)

jahosy said:


> I'm confused.
> 
> #5 (Chris Letchford) was spec'd as "Neck Thru" on the Strandberg website, yet #6 was listed as "first neck thru ever built" ?



I'm not sure if this is the reason or it was just some marketing BS (OMG! THE FIRST NECK THRU EVER!?), but Ola's instrument number isn't a great indicator of build order.


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## ramses (Sep 22, 2013)

narad said:


> ... but Ola's instrument number isn't a great indicator of build order.



Yup ... you'll notice that #42 has already been delivered, while #18 is still "in progress".


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## jahosy (Sep 22, 2013)

narad said:


> Ola's instrument number isn't a great indicator of build order.



Fair enough.


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## Rook (Sep 22, 2013)

They were made at the same time, I don't know which was first if one was. Ola's description name's #6 as a twin to Chris's #5. That's all I know about that.

Someone mentioned something about 'if it were worth more than Zack paid he'd have been outbid' or something. I didn't take bids, I set a price and only advertised among my friends to begin with, stuff of this value doesn't sell quickly unless there's someone there with the money looking for it. I didn't want to do a big publicity thing and throw it up on eBay or Guitar Porn or something, I don't really work like that. Zack made me an offer and I was in a position to accept so I did. No bids, no cryptic 'guess how much I want' stuff. 

I have no idea where this guitar is now, I'd be curious to find out though.


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## Andromalia (Sep 23, 2013)

Not to specifically take anyone's defense, but taking offense because someone got a good deal on you is just realising how commerce works. How many NGDs do we see with people gloating over the good price he got for a guitar ? When someone gets a good price, someone else gets screwed, that's the nature of the beast. If someone makes a benefit flipping a guitar, someone else lost money. I'm surprised at having to explain that on a forum frequented mostly by people of the most capitalistic country in the world. 
Engage was doing a business. His profit margin has to come from somewhere.


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## flexkill (Sep 23, 2013)

Andromalia said:


> Not to specifically take anyone's defense, but taking offense because someone got a good deal on you is just realising how commerce works. How many NGDs do we see with people gloating over the good price he got for a guitar ? When someone gets a good price, someone else gets screwed, that's the nature of the beast. If someone makes a benefit flipping a guitar, someone else lost money. I'm surprised at having to explain that on a forum frequented mostly by people of the most capitalistic country in the world.
> Engage was doing a business. His profit margin has to come from somewhere.


That's fine....He needs to sell on Ebay then and not try to feed off this community.


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## Andromalia (Sep 23, 2013)

flexkill said:


> That's fine....He needs to sell on Ebay then and not try to feed off this community.


That I can agree with. But, in the end, it's still screwing someone, and as a rule I'm not very fond of screwing people even if they're not part of this or that group. HEll, I sold my axe standard for 600&#8364; because the guy was nice and from a poor country.


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## elq (Sep 23, 2013)

My one and only problem with engage is that his engagement (lol) with the site follows a very predictable pattern - 

First - he'll post an NGD thread "Hey bros, this is just such a sweet guitar, The best I've ever played." or some similar vague extollation of the qualities of the guitar followed by 30-40 pictures of said guitar on a bedspread. 

Second - Sometime later, most frequently in his next quarterly "FS/FT 50 of my best guitars, let's make a deal" thread, said guitar will appear with a price higher than market. 

Him making money flipping guitars doesn't bother me, the way he pumps and dumps does.




flexkill said:


> That's fine....He needs to sell on Ebay then and not try to feed off this community.



Or his NGDs and FS/FT threads (in other words, all of his posts) should be put in the dealers section.


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## ElRay (Sep 23, 2013)

elq said:


> Or his NGDs and FS/FT threads (in other words, all of his posts) should be put in the dealers section.



If he comes back and if he continues to sell his schtuff, then this should definitely be the case.

The best solution is that he just doesn't come back. He's not the kind of merchant we should have here. Zach/Engage757/Skicom is too Ed-Roman-esque and will continue to take advantage of the members here.

Ray


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## ElRay (Sep 23, 2013)

Blitzie said:


> I loved that guitar. I'll never forgive him for that.



Then you should edit your iTrader report, if you can. Part of Zach/Engage757/Skicom's gig is that people are afraid to leave accurate, but negative, or are too quick to leave (what turns out to be inaccurate), positive feedback.

Ray


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## jahosy (Sep 23, 2013)

elq said:


> Or his NGDs and FS/FT threads (in other words, all of his posts) should be put in the dealers section.



Or Guitar Porn.


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