Bogus truss rod in my Eastwood

[bonny]

I've had this Eastwood Mandocaster several months and it's never played very well. Initially a friend and I shimmed the neck (the neck pocket was cut way too deep) and lowered the nut. Last week I took it to another friend who is one of the best repair guys in town for a new nut and a full check-over. He called me yesterday saying he was pulling the plug on any work because the instrument had no truss rod he could see (certainly not an adjustable one) and a truss rod adjustment was essential to it playing well.

I'm going to contact Eastwood and ask for a new neck. If they won't do that the thing is basically a write-off to me....I won't sell it as it is. I'm pretty darned disappointed and wishing I'd bought a mandobird instead for late night practice. Anyone else have this problem with an Eastwood?

[mandroid]

if the fingerboard is flat and neck well made the truss rod is optional. my 1922 A mandolin is still great.

having a local builder make a neck, say one with a CF stiffener will make your budget instrument deluxe.

I got a Fender FM61 its fine . another player , in town , much more talented than I, also got one .
neck, glued in a bit off on his , needs a reset , perhaps one made after lunch,
another, just after payday, pay packet in the pocket, and the Factory worker's attention was elsewhere.

[Rhinestone]

Mine has a trussrod. I was able with some nut/bridge tweaking,the right gauge strings(40-11)and some Lace Sensor pickups,to end up with a fine sounding,real easy playing instrument and way better than a Mandobird in every way. When the frets wear out,I'm gonna take it to L.A. luthier extrordinaire Tina Wood for a fingerboard planing and bigger frets. I've been around 4 or 5 of those things up close and have done my mods on 3 of them that friends of mine bought after playing mine - and they all had trussrods. These are all about 2 or 3 years old though. Maybe the later ones are different. So yeah,you should contact Mike Robinson at Eastwood and see what can be done. Tell him Mike Johnstone from L.A. said hello. I'm sure he would want to be made aware of something like that and correct it.

[bonny]

I emailed Eastwood this weekend and Peter McCracken got back to me first thing Monday morning saying that it should have a functioning truss rod and offering to exchange mine for a new instrument. Certainly can't fault that kind of customer service.