Guitar Center Used Gear (Warped great sounding cymbal) Partial Refund?

[dustjacket]

Not sure how to go about this. I'm posting this in general because I think it can apply to both drums and cymbals. In my case, it's a Paiste 22" Traditional Extra Light Ride. Condition described as "great". Surface is like new but picture didn't show waves in cymbal, in one spot it has a major dent. I'm completely aware of the soft alloy and how this can happen on Trads. Here's the thing: I paid a pretty penny for this...but it sounds amazing, just right.
I don't want to ship it back because I really dig it, but I also don't think I should pay full price at this point. Does Guitar Center do partial refunds? Advice on how to go about this?

(I can post edge pics tomorrow, but here's the box it came in. A huge box for a super light cymbal and it was just hovering in some bubble wrap, basically sideways when opened.)

 

[Jazzhead]

Yea I once got a BIG package for a pair of 14” hats from GC and it wasn’t taped nicely. Also I opened it and saw that they sent me the wrong hats, and by the time I contacted them someone at the store had bought the pair of hats I had paid for, sucks!
Call the store and talk to the manager, most of the managers are nice and the guy/girl might give you a partial refund.

 

[supershifter2]

the dent and the waves might be what makes it sound so good

 

[dustjacket]

the dent and the waves might be what makes it sound so good

I did consider that. Still, it was not as described.

 

[EyeByTwoMuchGeer]

I buy stuff from the used gear section all the time. I usually call the store before I buy or snap a quick screenshot of the item description before I order. If the item doesn't arrive in the condition they say, I just call the store and ask to speak directly to the manager, as they are the only ones that can reduce the price. In almost every case (there have been many) the manager has been overwhelmingly helpful and understanding. If they can't reduce the price further, ask them to clear the shipping charge. Or, ask for both. It can't hurt. They don't want you to cancel or return the item because it will cost them time and money, so, they're usually willing to help out if possible.

This isn't really applicable to the cymbal, but in general, if items arrive with easily fixable issues (like missing hardware, broken amp tubes, cracked guitar nut, etc) you can typically estimate those costs and use it as justification for a sizeable price reduction. A store manager will have a much better idea of what a set of floor tom legs are worth than something less standardized but nonetheless frustrating (like a wavy edge on a cymbal). Shipping damage is easy to partially account for - you paid for shipping, so, at the minimum, that should be refunded if the item arrived in a beat up box.

Guitar Center tends to get a bad wrap on here, and sometimes it is justified. But in 95% of my dealings with them (typically only used gear I can't get from my local mom/pop shops) the store managers have always been kind and really cool. In some instances, they've gone way above what was required. You just need to talk to them like people, be respectful and stay calm.

Good luck!

 

[JimmySticks]

Not for nothing, but that's a terrible box to ship a cymbal in. I find it hard to believe that a "box store" (sorry for the pun) like GC doesn't have proper cymbal boxes to use for shipping.

Send them that pic of the box, and I'm pretty sure the manager would agree.

 

[Targalx]

Guitar Center tends to get a bad wrap on here, and sometimes it is justified. But in 95% of my dealings with them (typically only used gear I can't get from my local mom/pop shops) the store managers have always been kind and really cool. In some instances, they've gone way above what was required. You just need to talk to them like people, be respectful and stay calm.

I agree. I think the majority of GCs that I have dealt with have been pretty decent.

There's a local mom & pop instrument shop near my home. They have good service, so I try to give them a chance and buy stuff from them when possible. But, they always gripe and grouse whenever I ask them to match GC's prices!