1. Where are Buildanax guitars made?
2. What's different about a Buildanax guitar?
3. How many different models do you offer?
4. Why are Buildanax guitars priced so much less than other custom guitars?
5. Can I purchase my Buildanax guitar as a kit and assemble it myself?
6. When my guitar is assembled by Buildanax, how long before it will ship?
7. Do you offer any pre-built guitars that are ready to ship?
8. How will my Buildanax guitar come set-up?
9. Do you offer custom finishes, inlays or special electronics?
10. Do Buildanax guitars have a warranty or a guarantee?
11. What if I want to use a brand of pick-ups or other hardware that you don't carry?
12. Do you charge sales tax?
13. Do you ship internationally?
14. When will my credit card be charged for an order?
15. Do you sell individual parts?
16. Do you have a dealer network?
17. Do you offer any "distressing" or "aging" options?
18. I notice that you have some really low price pickups listed in your list of pickup options. If I choose these am I going to have this really nice looking and playing guitar that sounds really cheap?
19. What is the benefit of creating an account on your website?
20. Do you offer any left-handed models?
1. Where are Buildanax guitars made?
All Buildanax guitars are assembled entirely in the USA. Our guitars are built primarily with parts that come from various manufacturers located outside of the USA. Some of our harware (switches, pots, pickguards and pick-ups) are made in here in America. Now, before you assume that this is just cheap imported junk and that we are trying to bypass American companies and workers, let us clarify a few things. If you go into any music store to purchase a guitar, virtually ANY electric guitar that retails for under $1,000 is made overseas. We know this for a fact because one of Buildanax's owners was a retail music store owner for 27 years and has been a dealer for nearly all of the name brand guitar companies. We would LOVE to be able to offer all American made parts but (to our knowledge) there is simply no one manufacturing parts here the U.S. that enables us to purchase and offer the selection we have and still be at the price point that we are striving to maintain. Nearly any other electric guitar under $1000 is going to be manufactured and assembled in another country. We feel that we are at least helping to create some American jobs by employing American musicians and craftsmen to assemble our guitars and run our company.
As for the quality of our parts...they are great quality. All bodies and necks are cut on CNC (computer numerical control) machines and finished with several coats of nitro-cellulose lacquer. Our necks and bodies come from one of the manufacturers that builds for some of the name brands in the industry. We go to great lengths to insure that we are offering the highest quality components that we can find.
2. What's different about a Buildanax guitar?
Buildanax guitars offer some things that are virtually unheard of at this price point.
1. All necks come with a graphite nut instead of plastic.
2. All necks have counter-bored holes for the tuning keys. This means instead of just drilling one hole to fit the largest part of the tuning key, we drill the holes on the top side of the headstock to a smaller dimension to give a good snug fit to the tuners bushing. This reduces the chance for the tuner to move once the tension of the string is applied resulting in more stable tuning.
3. The cavities for the electronics on all of our bodies are coated with a special RF (radio frequency) copper based shielding paint to help minimize the chance of hum and electrical interference. We hand paint the cavity of each body after we receive it from the factory.
4. We custom fit then drill all the holes for the neck and bridge. After you have selected your parts, we "dry-fit" everything together, then we drill the holes for the neck and bridge of your choice to insure that everything on your guitar specs out properly.
5. Our bodies are finished using nitro-cellulose lacquer. This is the finish of choice by most professional players.
6. Our necks receive a basic "fret dressing" at the factory. We then do a complete fret dress (by hand) on each neck when assembling each guitar. This involves leveling all of the frets, re-crowning each one and then a 5-step buffing/polishing process on each fret.
7. All of our parts are carefully handled and kept in a clean, temperature-constant environment.
3. How many different models do you offer?
We currently mainly offer the classic "S" style with a pickguard. We do have some Tele options that are not listed on our website at this time. If you are interested in the Tele options, send us an email and we will send you pictures of the available colors and hardware options. There are other styles and models that we may eventually offer. Send us an email and let us know what other styles you would like to see offered.
4. Why are Buildanax guitars priced so much less than other custom guitars?
High-end or "boutique" guitars are usually made on a per order basis and involve a lot of man hours and expertise. The wooden parts are often cut, shaped and finished by hand and can easily end up taking 100+ hours to build. We would never want to belittle that process in any way. Those instruments are wonderful and we love them.
Buildanax gives you the chance to still custom design your own guitar by using reasonably priced, pre-finished components. All of our bodies and necks are manufactured on CNC (computer numerical control) machines to the same specs so that they are interchangeable. We purchase several pieces of each body color and each neck style. We also purchase our hardware and electronics the same way. This enables us to offer you a guitar that you can truly "custom design and build" on an individual basis but not have the expense or waiting period that would normally be involved.
5. Can I purchase my Buildanax guitar as a kit and assemble it myself?
As a general rule...no. Because everyone's skill set and knowledge is different when it comes to building a guitar, we feel it is in the best interest of our company to keep all assembly under our roof in order to control the quality and high standards that we want to uphold. We can't afford the risk of letting someone put together a guitar with our name on it and then it turn out to be a sub-standard instrument because of poor workmanship that is beyond our control. Hopefully you can understand our position on this. If someone is an actual luthier or an experienced repairman/builder, we may occasionally make an exception...but, even then there will be several limitations as to our liabilities of the finished product.
6. When my guitar is assembled by Buildanax, how long before it will ship?
We will try to have your guitar assembled and ready to ship within 14 days from the time the order is placed if at all possible. If there are any special order components or other custom features added outside of our standard features, a longer time may be needed before shipping your guitar. We will also do our best to let you know if we are experiencing any delays in our normal shipping times due to a backlog of orders or special order items.
7. Do you offer any pre-built guitars that are ready to ship?
Yes we do. We try to keep a few pre-built models available whenever possible. These are color and component combinations usually picked out by our staff. (We think designing a guitar is fun too!) Please visit the "Guitars For Sale" page of our website.
8. How will my Buildanax guitar come set up.
What constitutes a great playing guitar is very subjective. Some players like the action so low that you barely have to touch it in order to play a note. Other players like a higher action so that they can play more aggressively and not have to worry about fret buzz. We want you to be able to play your Buildanax guitar right out of the box. Your guitar will be set up and intonated according to the string gauge that you select. If you would like to give our guitar technicians special instructions on how to set up your guitar, feel free to do so. Otherwise, your guitar will be set up to the lowest playing action possible for the particular string gauge you choose. If you want to make further adjustments to your guitar, you can find some helpful information on our Tech Tips page of our website. (We also think that it is a good idea for guitarists in general to find a good repair technician in their home town. He can be a very valuable asset to you and the life of all your guitars.)
9. Do you offer custom finishes, inlays or special electronics?
We do offer custom artwork and finishes! We also offer custom adhesive graphics. This can add anywhere from an additional $50 - $400 to the cost of the guitar, depending on the style and complexity of the design and labor and materials involved. You can contact us and we will discuss the available options. At this point, we do not offer any custom inlay other than what is already on our necks. We do offer the option of adding special electronics upgrades such as different switching, wiring configurations and various passive or active electronics. Just contact us and let us know what you are looking for and we will get you a price quote.
10. Do Buildanax guitars have a warranty or a guarantee?
Absolutley! All Buildanax guitars that are assembled by our technicians come with a 10-day "test drive" guarantee. Your complete satisfaction is important to us. The only way to truly appreciate one of our guitars is to play one. If, for any reason, you are not satisfied with your Buildanax guitar, return it within 10 days of receipt and we'll refund your money (excludes shipping and a 10% restocking fee.) We'll just want to know what you didn't like so that we can take that information and build a better guitar. You are responsible for covering the shipping if you choose to return your custom guitar.
All Buildanax parts and or components come with a one year warranty.
11. What if I want to use a brand of pick-ups or other hardware that you don't carry?
You may have a certain brand of pick-ups that you want to use or some other piece of hardware that we don't carry. In those cases, you would be responsible for purchasing the items that you want. You can then send them to us and we will install them on your guitar as we build it. We will obviously need to talk with you about that so that we are both clear about the parts to be used and the work to be done.
12. Do you charge sales tax?
Only South Carolina residents have to pay sales tax on their purchase. Purchases made from outside of South Carolina are not charged any sales tax.
13. Do you ship internationally?
Yes we do. Just be aware that shipping overseas to certain countries can add $100 - $200 or more to the price. Please email [email protected] for a total estimate on shipping your guitar. You are responsible for paying any duties or import taxes if applicable on your guitar.
14. When will my credit card be charged for an order?
Credit cards are not charged until your guitar is shipped from our shop in Easley, South Carolina.
15. Do you sell individual parts?
Yes, we will sell any of our parts on an individual basis except our necks. Our necks are the only components that have the BUILDANAX name on it. Since we would have no control over the rest of the guitar that the neck may be paired with, we can't run the risk of having our brand name on an instrument that may not match the standards and quality that we demand of the guitars that we build. Thanks for your understanding on this. If you are interested in purchasing any of our parts, the price would be approximately 25% less than the prices shown on our Guitar Builder page. The price is discounted because we would not have any assembly time involved with the parts. If you are interested in purchasing any of our parts individually please contact us at (864)230-8590 or [email protected].
16. Do you have a dealer network?
BUILDANAX does not have a dealer network. However, if you are a dealer and are interested in carrying our guitars, we are open to the possibilities of some form of an affiliate program between your store and our website.
17. Do you offer any "distressing" or "aging" options?
Yes, we offer a very detailed distressing process where different techniques are employed to give the guitar a naturally aged look yet not overdone. It is a fairly time consuming process. We charge an additional $100 for the "distressing option." Please see our photo gallery to see a couple of our "distressed" guitars. Contact us to discuss the available options for having it done to your guitar.
18. I notice that you have some really low price pickups listed in your list of pickup options. If I choose these am I going to have this really nice looking and playing guitar that sounds really cheap?
Not at all! These are actually great sounding pickups in spite of the price. One of the main guys playing a Buildanax (session musician David Johnson) has these pickups in his guitar that he uses everyday on sessions. He often gets comments from different engineers about how good his guitar sounds. For the price....they sound excellent. The higher priced pickups are generally going to have hotter output, possibly less noise and give you more tone and model options.
19. What is the benefit of creating an account on your website?
Registering or creating an account simply enables you to save your favorite guitar design and come back to it later to view it, edit it or email it. You must also create an account when you submit an order to us for building your new guitar. This enables us to have your contact information should we have any questions for you when building your guitar.
20. Do you offer any left-handed models?
We would eventually like to offer lefties but at this time we are only offering right-hand models. Sorry!!
