Beach City Pawn and Discount Guitar — Local services in Huntington Beach

I came to this place seeing the good reviews, but it was a terrible service and experience overall. I came here to have my guitar fixed by their luthier Miguel, but after getting it back I see that he made my guitar much worse and now it doesn't function correctly at all.

I contacted him to see what happened, but I just heard excuses like " we only do minor repairs here" and " I wasn't there the day you dropped it off so I couldn't tell you that I wasn't able to do the work." Then why did he bother taking the repair job if he knew he was not qualified? Now my guitar's pickup switch barely functions, he completely got rid of a tone in the rhythm circuit (my guitar is a Jazzmaster) and he inserted the pickup switch in a very sloppy manner (it was inserted crookedly and not perpendicular to the strings). He justified the sloppy placement by telling me someone will have to open it up anyways so it doesn't really matter how the switch gets placed in. It tells me a lot of what he thinks of his own work.

I do not recommend coming here for luthier services. Miguel refused to give me a refund, apologize or bother offering any sort of solution for his botched job. He absolutely ruined my instrument.

Thanks for getting back to me Mat. In response I have this to say:

1.) Yes, Miguel was not there in person to diagnose the problem himself when I brought it in. However that still doesn't explain why he felt he could still get the job done when he clearly didn't have the ability to do so. As a side note I also didn't know that this was a customized Jazzmaster (I was told it was stock when I bought it used, you were the first luthier I brought it to). Again, this still doesn't excuse why Miguel still went through with it when all he could've done was tell me that he couldn't get the job done. I would've been alright with it, I would've just taken the guitar back and that would've been the end of that. But here we are.

2.) Leaving a screw "loose" is different from placing in a switch "sloppy;" in this case as I mentioned in the review Miguel placed it in such a strange way that now when I strum I would have to flick the knob from an awkward angle. When I was there in person Miguel explained to me that he placed in the switch loosely so that someone else can go in since he couldn't get the switch to work with the pickups. I said it was fine as long as he got the switch working and as long as my guitar had the same functionality as before. I was assured this was the case.

3.) It clearly was my mistake to leave your business without trying out my guitar there first. Miguel said he fixed the switch and everything was working fine except for one of the pickups. It was only when I brought it home that I heard just how badly he messed up. Now my Jazzmaster only works in its "rhythm" mode and if I were to flick it back to normal, the pickup switch he installed doesn't do a single thing and worse yet, my guitar no longer produces sound in this position. When I called Miguel to ask what happened he said "something inside the guitar must've gotten loose while you were taking it home." By the way, when he told me this he let out a small laugh; he clearly was not taking this seriously.

So why do I think a refund is appropriate? I was very excited to get back my Jazzmaster, and I really trusted you guys to get it fixed, not to make it worse than when I brought in. After seeing and hearing the extent of how badly of a job he did with my guitar and how it feels like you guys are trying to paint me in a dishonest light by making it seem I'm leaving facts out, I'm very displeased with this entire experience. This is my first time dealing with a luthier, and quite frankly dealing with you guys has been an...

Eric and his staff have been EXTREMELY helpful and have gone far beyond the expectations and preconceived notions I held regarding customer service in an establishment such as this.

I recently found myself on leave from my job and, in desperation, sought out a loan - levying several items of both monetary and personal value as collateral. Eric and his staff were sensitive in regard to the leveling of pride one may experience in having to seek help in desperate times in a manner such as this and not only loaned me what I needed, they did it with class. One of the employees even offered me a bit of her breakfast(lol) while I was waiting for my transaction to complete on my most recent visit a few days ago.

As things return to normal for me and I retrieve my items, I'll eagerly hand over my money to them knowing that it will be used to support a locally-owned small business as well as to help the next person who happens to be in need with both dignity and respect. Thank you to Eric...

If you're looking for a professional, hard-working, and welcoming pawn shop - this is the place to go! They helped me pawn my laptop and was kind enough to be completely forthcoming in their pricing structure - working with me to get the best deal so I didn't have to pay that much more in interest when picking up. When I did go back to pick up my laptop I arrived right at closing time, and without cash. Not only did they direct me to the nearest ATM, they also left their doors open for another 15 mins! Giving me enough time to get some cash then return. Of course when I did get back I realized I forgot my pawn ticket at home - they tell me not to worry about it, and waived the $10 fee. All I can say is I'm floored that they went above and BEYOND for a first time customer! It was the best experience I've had at a pawn shop and I am so grateful. Do yourself a favor and choose this place above all else - they go the extra mile for...