Sims does absolutely beautiful work! After finding him online and a quick email, i was promptly called. Patrick answered all my questions and before taking any payment, he made sure he knew exactly what I wanted.
Beautiful work, great service, and awesome communication through the whole process!
Well, it took around nine months (was quoted eight weeks) and the body was finally completed and shipped back. The end result is fantastic — I couldn't be happier with the quality, color and craftsmanship. But, I just can't get over the fact that it took so dang long. I could have understood an extra three or four weeks given everything that's going on, but after month four I assumed it was a loss. An honest estimate could have spared a lot of frustration. The problem is most people will not accept waiting almost a year to have a guitar painted. I really hope Sims can figure this out because the guitar looks incredible.
I sent my one-of-a-kind prototype body to Sims based on the quality of work I was seeing on Instagram. I prepaid $350 based on his requirement and shipped the body to him. He promised a six to eight week turnaround. It's been over eight months now and he's no longer responding to my emails or correspondence. At the end of the day, I'll be out almost a grand on this project. I wish I'd read these reviews first.
I just had a conversation with this man on instagram about having some paint work done, and he wanted me to pay him by calling him and giving him my entire debit information over the phone. Something i've never done, even with major corporations. I tried to be really patient with this guy, but after i told him i didn't feel safe giving information like that over a phone call with someone i've never met and lives across the country from me, (and before any work was even done) he started talking to me like i was an idiot for not feeling safe with my information. At no point did i ever accuse him of potentially stealing from me, because honestly i dont think he would, but the fact that he cant even charge me through an invoice on the platform that he already uses is extremely sketchy and unprofessional. Wish this guy would'nt be so stubborn and is more willing to make his customers feel safe, because honestly his work is astonishing. Extremely poor business ethic :/
I paid Sims Custom Shop for a guitar refinish. The guitar turned out beautifully - exactly how I wanted - but the turnaround time was very slow. I was quoted a 6-week turnaround time on the phone when I first placed my order, but I did not receive my guitar for 16 weeks, about 4 months! If I had been given an accurate turnaround estimate up-front, my review would be 5-star. I can recommend Sims Custom Shop to other customers, but I would suggest that you get the completion estimate written and signed in writing before paying.
Thank you for your review and we’re glad you were pleased with the paint job we did for you.
I just wanted to mention for the record that the type of finish we did on this customers guitar was a very custom job and a first for us... we had NEVER done this finish before (a crackle paint job) and we did make the customer aware of that prior to accepting the order. We had no idea when the order was initially placed that it would be as time consuming of a job as it was to get flawless, which was the reason for the longer turnaround time. We did however stay in communication with the customer during the process.
Now that we have done and completed one of these finishes & have seen how difficult it is to get flat & smooth we will not quote a 6 week turnaround time in the future on crackle paint jobs.
A YouTube video of this guitar can be seen at the following link:
https://youtu.be/rUGjZgIs_AE
Its getting way past the expected time on a body I sent to be painted. Communication was great before I sent the body... and payment... not so great since. I've been dread to attempt to bother Pat with questions but this is getting ridiculous. If it wasn't a carefully chosen 30 year old piece of wood I'd cut my losses and move on. I will gladly update this review if I ever get the body back. At this point I don't even care if its painted.
This was completed & sent back within days of this review, but he never came back to update his review... this is also 1 of 2 bodies he sent, the second of which he received about a month prior to this review which he didn’t mention.
The wood was old reclaimed wood from a pier, so it was a bit time consuming of a job due to the roughness of the wood and him wanting a smooth & slick final finish.
Contacted him in June of 2020 paid him $400+ dollars for a refinish of a guitar body that was supposed to take 10 weeks. About 12 weeks in September 2020, I followed up, only to get a reply it was a going to be a few more weeks. That was the last reply I received from him until April of 2021. I left this initial bad review here along with a BBB complaint in March of 2021. About a month after that I received an email stating the work was completed and would be shipping back to me. The finish job was great, and I'm happy with the finished project. If he had responded to my emails and actually completed the job in a reasonable amount of time I would certainly recommend him. He has awful customer service so as long as you accept that up front, you might be okay. There are plenty of better options out there so I'd still avoid this guy when I'm looking to have this kind of work done again.
Oddly enough, he does actually send me emails and even texts now, specifically about this negative review, wanting me to update it which I did. Everything I stated above is correct, and I'm not saying he ripped me off, just that it was an awful experience and his customer service is very bad and I refuse to erase that fact from history now that he seems to have remorse for being such a bad businessman.
This guitar was sent back and received 7 months ago. FedEx tracking #7859 8223 6054 and can be seen at the following YouTube link that was posted 5 months ago:
https://youtu.be/IDSjMRbPiKY
The quality of this paint job was certainly worth the wait. Patrick asked lots of questions to make sure we were on the same page about whet I was looking for. And boy did he deliver. Highly recommend!
Sent my ibanez Rg 2610 to him to strip Mike learn green skull paint job and paint a tiger stripe graphic with a money order for $690 well over 4 years ago. I got a few responses then nothing for 3 years, it has been reported as stolen terrible communication, i have a picture of him holding my guitar in his shop with Mike Learns graphic on it as if he is advertising he painted it, man is a thief beware if he likes your guitar he keeps it thats my experience
This review has so many false statements in it that I don’t even know where to start, I’ll give you the most simplified version I can.
#1- This customer is a self proclaimed “perfectionist” who has admitted he is extremely OCD and very rarely pleased with anything. We have over 45 email back and forth with him and HOURS of phone conversations with this guy (even though he says in his review terrible communication), and is a SERIOUS time waster.
#2- This customer sent us a guitar to REPAINT after paying Mike Learn (world renown guitar painter) $900 to do a very nice paint job on it. When he received it he claimed he “wasn’t happy with all aspects of the finish...”
#3- He then paid us to REPAINT the guitar Kandy tangerine with black tiger stripes which we did. He referenced the tiger stripe paint jobs on our website on other guitars and that’s the stripes we did. Upon receiving pictures of the guitar body painted as requested he told us that “his tastes had changed and he no longer liked tiger stripes paint jobs”. We should have at that point said “well tough luck...” but we didn’t.
#4- While we had NO obligation to do anything further and had done exactly the paint job he requested (and paid for) we ultimately wanted to make him happy if we could. He said he would prefer the guitar to just be repainted solid Kandy tangerine with NO tiger stripes. We stripped the guitar down to bare wood (which is a time consuming job) and painted it kandy tangerine... and get this... FOR FREE. He also tried to get us to set it up for him for FREE prior to shipping it back to him, but we refused and explained to him that not only did he not pay for a setup, nor previously at any point ever requested a setup, but was also never told we even do setups at all. We paint instruments, we are not in the business of doing setups for people on their instruments... to make a long story short the purpose of his request was essentially to try and take advantage of us and try to get something additional for free... as if a $400+ paint job for free wasn’t already enough.
This is where the story gets really unbelievable:
Upon receiving the guitar he sends us an email stating the paint job is “pretty much perfect” except he claims he found a “tiny spec“ of something under the clear coat that he didn’t like in an inconspicuous area and requested a FULL REFUND! He also made the comment that after “taking the time to think about it” he wishes he had just kept it with the tiger stripe paint job we initially did! OMG!
At this point we were beyond fed up dealing with this guy. We told him we would NOT repaint the guitar again, we told him THAT was a FREE paint job that was currently on the guitar anyways & that the one he paid for (the paint job with the tiger stripes) is all we were obligated to do anyways which he decided to have us strip off and paint solid kandy tangerine. We told him not only did he find something to complain about on both paint jobs we did for him, but he also was not happy with Mike Learns $900+ paint job (a well known professional painter in this industry). We basically told him (in the nicest way we could) to not ever contact us again & suggested that he should maybe attempt to learn how to paint guitars himself since no one else can seem to be good enough to please him. He then informed us he “knows how to paint” bc he ”painted fighter jets while he was in the Navy.“ He now works as a security guard for Rue 21...
This guy is a NIGHTMARE customer and I wouldn’t wish him on my worst enemy. By far the most OCD unpleaseable person I’ve ever encountered out of the 3,000+ guitars I’ve done over the last 20+ years.
Here is a YouTube video of the completed guitar: https://youtu.be/50noIKBjNgk
The video is a testament of the quality of work we always HAVE and CONTINUE put out and should further show how RIDICULOUS a request for a refund was. This review he left could not be more misleading, false and intentionally left out of spite. When we refused to refund him for a FREE paint job he then THREATENED he “may just just take us to court!“ I informed him to go for it if he had the time and money to waste, but that it would a very unwise decision on his behalf considering the paint job he was complaining about he didn’t even pay for and that I also have every single email between him & I documenting all of this from beginning to end.
Make a long story short that was the last we ever heard of him.
Right from the beginning, Patrick was very thorough and professional, detailing each step of the process of turning my Hamer Blitz bass into one of my bucket list replica basses. Although, more time was needed - no thanks to the pandemic - when the bass was completed, Patrick let me know immediately through a phone call that the job was completed, and pictures were on the way for me to see. I was absolutely thrilled with the way that it turned out, and it even has the approval of someone very close to Mikey himself!
I brought Patrick Sims my 2001 beat up Fender Mex Strat with a great neck and he turned it into one of most beautiful guitars. Bright white with a touch of gold sparkle. This was 3 years ago and it is still one of my favorites. Defiantly will use him again.
Patrick killed this repair and repaint for me, this guitar was my mentors who passed away last year and I wanted to fix it up and gig it out so I would always have a piece of him with me. Even with all the difficulties getting supplies in right now (yes it really is that bad) he was able to get this done and kept me in the loop the whole time
Sims Custom Shop is the Best! Told them what I was looking to get done, they had great ideas of their own. Easy to work with, great communication every step of the way! End product was truly amazing! Superior Quality!
I commissioned Patrick Sims to refinish a 1989 Ibanez RG 760 in a very unique color. Ibanez used a finish in 1989 that they called "dark gray." In all actuality it's really a cross between copper and gray. Mr. Sims was able to match the color to perfection bringing the guitar back to its former glory. I am incredibly impressed with the quality of the work and I would recommend Mr. Sims to anyone who is looking for next level custom work!
Great service and returned before the quoted turnaround time! Pat fixed multiple cracks on my original finish and made it look amazing in a satin black!
Patrick is the best at what he does! Superb service! Professional in every way! Great communication. Sent him my telecaster neck to a vintage looking nitro finish and he totally went above and beyond my expectations!
I have nothing but good things to say about Sims Custom Shop! Not only does my guitar look absolutely incredible, but Patrick was so helpful and easy to deal with. Great communication (never any issues getting pictures, updates, or feedback on idea I had), guitar was finished in a timely fashion, and he was always in touch. I especially appreciated how thoughtful he was about all the details, making great suggestions and talking through any decisions with me. This paint job is exactly what I wanted, and I would highly recommend Sims Custom Shop to anyone and everyone. Couldn't be happier!
Patrick did a really great job building a custom guitar from scratch. He designed everything to my specifications and was helpful with design and detail suggestions. Not only is the guitar stunning to look at, it is also a treat to play. Patrick is a very skilled craftsman who does top notch work!
Pat... The guitar arrived. Its even better in person! Thank you for the unbelievable paint job! I appreciate your insight and desire to see my vision come to life. This is definitely one of those instruments that will be handed down from generation to generation! Thank you Sims Custom Guitars!
Patrick did a great job on my guitar. I could not be happier with how cool my guitar looks. You have to be patient some of these difficult paint jobs can take time to cure, but its well worth it. I will be sending more guitars to Pat in the near future!
Good communication. Paint was laid on smooth with excellent gloss & deep shine. Attention to detail is what I look for from painters & Patrick exceeded my expectations. No overspray. No orange peel. Very smooth.
Hope to be a repeat customer. If you have a guitar that you truly love to play & love its sound, then why go out & but a new one when Patrick can make your guitar look brand new, unique, & custom.
Overview
Sims Custom Shop has a rating of 4.2 stars from 135 reviews, indicating that most customers are generally satisfied with their purchases. Reviewers satisfied with Sims Custom Shop most frequently mention paint job, guitar body and customer service. Sims Custom Shop ranks 2nd among Guitars sites.
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- Chattanooga, TN, United States
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At the time (2020) I was only familiar with how to process a credit card over the phone via manual entering the numbers into the square app. This individual insisted for me to send him an invoice to pay and stated he did not want to give me his credit card information directly. I informed him this was the only way I knew how to process a credit card and if that was an issue he would just need to unfortunately find another shop to paint his guitar.
I do not feel it’s right for a person to leave me a 1 star review who never did business with me bc I was not familiar with how to accept a credit card payment in the way he was wanting to pay.