Hey guys.

So my beloved Bjf 'Honey Bee' (#HB 151) is having a little problem ...
The "nature" (tone) control seems to be doing less and less - ceasing to work gradually over the last year.
Anyway, I've tried contacting Eero Kilpi in NY whom I got it from, but my e-mails get returned.
Is he still there and/or how can I get my HB looked at/fixed?

Thanks in advance, - KL

Ken,

Don't know about Eero, but have you tried contacting Bjorn? I'm sure you'd rather not send it to Sweden, but he might know of someone in the states that can take care of it.

www.custom-sounds.com is a dealer for Bjorn that might be able to help contact him.

Did you try placing it on another pedalboard? Maybe it needs another hyve!

Try emailing Björn. He's always been very straight up to me when I had some issues with my EGDM.

klasaine, Check PM, I send you his mail address.

Thanks guys!

I'm sure Bjorn will 'take care of me' - that's not really the issue. I'd really rather not have to send my little 'apian' overdrive to Sweden and back if I don't have to. I bring that thing to every session and almost every gig. Yes, I should've bought two.
There used to be a guy in NY that rep'd him (Eero Kilpi - also does/did Ruokangas guitars and the MP amps) I met him at a NAMM show, '04 or '05. He hooked me up with the HB.
Just wondering if there's somebody in the states that he has fix his stuff if it goes down(?).

Bjorn's stuff is usually encased in goop isn't it? I would assume the the entire circuit would have to be swapped out by Bjorn. Unless it was just a footswitch or pot problem, then anyone could take care of it.

From the sound of your problem, maybe the Nature pot has gone bad?

H

Yes. Totally 'gooped'.
That's why I'm askin'.

Sounds like the problem with your pedal just reflects the larger environmental problem as a whole--nature is getting screwed.

quote:

Originally posted by Larry the Dwarf:
Sounds like the problem with your pedal just reflects the larger environmental problem as a whole--nature is getting screwed.

What would Al Gore say????

cheers

quote:

Originally posted by klasaine:
Yes. Totally 'gooped'.
That's why I'm askin'.

If everyone would boycott gooped pedals life would be much easier for everyone.

But wait, if it's not gooped the builders can't charge as much for them...

Please don't turn this into a "bash the builders" thread ... especially Bjorn! He makes some of the best stuff out there. He's also been in contact with me hooking me up with someone local to take a look at my HB.

quote:

Originally posted by dosmun:

quote:

Originally posted by klasaine:
Yes. Totally 'gooped'.
That's why I'm askin'.

If everyone would boycott gooped pedals life would be much easier for everyone.

word

H

No slammin from me. I think Bjorn is at the top of the heap as far as pedal builders go.

My thoughts are it would just suck if you end up paying a bunch of money shipping it back and forth if it is not repairable.

I wasn't bashing Bjorn. He makes great pedals. I have a few on my pedal board and he even goes as far to drop by some forums and give us DIY'ers hints at what he has going on under his goop.

I do however think gooping is used by some to hide the fact their designs are really clones of old or obscure circuits or not worth the hype. goop = boutique = $$$

Also, gooping makes something that should be user serviceable (if it's not SMD) an impossible mess to fix or troubleshoot.

hey Ken, e me if you dont hear from BJ, the gooped part is rarely the problem, it almost always the moving/contact parts ~ pots,stomps,in/outs,power tap/led which are all easily serviced


(mostly the people whining about the goop are those that would like to easily benefit from the work of others )

quote:

Originally posted by dosmun:
No slammin from me. I think Bjorn is at the top of the heap as far as pedal builders go.

My thoughts are it would just suck if you end up paying a bunch of money shipping it back and forth if it is not repairable.

+1
Especially if the builder is in Europe and hopes to have American clientel. I really like Bjorn's work, however I simply can't afford the time and expense of having something simple go wrong on a pedal and getting stuck in Ken's position. At best he's going to have to do a major search to find someone either near LA or in the US, or worse ship it back to Sweeden to get something anyone handy with an iron could fix. No thanks. I'm not especially cost conscious with gear I need, and can deal with the shipping & the worthless dollar when buying from overseas, but I will not buy gooped pedals.

My personal 3 rules of buying gear:
1. Only buy gear that sounds great with a cranked up amp of at least 50 watts;
2. Only buy gear that is road worthy;
3. Never buy anything that isn't serviceable by SOMEONE within the range of FedEx overnight shipping.

I'm sorry you're having so much trouble with that pedal. I know how much you're into it and it really sucks having it not work.

quote:

Originally posted by Donner:
hey Ken, e me if you dont hear from BJ, the gooped part is rarely the problem, it almost always the moving/contact parts ~ pots,stomps,in/outs,power tap/led which are all easily serviced


(mostly the people whining about the goop are those that would like to easily benefit from the work of others )

I don't ever hear PLAYERS complain about gooped pedals. Players have no interest in stealing the circuits that the booteek builders themselves have clearly stolen and then tweeked. If you are on the road and have a pedal go down, your tech simply has to be able to fix it, take it to be fixed, or overnight it to be fixed or you're screwed. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to fix a pedal which is why there are so many busy irons making them in garages in the first place. Now that the booteek pedal market is matured enough to have pedals out there for 5-10 years on the road, we're going to find out who makes truly road worthy pedals (meaning sturdy AND serviceable) and who simply puts on pretty paint jobs for bedroom players who wrap their pedals in bubble wrap between once a month playing sessions.

Like I wrote in my previous post, I simply don't buy gooped pedals because they are by my definition not road worthy. I don't care how good they sound. I can't take them out.

This is not a Bjorn issue. He's a great builder and at first thought I think anyone would agree with the concept of gooping because if builders relied on actual touring musicians for their income, they'd be broke. If a builder decides to goop its because they want to either protect their internet-bedroom-player buying base from either getting into the market themselves (as you point out) or from realizing the emperor has no clothes and the internet hype is really just that.

right, there are mechanical reasons for gooping - but gooping also either protects an original idea or a stolen one - and theres no way to tell the difference without removing it .... its sort of the poor mans patent
Basically it gives the builder a head start by the time your pedal becomes interesting enough to be worth degooping the builder should already have thier customer base rolling ...... patents werent meant to last forever, neither is goop......

and yes the number of fulltime touring musicians is a very small drop in the music sales biz and a builder would be foolish to play only to thier needs -


any player that would be completely unhinged by a single piece of equipment going down needs to rethink thier equipment