Lawrence-McFadden going under

[Rick Turner]

The LaurenceMcFadden paint company, in business in the US since 1885 and supplier of the finest lacquer, polyurethane, and polyester finishes to much of the fretted instrument business has shut down as of this week. The company is in bankruptcy and are negotiating to sell their formulas to other entities. This is going to hit our industry like a bomb...they supply Fender, Guild, Ovation, Martin, Taylor, and countless smaller makers.

Canary in the coal mine? Let's hope not.

[Nick]

Never had the opportunity to use their products but a number of American builders (as you've pointed out) swear by there products, my mentor Bob Benedetto being one of them. Are you amongst the users of their products at all Rick?
Bad times indeed, I'm the last person you could call business savvy but I wonder how a company as established and with such a good name can get into such a position but the recession moves in mysterious ways indeed & has obviously had an affect on Laurence McFadden. Hopefully for the continuation of the product they can sell the formula's to a reputable company that won't 'cheapen' the recipe by sourcing inferior (read cheaper) ingredients.

[Bob Connor]

Wow. That is going to upset the applecart.

I hope someone picks up their products.

What way do you think the industry will turn Rick?

Their are obviously some manufacturers that have perfected their processes using McFadden's produucts.

[Rick Turner]

Bob (and all), the industry is pretty committed to polyester these days, be it UV cured or catalyst cured. Even boutique companies like Santa Cruz and Collings are using poly for the build coats under nitro because done right, it doesn't shrink back into the pores. There are other suppliers of poly...Crown Metro, Simtec, and others, but pretty much everyone agrees that McFadden's nitro lacquer is simply the best out there. I wouldn't be surprised to find out that Fender is working hard on something, whether it's a buy out of the formulas to be made elsewhere now, or...what if they bought the company and downsized it just to make finishes for the guitar industry? McFadden made a lot of coatings for the furniture industry...which has tanked in the US...and also for caskets. Nobody has stopped dying...

I think it's symptomatic of a business climate and model which allows growth but not shrinkage, and in the long run, that's just unrealistic...speaking as someone who had twice the employees about 14 months ago that I have now. I am much happier with a smaller crew, myself.

[kiwigeo]

I reckon McFaddens should scale things down and concentrate on the two sure things in life....death and guitars.

[Allen]

I saw a post on the OLF where this was announced and several people were scrambling to get in as much stock as they realistically could. Don't think that this would work for someone as large as Taylor, Fender or Martin for more than a few weeks though.

I can only imagine the scrambling that is going on in those companies to come up with a viable alternative.

[kiwigeo]

Its always intrigued me the lengths people go to to make their casket look flash when the thing is destined to be buried 6 foot under or be fed into a blazing inferno.

Me..Ive told my wife to stuff me into the garden compost bin when I cark it.

McFadden made a lot of coatings for the furniture industry...which has tanked in the US...and also for caskets. Nobody has stopped dying...

[Cam]

^ You might smell a bit don't ya think?

[kiwigeo]

Nah mate...the red worms in my compost bin are the size of annacondas...Id have the flesh stripped from my bones in 30 minutes.

[Hesh1956]

I didn't know that nitro was used for caskets...

Personally I would be seriously concerned about the ramifications to one's health of long term exposure (forever...) to nitro if I was laying in one of those nitro finished caskets... Bury me with my respirator on please.... Besides the respirator should help with the methane too...

On a serious note I would be interested in knowing in general how the guitar industry is weathering out the recessionary storm. It seems to me that since employment lags nearly last in a recovery guitar purchases, which probably are very discretionary, must lag even behind employment recovery in a recession.

McFadden produced great products/solutions that represented real value and as such I sincerely hope that someone picks up their IP and continues to offer their wares.

Thanks for posting this Rick.

[sebastiaan56]

Hesh,

I dont want to scare you but usually its only the visible bits of the casket that get dressed up to look pretty. So it is just possible that your dead arse will be laying on pine when you get there. I hope you dont have sensitive skin....

Another icon comapny goes broke. Any gossip on why Rick? Unless they handed over to a pimple faced MBA who bled the cash most established companies have staying power irrespective of the economic climate. It happened to an icon Australian media company a few years ago (Fairfax)

[Allen]

Same blokes took out "The Hudsons Bay Company" . One of the oldest companies in the world. But hey, the whole board of directors had MBA's so they must have known what they were doing.