We place great importance on standing behind our warranty. Like many builders of musical instruments, we try to achieve a delicate balance between building for structural strength and building for good tone. Hammered dulcimers and harps must support tremendous tension—a typical 3-octave dulcimer can have over 1,000 pounds of total string tension. It’s easy to overdesign an instrument to gain an absolute guarantee of structural strength, but as players we aren’t satisfied with the sound and performance that result from that approach.
No instrument builder who has achieved portability, good volume, and a vibrant tone can claim a history totally free of instrument problems. So the important question is whether a builder has the capacity and desire to provide assistance if there ever is a problem with one of their instruments. In more than three decades of building instruments, that’s been one of our consistent priorities.
Most of our instruments carry a five-year warranty. There is a two-year warranty on the Ravenna 26 and the Ravenna 34, commensurate with the lower price levels of these models.
Our Warranty
For all models other than Ravenna 26 and Ravenna 34.
All Dusty Strings instruments are warranted against defects in materials and workmanship to the original owner for a period of five years from the original date of purchase. All repairs covered under this warranty will be provided without charge. Repair or replacement of defective instruments will be at the sole discretion of Dusty Strings. Shipping charges to and from Dusty Strings are the responsibility of the owner.
This warranty does not cover string breakage, lever breakage, damage to wood, hardware, or finishes due to normal use, carelessness, accident, extremes of humidity or temperature, or repairs or alterations made by other than Dusty Strings. Do not leave the instrumet in a parked motor vehicle on a warm day. Temperature high enough to soften glue can be quickly reached inside a vehicle parked in sun or shade, even with windows partially opened. Evidence of such an occurence will void this warranty.
Please read our PDF download about Dryness, Humidity, and Musical Instruments.