QUESTION

I see that this is the right time to buy a Fender black guard Telecaster. I see alot if ones for sale now at a a good price

( well compared to 3 years ago). I am a player so originality does not matter to me as much but what parts of the Telecaster are the most important parts that I should care about when buying one and also secondly how about a wood only guitar is that a good idea?

REPLY

That is alot to cover in a short blog post but here we go. First as always i am an advocate of all original guitar both for the collectors value and for aesthetically. If you can afford it go for it you will be happy in the long run. for me the two most important parts are the wood and the electronics. Having said that i would emphasis that if you are buying a guitar in whatever state it is in make sure the body is not modified if you can help it. That means no sanding , over spray or refinishing. and the decal is the most important parts for the value and to authenticate the guitar.

Old wood sounds great but not if it is covered in a thick poly finish or 10 coats of paint. On the other hand if they are stripped they may sound good but most of the value is gone. if you have to go this route make sure the body and neck dates are in tack and make sure there original. they are easy to fake. The electronics being pickups , pots and caps are the next most important things make sure they are original and that the pickups are original windings and not rewound . This plays out as follows the old electronics with the old wood if your lucky will have that magic sound and tone . These are the key players in the guitar in my opinion.

The pick guard plates , bridge, saddles, knobs , tuners  frets and so on are secondary and have nothing to due wit the tone factor. So if you are looking for a player there you go and you have to pay accordingly the more changed parts obviously the less you pay. For me i would try to get an original finished guitar with lets say changed pickuard and tuners and bridge . this way you have a real finish and a real guitar worth real electronics and the other parts you can buy over time . this way you can save  10k or more and little by little bring it back to stock and you can still get an original finish guitar that has a real value or potential value depending on how much you restore it.

The wood only scenario is your last resort and has a few dangerous speed bumps  you have to pay attention to. first the decal has to be original if it is not the neck value is worth 70% yes 70% less!!!!  original decal with over spray are hard to tell if not and expert but they are 50% less. so wait and get one with an untouched decal and the neck date should also be there

THE DECAL IS STILL THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO LOOK FOR.  The stripped body should have and original date in the neck pocket  or under lead pickup cavity.If it does not  that body is worth 70% less too. becosue there are so many fakes who can tell??? again make sure body is not routed this too is important. if you follow these two steps atleast the wood of the guitar will have some value and you always have something to fall back on. a refinished  neck and body  without a decal and body dates are usuless and i woldl not even consider buying at all. I hope this helps if you have any other questions please feel free e mail me at THE PARTSDRAWER

Thank you

Jim pasch

Due to the massive inquiries lately on a  black light I re ran this from our other website so all can read this popular post.

QUESTION

What do they mean when they say does it black lite ?? I just bought a vintage guitar and want to check my parts out to see if they are real.

REPLY

Thank you for the e mail. Great question not a simple answer. Vintage guitar plastic should glow a certain color when exposed to a black lite in the dark. This is very obviously if you have new and old parts side by side to see the difference it is like night and day. But if you have only the vintage parts to test basically here is what it will  look like.

Again color is subjective to each person so i think it looks like a fluorescent yellowish color with a bit of green to it. But i have seen parts black lite more whitish and more unique tones than i can describe . basically they should jump out!! at you under a black light and really stand out. The newer parts change color but do not jump out at you. If you are still not sure borrow a knob from your friends new guitar and put the new and vintage parts side by side you will see right away.

Now another note ! all parts do not black lite the same color or at the same intensity. knobs and such black lite strong as do guitar tuner tips. pickguards are not as strong but they will react under black light. Do not panic if you see your knobs black light different from you knobs this is normal!! the same goes for finish but that is a real complicated story we will touch on at a later time.

There are fakes out there and people as we speak are trying to develop new parts that are aged that black lite so this is for now a fairly safe test but it will not be long until some idiot will figure it out and ruin it for everyone.

If you are still unsure you can send us parts and we Will evaluate them for free no charge you just pay shipping both ways.

Thank you again for your question

Jim pasch

The Parts Drawer

QUESTION

I am considering buying a vintage Fender Jazz Bass for my collection and I have been told the holy grail is the 1960-1961 Fender Stack knob Jazz Bass. Is this true and would you recommend this one. Also Is there anything I should look for when buying a Fender Stack knob Jazz Bass. Thank you in advance for your help.

REPLY

I wwould say without reservation this is the one to get. There is such a low production of these basses and they are so desirable even when the vintage guitar market goes down these are always a stable item and retains its value better than most. I have been selling Vintage guitars for over twenty years and if i get one of these a year for sale it is a good year. These are super hard to find and harder to find unmolested.

First I must warn you many have been converted from regular jazz basses of that year and this makes it that much tougher to find and identify. The only difference is the pots and knobs  so you can imagine it is not a tough modification and it is one that Can easily be done to look original.

I really cannot explain how to spot a converted bass if it was done by a professional forger because it Will look good. Many were just done by players who never intended to fool anyone and these are easy to spot. Look under the control plate and see how the solder looks a player could have just redone the solder and you can identify it easily . fender soldering was usually clean and by this time it should have an naturally aged patina on it making it look dull. use common sense if you are not sure look online you an see many pictures of fender bass controls and the soldering as a reference.

The expert forger has figured out how to age solder and use old wire from other original fender basses to make it look perfect. only a pro can tell and many cannot even tell who are not familiar with the original basses. If you are buying form a individual again use common sense judge character etc and ask questions about bass. look for any paperwork or receipts. If it is a vintage dealer go by his reputation and ask if he will guarantee it and put it in writing . An honest dealer will do this . Again these put together basses are so well done it is very very hard to tell.

That said if you find one just make sure al parts are original . in this changing vintage market and the volatile climate only all original guitars and basses hold some value. do not buy a modified stack pot bass unless it is real cheap they are hard to sell for any real money and hold no real value. As always with old basses check the neck many pre cbs basses were used with flat sound strings and the added tension bowed the neck.

I hope this helps and if you have any further questions please e mail me at THE PARTS DRAWER

JIm Pasch