Fender help needed

[Ian Price]

Hello all,

As mentioned on previous threads I'm trying to sell my 70's tele. Some guy from eBay has been asking loads of questions about it, to which I have responded. He has now mailed me back questioning the validity of the guitar i.e. it's a bitsa. He has offered £900 which I laughed at and turned down flat. His questions, my answers and his responses were as follows:

Q) What stamps and colours are on the bottom of the pups?
A) No stamps that I can see, bridge is base is copper, neck base is black.
R) it sounds like one or both the pick ups have been changed at some point. All form '64 - the late 70's had grey bottomed pick ups and by the late 60's they all have a ink stamp for dating purposes. There is no exception to this rule.

Q) What are the stamps on the pots?
A) Pots = 015479 1meg Aud 3047349 (the tone and volume pots looked like they have the same number - the volume pot will be  difficult to see without disconnecting it and removing it)
R) One of the Pots is most definately original

Other info I have given - and responses are:

I) Switch = CRL1452
R) I cant tell anything from the Switch as this was an industry standard from the 60's through the 80's so without the switch serial im unable to work out if its original to the guitar.

I) Neck serial number = 13014214, neck plate number = 615232
R) Neck, The Neck plate and At least one pot all have different serial numbers with a gap of approx 5 years.

After offering £900 and me rejecting it he sent me the following "There are tons of ways to date things precisely but im not going to bore either of us doing it any longer via email so ill simply just take the  chance and buy the thing. I made an offer which youve obviously refused  just a moment ago. You can rely on a quick payment from me but i need to  know what the lowest prcatical price is you would be happy with?.  Considering there was a 1965 Tele that was mostly original apart from a  new routing etc that sold the other day for £1900 it shows you what non  original or sceptically non original guitars go for"

Before I could respond to this mail I received another saying "I seem to have put you in a right huff?. My next offer is £1400, hopefully this will bring you out yourself. Lets keep emotions out of this, i'm trying to spend money with you"

I must admit that I'm not an authority on Fender info so does what this guy is saying check out? The tone of the mails is annoying me slightly although it is difficult to sense what tone it is meant in! Thoughts would be appreciated.

Cheers and apologies for the long thread!

Ian.

[Philly Q]

I don't know about all the Fender specs, but he's trying to bully you into selling.

Which suggests (IMO) that your guitar is legit and he's after a bargain so he can sell it on at a profit.

[Matt77]

I just wouldn't deal with him. If you sell it to him he will probably get a huff about something.
I would let it find its own price at auction

[Ian Price]

he's trying to bully you into selling.

Which suggests (IMO) that your guitar is legit and he's after a bargain so he can sell it on at a profit.

That's what I was thinking Philly - to jump from £900 to £1400 without waiting for a response from me suggests this. It' a very strange tactic though - maybe to try to make me think I'd be getting a good deal as he would take it off of my hands fo a 'good' price.

I've also done a bit of reading up on the date stamping and can't find anything that says this was used without exception. In fact it's quite the opposite for teles as far as I can see.

[Twinfan]

^ What Phil says.

He's anxious not to lose the purchase and has upped his offer £500 just like that.  Smells fishy, so I'd play him for a bit.

Turn down the £1400, saying you've got other people enquiring at the moment, and see what he says................

[Jonny]

He sounds like an utter c--kbag. I'd go with what Dave says.

[Ian Price]

I just wouldn't deal with him. If you sell it to him he will probably get a huff about something.
I would let it find its own price at auction

I don't think I will on principle now. I fracking hate people that arse me about. Just make an offer and be done with it!

He has since sent a few more mails. One that proves the dating system was used without exception. It's a JPEG with the base of about 10 tele bridge pups and 4 P bass pups. And another that says "Just to let you know, ive been a Fender collector since '86. Worked in a Music shop for 12 years and gigged professionally most of my adult life. Theres not much now at this stage in life that i dont know about Fender. If theres absolutely anything you want to know just ask."

Hmmm. I really hope this guy isn't a BKP forum member as he is being a complete (insert word of choice)!

[Philly Q]

He may be right about the pickups etc, after all it is a 30 year old guitar - all my guitars have changed parts, although I try to put them back to original condition when I sell them.  Lots of people don't, they've already sold the old parts.

Regardless of that, he wouldn't be making these offers if he didn't think he was on to a good thing.

This is one of the reasons I don't like owning vintage guitars - unless you really know your stuff, pushy buyers are always going to try to "blind you with science".  I got totally ripped off when I sold my SG Special, and the worst part was I knew it was happening!  :oops:

[Ian Price]

This is one of the reasons I don't like owning vintage guitars - unless you really know your stuff, pushy buyers are always going to try to "blind you with science".  I got totally ripped off when I sold my SG Special, and the worst part was I knew it was happening!  :oops:

I'm starting to feel that way. New stuff all the way for me now!

[shobet]

Personally, I'd tell him to "$%&# off"

[Ian Price]

Personally, I'd tell him to "$%&# off"

 :lol: Can I borrow your accent though. It would sound so much better  :lol:

[Jonny]

Are you gonna put it up for bids with a reserve then?

[dave_mc]

i *think* i remember a guitar and bass article about fender pickups from a few months back, and i *think* i remember reading that the backs of the pickups changed in the 70s- or the pickups got worse, certainly, at some point (and i imagine the backs changed as this made them easier to distinguish).

Found it! Guitar and Bass Magazine, Feb 2009 (vol 20 No 3): according to that Phil Harris guy (who's their vintage guy, I think) in 1964 the pickups had a greeny-grey base, which changed to grey in 1971. Apparently the quality of the pickups got worse in 1975-76, when they changed to flat polepieces. Unfortunately, it doesn't mention the colour of the base. And of course, you have to trust Phil Harris's words- but i'd trust him more than that guy who clearly wants to buy your guitar.

i agree with philly, in other words. Do you have that issue, philly? If so, maybe you could check it to make sure I haven't missed anything, I'm not exactly a vintage gearhead... :lol:

[Ian Price]

Are you gonna put it up for bids with a reserve then?

Nah - reserve fees are a total rip off IMO. I'm not brave enough to start it on 1p either!

[Philly Q]

Found it! Guitar and Bass Magazine, Feb 2009 (vol 20 No 3): according to that Phil Harris guy (who's their vintage guy, I think) in 1964 the pickups had a greeny-grey base, which changed to grey in 1971. Apparently the quality of the pickups got worse in 1975-76, when they changed to flat polepieces. Unfortunately, it doesn't mention the colour of the base. And of course, you have to trust Phil Harris's words- but i'd trust him more than that guy who clearly wants to buy your guitar.

i agree with philly, in other words. Do you have that issue, philly? If so, maybe you could check it to make sure I haven't missed anything, I'm not exactly a vintage gearhead... :lol:

Exactly what you said, Dave.  I take some of Phil Harris's comments with a pinch of salt, he's a total vintage snob, but I'm sure they're factually correct. 

That was all specifically about Strat pickups, though, I don't know if the same necessarily applies to Teles.