Fender CS Fraud - Help

[AlexD]

I may have sold a fake CS Strat (not on purpose btw) to a forum member. Apparently the neck is a masterbuild CS attached to a '56 Reissue body. Before I get the cheque book out, can someone help me validate:

1) Do the '56 Reissue's come in the "Mary Kaye" color with a nitro finish?

2) How could someone tell that the body is a Reissue and not a CS?

3) Other things to consider (?)

4) What would be the value of a masterbuilt CS neck with a reissue body (and kinman pups)?

My signature link has pix of the Strat with the maple fretboard.

http://community.webshots.com/user/adann100

feel free to e-mail me - adann@falconbridge.com


Thanks

[Marcondo]

If its a CS body it will have the Custom Shop logo stamped into the body under the pickguard.

[MK.II]

The non-Custom Shop, regular production U.S. made reissue is called a `57, not a `56. Also Marcondo is correct about a CURRENT Custom Shop body, BUT, I have a first year (`92) Custom Shop `60`s Strat that has an ink stamp in the neck pocket that says `62 reissue!! It`s a nice looking body with a nice three tone sunburst. I`ve heard other people say that the early ones had nice hand picked bodies from the regular reissue production line, but not the necks. I have no idea when they stopped doing that, or even if there were very may that were done that way. I don`t know how old the guitar in question is, but if the guitar is 10 years old, it is possible the Custom Shop may have used a regular reissue body, but it would be a `57 reissue not `56. I hope this helps and doesn`t confuse things more.

[AlexD]

'56 vs. '57 also raised a question for me.

The Strat in question is from 1991.


Thanks

[Marcondo]

I'm not sure if the Custom Shop was up and running in 1991.

If its that old it could easily have a mixture of regular production model parts mixed with masterbuilt parts. Maybe the CS wasnt setup good enough to make the bodies and did use some of the better regular production model bodies on the early ones that would make sense.

[Garey]

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[Garey]

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[Marcondo]

Hey Garey hula pal how its going?

Looks like your trying to solve a mystery.

I know you know your nitro from poly and if it doesnt dent easy with the thumbnail trick then its more than likely poly.

The biggest difference I see in the CS bodies and MIM's is the depth of the back contour. Its much thinner on the CS and new ri's than the MIM's or other bodies.

[Garey]

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[AlexD]

Deleted post at Gary's request.

[rsrelic]

Originally posted by Garey
For those of you that know me.....you'll know something about my experience with strats. I ran G&S Guitars website for 3 years, have had MANY Custom Shop strats, and even a handful of Masterbuilts...John English's and J.W. Black's.

The guitar in question has a Custom Shop neck, dated 1991 with the initials FS. Seems fine.

However, The body has a white-blonde finish, and I can't verify that its nitro.....as its a hard, shiny finish...not soft, like most nitro where you can dent it with a thumbnail. ALL my other guitars are Nitro, so I know what a nitro finish looks, feels, smells like. The body has modern contours...nothing like a vintage strat or a good CS strat. There are NO stamps or indicators on the body, other than the initials JM in the trem cavity. It also has a Vintage Reissue neckplate, and it came in a Vintage Reissue case. NOTHING on this guitar states '56 or '57...so that is a void. There is also no certificate. With the pickups swapped out its impossible to use pickup model as a possible indicator also.

BTW, this guitar was sold to me under the impression that it was a Masterbuilt, under 7 pounds. Well, the neck may be a Fred Stuart...but thats about it, and it weighs in just under 8 pounds!

Aloha, Garey

If the guitar is a 91 masterbuilt or any custom shop it would not be nitro. I ordered a master built (made by Gene Baker of Baker Guitars) while I was a repairman at a Fender dealer in 1994, and I asked for a nitro lacquer finish, but was told that they did not offer any lacquer finishes. When I got the guitar in I talked to Gene about the guitar, and was told it was Poly like all the CS guitars at that time. My guitar has no logos in the body, but is marked 8-94 GB for Roy Bowen (me) in pen.

[MK.II]

Garey

My `92 Custom Shop `60 reissue also has a non-Custom Shop, regular Vintage Reissue neck plate (V063803). Like I said in my earlier post, my guitar has a regular U.S. `62 Vintage Reissue body with a Custom Shop neck. The neck pocket is stamped "`62 reissue" and it`s not a nitro finish. The body`s rounded edges are not the same as the current "Time Machine Series" Strats. The body was shielded with shielding paint from the factory. Before the "Time Machine Series", Custom Shop Strat bodies usually came shielded. All of the ones that my buddies and I had were shielded except for one. The early CS reissues also came with a 5-way switch already installed. The neck is lightly flamed and chunkier than a `62 reissue, and the headstock has the Custom Shop insignia on the back of it. The neck is not a nitro finish either. The serial # on the neck plate matches the Certificate of Authenticity, and it`s dated 10/31/92.

Is the body of the guitar in question just like a regular Vintage Reissue? Is it shielded with shielding paint? Since you said that the body hasn`t got any stamps in it and it`s not a nitro finish, these are the only other things that I would be able tell you to check for, according to my guitar. I hope this info helps somehow.

[Garey]

Thanks for all the info guys....this one has proven that there are a lot of inconsistencies at Fender! Which I guess isn't new news! I appreciate the feedback, and I'd like to apologize to Alex for getting a bit heated under questioning. He made himself available and put great effort into clearing this matter up. I deleted my other posts, as I felt this didn't need to involve any personal details. Thanks again Alex

Aloha, Garey

[AlexD]

Originally posted by Garey
Thanks for all the info guys....this one has proven that there are a lot of inconsistencies at Fender! Which I guess isn't new news! I appreciate the feedback, and I'd like to apologize to Alex for getting a bit heated under questioning. He made himself available and put great effort into clearing this matter up. I deleted my other posts, as I felt this didn't need to involve any personal details. Thanks again Alex

Aloha, Garey

I appreciate the post and your honesty.



Alex

[Black Bear]

Ain't self-moderation grand?

This has been an interesting thread to say the least.