Hi, Kyp. Custom order sparkle finishes are rare...and then there's the student model in 1966. How likely is it that someone would want a bottom line guitar and go to the trouble of custom ordering it. In 1966. In sparkle no less.

In "fender te golden years" they feature some Duo Sonics that have ...

Fact is factory custom sparkle finishes are rare. So someone trys if there is a collector who pays any price. Assuming I was a collector for rare sparkele custom finished Fenders with tons of cash behind me I'd ask for more thoug than someone writing on the internet that this most likely was a ...

I once had a 30' scale bass in a Rockcase Jazzmaster case. But try before you buy ...

Looks like a cheap copy. Fender uses this kind of tuners on the cheap entry Squier models. Or, they used to. I'd rather buy a Squier VM than this.

that now clears it up; afaik the font above the serial is a rather bulletproof way to date those MIJ-guitars. The font in which "Made in Japan" is printed on your neck clearly is hooked to the newer ones.

See here: Old (above) vers. new (below) http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v208/jwells393 ...

Imho, if you can get a japanese Fender 65 RI Mustang (the one without the belly cut), then you are in the Mustang Champions League. Perfectly manufactured, great electronics (all cts/switchcraft), historically correct grey bobbin cloth wire pickups, solid bridge with no gaps between the saddles ...

Find me a used Fender Cyclone for $200 and I'll eat my own head.

I was just adding up the 200 $ the guitar costs + about the same amount for shipping and european import tax costs. With the Dollar being as low as it is at the moment, you might come out in the ballpark of about 300 €, but that ...

I'd say it can't be worth ist. You'll pay about what you pay for a used Fender Cyclone.

i don't get why people would want a stinky little solid state like the dark ages now

1) it's cheaper (or should be) than a modeling amp
2) maybe some people prefer an analog sound, though I guess it doesn't matter for the typical entry level buyer

that's basically the revamped Frontman range isn ...

not pushing you into any direction, just saying: "before deciding to order from Japan, get in touch with the seller for information about the actual guitar (because what they sell should be a used guitar in some way)", and "calculate in all the costs of import to avoid unwanted surprises".

some more aspects:

Fender usually won't allow their retailers to export new guitars, not from USA to Europe and also not from Japan to USA or Europe. So, any guitar you get from Ishibashi should be legally used/2nd hand. That can mean they just take it out of the box and put it in a gigbag to ship ...

here's one on Ishibashi. http://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?depth=1&hl=ja&rurl=translate.google.co.jp&sl=auto&tl=en&u=http://store.ishibashi.co.jp/ec/pro/disp/1/05-311347300&usg=ALkJrhi0qnj9ZIjV0PLe71Pws2hhY92ixw

But I think you can get them used in the USA from time to time.

What Gusman said. When youre trying to save some money, ordering new stuff directly from overseas is usually not the way to go.

It may be the way to go if what you want is not available where you live. but getting exactly what you want will cost you usually more than getting what is available ...

I looked for some time anf found none. Unless they are made of chrome or something like that.

Cyclone would be cheaper, Mustang plays better and has better trem

I didn't attempt doing a demo, but I used it at a Show last weekend. Not so convincing pperformance by me, but you get the idea ...

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that's damn nice. congrats.

the sound as-is is not bad, actually can be dialed in very nice, though no match for an 8 string mando. maybe the pickup is a little too hot. Might try to screw it down a bit before changing it.
I will need a new nut at some point, as Fender screwed up one groove (therefore the alu snipped pictured ...

now learning Mandolin chords ...

http://i779.photobucket.com/albums/yy77/kypdurron01/Fender%20Mando%20Strat/Mando-Strat02.jpg
http://i779.photobucket.com/albums/yy77/kypdurron01/Fender%20Mando%20Strat/Mando-Strat06.jpg
http://i779.photobucket.com/albums/yy77/kypdurron01/Fender%20Mando%20Strat ...

Over here they charge you 699 € for a Classic 70s Strat and 599 for a Italia Mondial. So given that the Strat is much older, it's no completely insane trade. And once you have some Fenders, is there really a need for another? I could see myself getting a piezo packed humbucker guitar at some point ...