| Author | Message | ||
| s_wood
Intermediate Member Username: s_wood Post Number: 162 Registered: 5-2002 |
I saw 3 nice Alembics for sale at the Philadelphia Guitar Show today. They are located in NJ (in the US) at a dealer called Good Guys Guitars. 1) 1974 Series 1 - 9.5LBS! $5,995 Unusually light for a Series I. Weird woods: mahagony neck with maple lams...the top was walnut (I think) and the core was oak or sycamore (according to my buddy, a professional woodworker). The dealer thought that the core was pear...who knows? THe basses sounded great...darker than you usually find in a Series bass. 2) 1994 Elan $1,749 Beautiful blue finish over nice quilted maple. 3) 1991 Essence $1,399 Red over lightly flamed maple. See the basses here: www.goodguysguitars.com | ||
| kmh364
Senior Member Username: kmh364 Post Number: 1238 Registered: 9-2003 |
Pretty nice site...that blue Elan is very nice...you don't see a lot like that one! FWIW, They've got some decent pieces there...lot's of vintage Fenders. One Strat caught my eye...an '82 with a custom semi-translucent (sea blue?) blue finish over ash or alder. They referred to it as a coveted "Smith" Strat model. Anybody here know what in the h*ll they're talking about? | ||
| s_wood
Intermediate Member Username: s_wood Post Number: 163 Registered: 5-2002 |
Yeah, the Elan is really nice..even cooler in person. If I still played four strings much it would be MINE! | ||
| kmh364
Senior Member Username: kmh364 Post Number: 1251 Registered: 9-2003 |
Well, I did find out what a "Smith" Strat is, and I have two of 'em, LOL! Smith came to CBS in '81 from Yamaha USA and tried to refocus the company. A departure from (IMHO) the crappy big headstock, three-bolt/micro-tilt necked Strats to something more closely resembling pre-CBS specifications. '81 - '83 are the Smith years, purportedly, and Strats of that vintage seem to be somewhat in demand and are worth a fair amount. Personally, I think they're kinda crap-tastic, but considering what came recently before and after the Smith years, I guess they're OK. | ||
| davehouck
Moderator Username: davehouck Post Number: 2585 Registered: 5-2002 |
Hey, learn something new everyday! I now know what a Smith Strat is, at least for the next few hours before this information slips from my memory like the morning dew under a rising sun. | ||
| kmh364
Senior Member Username: kmh364 Post Number: 1255 Registered: 9-2003 |
Smith's HORRIBLE X-1 Strat bridge p/u was his attempt at 'rectifying' the weak, thin, brittle bridge p/u's Fender is notorious for. Unfortunately, the thing is so shrill and overbright, it could shatter glass, especially thru a Fender amp like my Silverface Twin, LOL! Here's where the Lindy Fralins come in: stock pickguard assembly gets replaced in toto and intact and gets put aside while a new pickguard with a custom wiring harness and custom Lindy's get's bolted right in! Hopefully, that oughta fix the craptastic sound, and it can be reversed with no ill effects to the guitar. |
