I know it's not really my business, but this really bugs me for some reason.

http://northbay.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-sell-musical-instruments-guitars-American-FENDER-Stratocaster-CustomShop-Replica-L-K-NEW-W0QQAdIdZ389346501

If you click on "View Poster's Other Ads" you'll see he has three of these. From China or Thailand maybe? I just felt like reporting this to Fender, for what it was worth.

if you want to do Fender a favor, don't post links to counterfeit guitars on their forum, just report it quietly via email/phone.

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I agree 100% plus the first clue this was a fake is it isn't a boring fender colour.

Someone's paying four grand for fake Fenders? Good Lord.

Anyhow. I find North63's link above useful because it alerts us to just how close the fakes are getting to the real thing. There's still some tell-tale clues that the pictured guitar is not a genuine Fender, but they are getting nearer all the time. Soon flocks of these guitars will be turning up on the second-hand market and a lot of people are going to get stung buying something that's not what it seems to be.

We have to keep our wits ever more about us.

Cheers - C

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It's definitely good to know how to spot a fake, but that can be done without posting a link to where they're being sold. Post only the pictures of the fake and don't link directly to the site when you do it.

I used to peruse another guitar forum where this was far more frequent. We'd generally be suspicious of O.P. if they joined the forum to post a single thread which happened to be a link to where you can but counterfeit guitars. Hey North63, are you still around, or did you just join the forum to drop this link and split?

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Hi strings10927: I absolutely get what you're saying and take it seriously.

Unfortunately though, the internet is already smothered with fake Fenders, Gibsons and such: there's all too much opportunity for someone to buy them knowingly or by mistake, regardless of the occasional link here.

So I tend to think the informative benefit of the warning given by links to sites like the the one above probably outweighs the possibility of providing the fakers an extra sale. People here will see that page in the context of discussion on threads like this one about how to spot the fakes and why they are a bad idea, which is probably better than folks who are not in the know simply stumbling across those pages by themselves.

Even for seasoned watchers of these things a link like that can be useful: I think it might be the first time I've seen one complete with the fake Fender Bullet String stickers on it, and that walnut trussrod hole lining is comparatively new on counterfeit Strats too. They're still not getting it quite right, but it's informative to see the progress they're making. And information is our best armour against being conned.

Far as Mr North63 is concerned: he's new-ish, but his other posts look legit. I think he's just a guy who's turned up here wanting to join in, which is a good thing. We can certainly give people the benefit of the doubt till we know otherwise, at any rate.

It's all a case of balancing probabilities, I guess.

Cheers - C

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if the Fender mods/admins had a problem with it, they would have taken it down already.

The link; however, is no longer useful:

The Ad you are looking for is no longer available but we found other ads that may match what you are looking for.

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Strings: I'm still here. I couldn't find an email address on Fender's contact page, just a mailing address, so I figured if they are concerned about fakes on the market (as I would be if I were them), they'd want to know where they were, especially when the seller is blantantly advertising them as such. Personally, this would scare me from purchasing a Fender from a private seller, as who knows where it came from? Could be a $30 Chinese special (I've seen $40 Rolexes in Hong Kong that looked exactly like the real thing).

The more people are aware there are fakes out there, the more diligent they will be in investigating a purchase.

http://www.fender.com/support/articles/contact-consumer-relations

Contact Information

Our Consumer Relations Department exists as a service to anyone interested in any FMIC product. You may reach the FMIC Consumer Relations Department by mail at:
Fender Musical Instruments Corporation
Attn: Consumer Relations Dept.
17600 N. Perimeter Drive, Suite 100
Scottsdale, AZ 85255

Telephone: (480) 596-7195
Fax: (480) 367-5262
E-mail: consumerrelations@fender.com

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Interesting that it disappeared so quickly. I'm hoping that the local gendarmes were either notified or found it themselves and contacted the seller. I know they scan the local ads looking for stolen merchandise (yes, because some thieves are that stupid). Maybe this caught their attention.

I certainly hope that nobody bought the things!

strings: Thanks for the link. I see it isn't on their "Contact Us" page, it's in the support pages.

Anytime. Ahhh I see, you went here http://www.fender.com/contact_information.php

Fender Musical Instruments Corporation

Corporate Headquarters
17600 N. Perimeter Drive, Suite 100
Scottsdale, AZ 85255
Telephone: 480.596.9690
Fax: 480.596.1384
http://www.fender.com

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No, I see he's got them back up again. Different link, though. I'll pass it on to Fender.