Hello, it's been quite a while since I posted here, but recent events have brought me back and I REALLY need some insight into something. So recently I met a guy through Craigslist who wanted to trade a Strat for my Marshall JCM900 head. In talking to this guy he told me that he was licensed through the Fender Custom Shop to do authorized modifications, had worked at the Fender factory under Freddie Tavares, and he even showed me a guitar that he had built for the guitar player in Korn, as well as an old Gibson Explorer supposedly once owned by the Edge. We ended up settling on a trade for a Strat that he had pieced together from a '73 2-tone body, a custom shop 50's neck, custom shop '64 pickups, and a bridge that he claimed was from an original '57 strat. It seems hard to believe, but at the time the guy seemed legit. Her really knew his stuff! Anyhow, upon getting the guitar home I opened it up a bit because the volume pot was a little loose. What I ended up seeing in the control cavity was the name Leo Fender hand written next to what looked like another signature, as well as a blurred date stamp. When I emailed the guy about the names, this was his response:

"That is Leo's actual signature... I made that body when I worked there in 72. I also built the new cutout jigs, so the first 5 guitars routings were approved (signed) by Leo and Freddie Tavares (my boss)...Freddie used a pencil, so you can barely see his signature... I didn't really want to let that Strat go, but I'm glad you got it......and that is a blurred date stamp. I rerouted the body which was originally a 1959 that was too shallow... You got a keeper there my friend."

Of course when I received that response I just about fainted!! If that story is true, that makes this guitar body a piece of history! Of course, if it's BS, well..... it's still a beautiful guitar. The nitro finish is nicely checked, but still in very good shape. As a player it's gorgeous, but my curiosity has gotten the best of me. Is there ANY way to verify anything this guy said? Is there anyone I could contact that might have more insight? I'll try to get some pics of the names and the guitar itself if tha helps. Thanks!

Please post some pictures.

And yet another satisfied buyer claims possession of the Brooklyn Bridge!



Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

I guess it'd be fair to say that I got taken, except that he never mentioned any of this info at our get-together. All he said was the body was from '72-73, and that he thought the bridge was from a '57, before Fender began making a one piece bridge. I found the names in the control cavity. You'd think he would've mentioned something about the names if he was really trying to scam. He even wanted me to come jam with his band sometime! I wouldn't think you'd wanna hang out with someone you just "took for a ride". Of course, I'm defensive cause I wanna believe what he said . He had a ton of beautiful guitars and kept saying that he liked seeing them played and enjoyed, not just sitting around. I don't know. Like I said before, I'd just like to talk to someone who could maybe even verify if he was employed by Fender around the time he claims. Either way, I still ended up with a great guitar!

Why don't you post some pics of it?

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

Leo sold the company in '65 to CBS. In '72/'73 he was working under the table with MusicMan (then called Tri-Sonics) -- he had signed a 10-year non-compete contract so he wasn't officially allowed to be in the guitar/amp business until '75.

It's really doubtful that CBS would have let him in the factory in '72. He certainly wouldn't be in a position to approve new routing jigs or anything like that. And Fender/CBS didn't have a bunch of '59 bodies sitting around that they would have used as test beds for new routings.

Fender/CBS stopped using nitro in '67 (except for clear nitro on the face of the headstock -- they had some compatibility issues with poly as a top coat over the decals they were using). And the sunbursts in the '70s were all 3-tone, not 2-tone. So it's really doubtful that the 2-tone nitro finish was done in the Fender factory.

Really, just about everything that guy told you is very highly suspect.

I would post pics but I'm at work and didn't bring the guitar with me. And to strayedstrater, thank you. That's actually some very helpful info! That's the kind of thing I need to hear. I think I knew once I got the guy's response that it was highly unlikely, but you never know! Strange s@#t happens sometimes!

Awesome info there

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"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present."

oogway, kungfu panda 2008

This is the kinda thing I love to read about.

That could be a leftover body from the earlier days.

I've heard about many Fender suprises, like the guy from Live having a Rosewood bodied, '64 Precision. I know a guy with a '73 Precision, but claims it's Poplar. The "Fire Series" is a great story, too.

Even my Jazz Plus was a freak, with it being factory painted over Ash.

From the outset this story sounds wrong.
Did you physically handle the U2 guitar, or did the bloke just show you a picture and say, "I built that!".
Anyone could do that. In fact, I put Blackie together for Clapton, a couple of years before I was actually born.
To prove it, here's a picture.



See anyone can do it.

I'd like to see the guitar, just to see exactly what it is. But it sounds to me like you lost a good amp. I've never heard of anyone outside of Fender Custom Shop being allowed to use that business name in any form. Let alone someone licensed to modify their guitars. That is an instant warranty void'er. Why have a hand made guitar then get some Joe down the road to really make it to your liking? Never heard of it before.

Sorry mate.

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No no and no