Adding the logo to the pickguard for comparative purposes can be seen in Ceri's post on page 18. There's also the question of a custom neck plate, or both.

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"Another day in paradise!"

I'm still on board.







Goodonyaz ...Mark.

Hey folks, it's been quite a while since I checked in on this thread. I wasn't sure if this was going to come to fruition or not. I went back three or four pages to see where we're at but was unable to spot a description and I don't know how far back I'd have to go to find one. Could someone in the know break it down for me please? So far I see Esquire with Bigsby in the pics but I also see a pickup selector switch. I'm sure there must be others as well who only stop by here once in a while and would appreciate a recap. Do we have a hidden neck pup? Did we decide on MIM/MIA? Do we know yet how many commitments we need? Board radius? Neck profile? Fret size? Which pups? Etc.

Thanks

So far I think I'm in but I'll wait until we've reached a final configuration to decide.

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Just think of how awesome a guitar player you could have been by now if you had only spent the last 10 years practicing instead of obsessing over pickups and roasted maple necks.

G'day BMW KTM, There's nothing official yet.
Brad has indicated that the project is possible and that he intends to get back into the thread at some time. He's been very busy no doubt.
The Esquire has the most interest but I'm unsure if this is the direction they want to go in. The pictures that I posted are only there to inspire some interest.
At the moment, I'm not sure whether we should be talking about such specific details or not.
If the whole thing is decided by a series of polls, my fear is that we'll end up with a sunburst MIM standard Strat. Like politics maybe what is needed, is 2 or 3 parties with definite strong ideas. Dunno mate.

(edit) I don't think the switch on the Esquire was for pickup selection. Some sort of electro-thingamyjig for tone maybe ???
....Mark.

Matt and Mark, I used this as a platform that Brad and all of you could start tweakig/shaping into the Forum guitar. cool photo's Mark

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you can save the world with your guitar one love song at a time it's just better, more fun, easier with a fender solid body electric guitar or electric bass guitar.

Although I'm still catching up on the discussion here, I just want to quickly confirm that this is under active discussion on this end. We've covered it a few times in recent meetings and it's on the radar.

Ignoring feature set altogether for a moment one thing that would be tremendously helpful would be to really lock down an answer on how important price point is. i.e., if price point is going to be the key driving factor here behind folks' interest that would naturally limit the options that are available here out of the gate and we could simply come up with a relatively brief "menu" of what's possible.

And then, there's the other end of the spectrum ... very early in the thread ZZDoc referred to the American Design experience that exists at the Visitor Center and this effort could head more in that sort of direction as well (imagine a set of choice components that we work through and select as group to build the ultimate dream machine - one component per week until we're done). The latter approach seems cooler to me and more akin to the the spirit of what these Forums are really about - individuals sharing and debating gear with each other. Based on prior experience with "another" brand I also feel it'd result in an instrument that's much more deeply meaningful to the individuals involved. BUT, naturally ... with cool factor comes a higher buy-in price tag as well.

Or, as a third alternative - Fender simply taps into our own existing design resources and specs and designs the thing ourselves. Maybe we create 2 or 3 options and we vote on a winner. Folks simply either buy it, or don't. Not incredibly interactive, this approach, but would certainly help with speed to market if that's a primary motivating factor.

Speaking of speed to market ... have seen a few comments here about wishing to speed up the process and whatnot - even with the rapid-fire third option mentioned above these sorts of efforts tend to take a while to fully gel, so patience will be key here throughout. (The fact that this thread has been going on for 5 months of its own right with nothing other than some occasional cheerleading from me is certainly promising in its own right!)

As a final comment here, I presume this is already obvious but I do foresee that anything we do here would absolutely require a pre-order - in other words, we spec the thing out, then we take pre-orders, and then it's generally understood by all that the project can only move forward if a certain number of pre-orders (to be determined) are received. If that number isn't achieved by a certain agreed-to date, then we (very disappointedly) have to cancel the effort. This is the lesson of the Forums T-shirt project of ancient yore, wherein initial demand appeared to vastly outweigh actual orders once the thing got produced.

And this concludes my semi-random thoughts on the topic here as the clock nears midnight ...

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Director at Fender. Guitarist & guitar collector. All views/opinions expressed here are my own and not Fender’s.

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Would it be possible to order these internationally?

You have a good point about the appointment of specs.. The more we spec, the higher the cost. Equally, there would still be orders if this guitar was designed by fender themselves and it will still sell.

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This is the Blues. Are you listening?

I am satisfied with Brad's update and position. I will be content to stand by, monitor the progress, and place my order when, in what every which way or form, the design is finalized. I have a personal preference but will go with the majority in this. Should we be unable to reach a threshold number for the order, we've had a good time of it notwithstanding. Who knows, Fender may take one of the designs previously submitted and run with it of their own accord.

'There are stranger things under the sun, Mr. Renfield.'

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"Another day in paradise!"

Totally agree. I like the option on an interactive vote among the Forum members. As I have mentioned before, the more bells and whistles there are, the more the cost. I would like to see something in the 0 to 1000 dollar range, although I could go higher if the endeavor was more worth the cost. I also think that only people serious about this endeavor vote. Not that we can help some people asking for the moon and expect to pay garage sale price. Let us keep it real folks.

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RK

2007 Fender Highway 1
2012 American Deluxe
2015 MIM Dave Murray HHH
2010 Fender Blacktop
1987 Fender Avalon Acoustic
2012 Marshall DSL 15 watt head

Three thoughts here which are restatements of mine:
1.MSRP is not likely what I would expect to be basing cost on, but it's a decent reference point. I'm hoping
the company would consider dealer's cost for us.
2. The Esquire is definitely a respectful nod to Leo Fender. I would like to see the Eldred circuitry in this guitar as a nod to Mike, an Abby wired 'twisted Tele' pickup in the guitar, and a custom neck plate.
3.The matter of the color of, and a logo on the pickguard, or a Bigsby are options which I could take or leave. Personally, the Biggy looks 'cool'.

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"Another day in paradise!"

Lessons learned - - true dat re: Forum Shirts

So let's talk price points - how about everyone give what they'd
put in it to git it.

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Being able to play and enjoy music is a gift that's often taken for granted.

Don't leave home without it!

Well Mike....in that you asked, and considering the current range of street prices for MIM and MIA guitars, including the drop permitted by the company during the recent Spring campaign. I'd say $650-$1500 depending on the build...on the lower end for an MIM and higher for an MIA each with all the bells and whistles discussed and included.

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"Another day in paradise!"

I agree with that range and logic.

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Being able to play and enjoy music is a gift that's often taken for granted.

Don't leave home without it!

Anyone else?

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Being able to play and enjoy music is a gift that's often taken for granted.

Don't leave home without it!