wow man how super cool. Fully equipped with Fender amps and guitars to the bone! I wish I had some kind of photo like that

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One of God's own prototypes. Too weird to live, too rare to die.

that explains it! lol

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http://www.twitter.com/CAE_Music

Whoa: Rhythm Crusaders! Tres cool, 53-Strat...!

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Regarding earlier surprise that Fender don't do authentication work: based on some specific knowledge of the world of auction house authentication I can tell you that area is fraught with issues, including high cost legal ramifications.

On the one hand, it can be worth an awful lot of money to someone to have an article "authenticated" as genuine. On the other, someone who pays vast sums at auction on the basis of such a valuation ... and then finds the purchase called into doubt is likely to get extremely aggressive via their lawyers, to the massive discomfort (and possible penury) of he who made the original authentication. People are made and ruined in that game and all kinds of skulduggery is rumoured to take place.

Fender would be entering a high tariff minefield to get involved in it - and the rewards as far as the authenticator is concerned are actually very small. Fender have lawyers of their own who will undoubtedly have told them to avoid it like the plague.

After all: someone who plays Mozart is nevertheless unlikely to be qualified to judge the authenticity of a newly discovered manuscript. And even people who build the most superlative Stratocasters in the world today may not be placed to speak accurately as to who built what half a century ago. Better to watch with interest from the sidelines along with the rest of us.

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I do hope we'll hear about it if and when this '53 Strat comes up for sale. Given its utter uniqueness it may realise far more or far less than anyone expects. Impossible to guess till the market has spoken!

Cheers - C

I know from a close family member's in depth experience of this area that it ends up in court with opposing "expert witnesses" trying to prove their case for hours and days and weeks of vastly expensive court time - all charged to the parties concerned.

Which is what Fender's lawyers will have warned them. I may be wrong, but I suspect we will see extremely cautious wording from Mike Eldred in response to the questions being put to him on this, over on his Forum...

Cheers - C

Nah, he's OK. So long as he can't later be shown to have deliberately mislead anyone and has sold in good faith it's fine. The rows mostly take place between the professionals: part of what you get for the auction house's fee is that protection (to a fair degree).

The sale will take place with whatever level of credibility Christie's feel they can safely attach to it. If anyone doesn't like it later on it's them who face the lawyers.

There's been numerous cases on this sort of thing in the public realm (not to mention an unseen iceberg of stuff behind the scenes). A careful Google will find you more material.

Cheers - C

A careful study of all the relevent evidence and extensive research has determined that those very same red jackets seen in the evidence photos were worn the night before by the waiter staff at Ricco's resturant. and before that by the valets at Bob's car park service. It is not known where those jackets are now but they could be very valuable to a collector.

By the way how about that Tele bass, must have been about a 58 model.

JMHO
Stars guitars have no interest to collectors as such ; only to memorabily collectors.
MHO

if i had a famous guitar, i wouldnt even try to play it. i would have it framed until i could find some rich collector or museum to purchase it. i wouldn't keep it because if someone find out i had it who knows what all could happen to me as far as people coming in trying to steal it. i wonder if u can put a guitar in a bank vault? lol

you can. SRV's #1 is on a bank vault as far as i know.

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One of God's own prototypes. Too weird to live, too rare to die.

Ya, I wish I had more photos like that. People didn't walk around with cameras then like they do now. The only peolpe that carried cameras around back then were considered geeks. I have only 2 other photos taken at gigs from back then and wish I had more. We played at Harmony Park, the Rendezvous and the Orange show auditorium where we backed Jan&Dean and have no pics of any of it.

[quote="chanman246"]after watching this thread for a while, I'll put in my two cents:

after reviewing the known photos, and the little comparison photo on 53's website, I concur that based on the dead-on grain patterns of it, on top of the numerous other facts 53 has supplied us with, that this guitar is the only legit '53 Stratocaster in the world.

HOWEVER

there is a possibility that this guitar was one produced before the demonstrator Stratocaster given to Eldon Shamblin, who played with Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys, and was a good friend of Leo Fender. here it is:



(You can also see a better picture of it on page 34 of "The Stratocaster Chronicles")

that was made around February of '54. that means on the chain of prototypes, your Stratocaster could be the Demonstrator made in December of '53 or January of '54.


now, I have absolutely No proof on this. it is just a theory. I also read in "The Stratocaster Chronicles" that the first batch of demonstrators had the precursor to the Tremolo that we know today, which was made of an inferior metal, making the guitar sound very hollow, twangy, and, as Bill Carson put: "Like a damn cheap Banjo!"

so, just curious, do you have any sound bytes of this guitar? just want to hear it.


now, 53, I am not trying in any way, shape, or form, disproving your claims. nor am I agreeing with bigjay or anyone who wouldn't believe you. I am just fascinated by the thought, and am trying to help you authenticate it. I really can't wait to hear from ME about this.

best regards,

Chandler[/quote

I looked up the info on Eldons Strat and the record says that the neck is dated May54 and the body dated June 54. That guitar is probably not one of the earliest examples of record.

The web site you refer to as " 53's web site" is not my web site. It was done by a guy that is interested in vintage guitars but not someone that I know.

I'm surprised you don't have a site about your strat! I know a ton of people who would love to see pictures or videos of it in action! you should consider it!

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http://www.twitter.com/CAE_Music

are you talking about black beauty....no i would not tell a soul,but everyone would wonder why i walked around and giggled alot