I've been on this forum for a long time now and I've noticed something about copies of Fender guitars or fakes. People either hate them or love them and that people should get with the forum before they buy any guitar if they aren't sure of its legitimacy.

These fakes can be homemade and poorly constructed works of "art" to fine recreations of someone's ideal Fender instrument. I have two thoughts on this.
1. I love well made guitars and if it looks like a really nice Strat I'm in love. As long as I know it's a fake I don't care. I own two Fender copies I've made for myself. I'm not trying to fool anyone but me. They are well made from Fender and non-Fender parts. In fact I wager that my fakes are better than some actual factory made Fenders. Hell I've had people who prefer my '62 Strat copy to my other actual Fender guitars.

2. I hate when people try to sell their fake Fender as the real thing. Some poor sucker then gets taken, goes online and asks us if it's a fake. Whenever asked about my parts-o-casters, I let them know right off the bat that it's copy. I equally hate when people try to pass off Fender instruments made in 1996 and 2006 as Anniversary models, but aren't. I'm going into this because it's been talked about enough.

A great fake guitar story is Slash's famous Amber colored Les Paul. To the eye it looks like a genuine Les Paul, but it's a copy.
So what I want to know is: What are your thoughts on Fender Fakes

I gotta say I agree with your views and the way you expressed them.

True, a well-made parts-o-caster is a good thing
-as long as one does not go passing it off as the real deal whether for sale purposes or anything else.

If it's a deliberate fake passed off for sale (complete with Fender logos and bogus serial numbers),
then I believe that's nothing short of piracy.

If it's a piece of salvage that has been totally gutted and re-built,
particularly with Fender parts,
or a very basic model that has been modded-out to the max,
then that could be a grey-area call as to whether it's "stock",
but I wouldn't call it a "fake", and would still find it a respectable axe,
particularly if it has some primordial body parts with legit serial numbers.

Now, manufacturers who create Strat-"style" units legally, well...
...that might be another discussion.
But yeah, fake Fenders which are passed off as the real thing...that's just wrong.
(even though it might be a decent musical instrument).
Franken-strats, parts-casters, and such things are fine, as long as, again,
they're not being touted as original factory equipment.

I particularly like the way you said:
"...I own two Fender copies I've made for myself. I'm not trying to fool anyone but me..."
That nailed it. I've built one and can't wait to do another.

Building a strat from parts is no feat. A monkey with the correct tools and parts can put together a Fender style guitar.
Ive seen some of your posts and it looks to me like you are looking for confirmation from your peers because you feel like your instruments are inadequate. If you are really that confident about your guitars you wouldn't put fake Fender decals on the headstock and start threads seeking support on your position.
I have occasion to meet many musicians, and I love chatting about guitars people have assembled themselves. I have seen/played some great ones, and some not so great ones. One thing I have not seen is a person that builds a partscaster and puts a fake Fender decal on the headstock.
Half the reason its so risky to buy on the secondary market is because people do dumb stuff like that. You say you would never misrepresent what they are and try to sell them, but whats to stop you if you end up in a financial bind? The fake decal on the headstock is the very definition of misrepresentation.

Where to begin? Okay...
1. I own many guitars, and mostly Fender. The reason I started the thread was that everyone had an opinion about Fake Fenders and it got me thinking about it. I think I said something about this at the beginning of this thread. I could give a crap if anyone likes my position or not. Otherwise, why on earth would I both give anyone a vote?
2. Yes, any monkey can slap together some parts and call it a guitar, but there's an art to picking just the right parts and making sure that you put all together correctly. I didn't just buy some junk and put it together. I handpicked every piece to have certain look, feel and quality. It's like a guy calling the Fender CS and ordering a guitar to be made per his request. I just did it for about a 3rd the cost (about 10 yrs ago when I had the guitar built).
3. As for the logo, well I was going to leave the headstock blank (and did for about 5 years), but it looked so damned naked. I needed to put something there. Being that they are Fender headstock shapes I felt that nothing else deserved to go there.
4. You don't know me, so I'm figure that it' understandable you misinterpreted the thread or what you think I would do when selling a guitar. Since you don't know me and I'm guessing you haven't read all of my threads or posts, I'm guessing you missed the ones pointing out all the fakes and my loathing of people trying to sell pass them off as the real thing. Hell I even hate when people try and pass off a Fender model as something it's not (i.e. the 50th Anniversary models) I've sold guitars before. I once sold a guy a Muddy Waters Tele. I told him up front, "The bridge pickup was rewound by Lindy Fralin." This could have killed the deal right there, but he deserved to know the truth. When you're selling guitars, all you have is your word and your integrity. Whenever I sell a guitar to a person I always call them back in about a week, just to make sure they are happy with their purchase. Cheating someone out of a couple hundred dollars is beneath me.
5. People are putting logos on all sorts of guitars, Fender or otherwise. Heck you might have played a fake and not have even known it.
6. I agree that it can be risky buying after market, but if you educate yourself before you buy, when you can alleviate some of your fears. I recently purchased a '79 Strat. It looks like Rory Gallagher played every night, but it felt and sounded great. So before I bought it I opened up the pick guard and saw right off the bat that the pickups and one of the pots were not stock. The seller hadn't looked before he took it in, so he was shocked and took off about $150 off the price. I got great guitar with some Van Zandt True Vintage pickups and an awesome tone pot that connects the bridge pickup with the neck and middle pickups.

I can respect you point of view. It's why I asked for it. Thanks for voting.

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1975 Sunburst Stratocaster rosewood finger board
1979 Stratocaster with roseowood finder board
2001 Candy Green Clapton Stratocaster
2007 Andy Summers Inspired Telecaster
2007 '51 P-Bass
2012 Taylor 110
2015 Mystic Ice Blue Deluxe Stratocaster Plus

Thanks for your input and vote.

A partso-caster I have absolutely no issue with... legit parts all sourced from the Fender catalog or MIA donor guitars... having said that I wouldn't necessarily want to buy one.

What I do have an issue with is the Gender & Fibsons on eBay and Carigslist that are bought consignment and sold as the real Leo's & Les Paulies. Pirate sh*te and should be burnt as kindling!

Meanwhile, Fender, Gibson, PRS extra keep jacking their prices up; the market for the cheap pirated fakes will keep growing and more folks will be ripped off.

Hang the pirates from the nearest yard-arm and let's see a manufacturer brave enough to cut their prices for MIA gear.

"Smithers, I like the cut of that man's jib!" - Montgomery Burns, The Simpsons
My wife and I are still trying to figure out that the hell that means, but I agree. Selling a fake Fender or an actual Fender without letting the buyer know the truth is a crime. I've got no issue with someone selling a Warmoth body and neck, but let the buyer know what they are getting into. Otherwise you are a lier and a thief.

Thanks for your input!

I don't really consider Partscasters "fakes". To me, a Partscaster or Frankenstrat is a mixed-and-matched guitar, comprised generally by actual Fender parts, whether they are Squier, MIM, MIJ or MIA. Maybe a Warmoth or Allparts neck or whatever. There's absolutely nothing wrong in my mind with taking advantage of the Erector-Set nature of Fender guitars to build one to your own specs. I probably would never buy a Partscaster, just because I have this thing about not buying someone else's project (I have plenty of my own), but I don't have a problem with them at all. In fact, if I don't sell this extra neck i have sitting around, I'm probably going to start my own pretty soon.

I do have a problem with the guitars we all see that pop up on Craigslist and ebay with the wrong-shaped body contours, mis-placed logos, wrong pickguard/tremelo cover screw locations, etc, being passed off as legit Fenders. The kind of thing where anyone who's spent a decent amount of time playing a Strat will instantly recognize all the wrong stuff, but some poor kid who's just looking for a good deal on their first Strat won't.

Not voting because the only meaningful answer is not an option: Build what you like. Just don't put a fake Fender/Gibson/Ibanez/etc. decal on the headstock.

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Bill

Putting a Fender decal on a non-Fender guitar is theft and fraud. There is no question of this. And a sign of inadequacy.

The law says otherwise.

Trademark infringement such as this is a crime only if its commission carries "the intent to deceive in order to facilitate a commercial interest or enterprise".

I can do any goddamm thing I want with a piece of property I own and there isn't an attorney general in any state or at the federal level who can legally prevent me. It becomes a crime only if I attempt to sell such property with the willful deliberate intent to defraud a buyer.

Look it up.

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

This post is exactly my thinking. My only add would be an additional reason I wouldn't buy a partscaster. I want to no what parts I'm getting (make and model), and that it was properly done. The best way to know for sure is to build it yourself.

Unless you're planning on being buried with your faux Fender, it will end up in somebody else's hands. And who knows what they will do with it. Somebody will get screwed. That, my friend, is fraud.

Your keyboard skills have outpaced your grasp of trademark and copyright regulations. But allow me to compliment your clairvoyant ability. Perhaps you should fix yourself a thermos full of hot steaming STFU, go to your local library, and spend an afternoon reading what the U.S.C. and the Federal Registry have to say about proprietary law. You might pack a lunch and make a day of it.

And FTR, I own no "faux Fender" guitars. However, my college transcripts reflect three completed semesters of university-level pre-law with an aggregate GPA of 3.85.

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

hate em