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Post subject: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Thu May 09, 2013 10:14 am
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About a month ago, I sold my Cobain mustang - left handed Sonic Blue. I almost immediately regretted it and took delivery of another Sonic Blue one today. Thes rest is very puzzling;

- It has a white pearloid pickguard, still with plastic protector sheet on
- The neck pickup cover is black,with plastic on still
- The serial number on the guitar is U059653, using the 'Fender Dating Project' website, this serial number dates the guitar to 1996 (!)
- Frets 17-22 are corroded as are the machine heads
- The shipping case the guitar came in has a case label with the serial number quoted on it and underneath is written K Cobain Mustan SBL. On the other label is a date 7-3-2012

Even weirder, when I tried to take a photo of it with a virtually new camera, the camera shut off and now won't turn on again (battery was fully charged)

What the hell is going on???


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Post subject: Re: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Mon May 13, 2013 4:38 am
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I would immediately call fender of the place of purchase and demand that they exchange it for the correct one w/the red pickguard and white single coil pup cover.


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Post subject: Re: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Mon May 13, 2013 6:18 am
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Well, I did notice some spec changes online. Did you ever take any pictures? I would love to see it because it sounds like the Jag-Stang color scheme. I wonder is Fender has limited supply.


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Post subject: Re: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Tue May 14, 2013 5:56 am
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If you look at the pics of the Cobain Mustangs that are on this fender.com website the some things have changed. For one the neck pup cover on the fiesta red stang in the pics is now white. Also on all the pics on this particular site the JB humbucker has 2 screws in the pickguard on both sides of it as if its mounted to the pick guard and not directly to the body as it states in the description. The earlier pics from a few months back do not have any screws or screw holes in the pick guard around the JB. I would be mad as hell if I ordered one and Fender shipped me one of these different non original ones. Post some pics if you get your camera working. Keep me posted


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Post subject: Re: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Wed May 15, 2013 4:34 am
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The spec changes, I could probably have lived with as it actually looked really nice. Its the 1996 neck, corroded tuners & correded frets I couldn't understand...
[url][URL=http://s1141.photobucket.com/user/magicrising/media/SAM_1099_zps0989a4a5.jpg.html]Image[/url][/url]

Image

[url][URL=http://s1141.photobucket.com/user/magicrising/media/CorrodedTuners_zpscf62485c.jpg.html]Image[/url][/url]

[url][URL=http://s1141.photobucket.com/user/magicrising/media/pickupplasticinplace_zps3f21320b.jpg.html]Image[/url][/url]

[url][URL=http://s1141.photobucket.com/user/magicrising/media/CorrodedFrets_zps8b067c0d.jpg.html]Image[/url][/url]

[url][URL=http://s1141.photobucket.com/user/magicrising/media/noserialnomatch_zps916604a4.jpg.html]Image[/url][/url]

[url][/url]


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Post subject: Re: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Wed May 15, 2013 5:18 am
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Poor fitting on pickgaurd too....

Image

Case Label;

Image

1996?

Image


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Post subject: Re: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Wed May 15, 2013 4:09 pm
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Did you contact Fender directly about the serial number? Because dating is a mess and mine I think has a U serial number when I got it in '09.

Where did you get the guitar? The guitar doesn't look Sonic Blue to me. It looks like Daphne Blue. It does have a counter on the back right? If not it is more likely a '65 RI with HH.


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Post subject: Re: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Thu May 16, 2013 4:59 am
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I didn't think you could contact fender directly re the serial number. I've contacted the dealer I bought it from (won't name them as they they are sorting out a replacement for me)

Yours can't be Cobain Mustang as these were only released in 2012?

What do you mean 'counter' on the back?

The neck plate is the Cobain one, as is the pickup configuration and the case label information so the guitar is 'supposed' to be a Cobain model as opposed to a '65 RI

I have now sent it back and await it's replacement. I also bought a Martin acoustic recently and sent that back as that serial number dated it 2010.... I don't want something that's been sitting around for 3 years. I thought 'new' meant new!


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Post subject: Re: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Thu May 16, 2013 7:46 am
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magicrising wrote:
I didn't think you could contact fender directly re the serial number. I've contacted the dealer I bought it from (won't name them as they they are sorting out a replacement for me)

Yours can't be Cobain Mustang as these were only released in 2012?

What do you mean 'counter' on the back?

The neck plate is the Cobain one, as is the pickup configuration and the case label information so the guitar is 'supposed' to be a Cobain model as opposed to a '65 RI

I have now sent it back and await it's replacement. I also bought a Martin acoustic recently and sent that back as that serial number dated it 2010.... I don't want something that's been sitting around for 3 years. I thought 'new' meant new!


Really "new" means "unsold". That Martin you got was what is often called "New Old Stock" - it was never sold so it still has all the factory warranty, etc. but it wasn't "fresh from the factory"; it was in the store's stock. It happens all the time here in the USA; however, usually people can negotiate a better price for one that has been hanging around for a few years.

Now on to the Cobain Mustang - I'll not pull my punches on this one as most here know how I feel about product dating sites: don't use that "Guitar Dater Project" website; they evidently have not updated the site since 2009. Fender changed the format for the USA and MIM guitars in 2010; "Guitar Dater Project" will tell you these formats are "not found". That makes them now 4 years behind. It looks like they are also behind on the MIJ serial numbers. The owners need to update the site or shut it down.

The better source is at the top of this page under "Support"; here is a link to the "Dating Japanese Made Fender Products" page:

http://www.fender.com/support/articles/ ... ct-dating/

Per this page, Fender Japan started using the "U + 6 digit" serial numbers on guitars marked "Made in Japan" again in 2010; therefore they have used the "U" serial numbers twice:

First Run 1995-1996
Second Run 2010-2011 (per Fender's page which was last updated in 2011)

Fender themselves need to update their page for Japanese products; I suspect that they are still using the "U + 6 digits" serial numbers at least in 2012 and they probably are still using them here in 2013 (they used the "Made in Japan" mark and "T + 6 digit" serial numbers for 4 years so I suspect they will use the "U + 6 digit" serial numbers for 4 years as well).

In all honesty I wouldn't be surprised if the rust on the frets was just from shipping and storage. It's been sitting in someone's warehouse since July 2012, particularly if the storage point is in an area where it was exposed to humidity and salty sea air it can lead to rust and corrosion on metal parts. I can't explain the different pickup covers and pickguard; that's probably one of those "specifications subject to change without notice" deals.


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Post subject: Re: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Thu May 16, 2013 9:36 am
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Thanks for that info - very interesting. My last Cobain Mustang's serial number starts with a 'J' ! - J isn't listed on the Fender Japan serial numbers :?

On another note, if I were a Fender dealer, I would examine a guitar I was sending to a new customer to check it was pristine having been in storage...or is that asking too much nowadays?

Image


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Post subject: Re: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Thu May 16, 2013 11:19 am
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magicrising wrote:
I didn't think you could contact fender directly re the serial number. I've contacted the dealer I bought it from (won't name them as they they are sorting out a replacement for me)

Yours can't be Cobain Mustang as these were only released in 2012?

What do you mean 'counter' on the back?

The neck plate is the Cobain one, as is the pickup configuration and the case label information so the guitar is 'supposed' to be a Cobain model as opposed to a '65 RI

I have now sent it back and await it's replacement. I also bought a Martin acoustic recently and sent that back as that serial number dated it 2010.... I don't want something that's been sitting around for 3 years. I thought 'new' meant new!


I have had luck e-mailing Fender with questions about when the guitar was manufactured.

I have '65 RI and the serial number if you look it up would not be accurate to when it was made so you have to use caution with info you find online.

"Contour" is a curve on the back.

Are you buying from an authorized dealer?


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Post subject: Re: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Thu May 16, 2013 11:54 am
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magicrising wrote:
Thanks for that info - very interesting. My last Cobain Mustang's serial number starts with a 'J' ! - J isn't listed on the Fender Japan serial numbers :?

On another note, if I were a Fender dealer, I would examine a guitar I was sending to a new customer to check it was pristine having been in storage...or is that asking too much nowadays?

Image


Interesting; and I'll admit that the last MIJ Fender I got my hands on was one of the MIJ Pawn Shops a couple of years ago; they continued to use the "T + 6 digit" serial numbers on those (even though most MIJs had moved to the "U" numbers).

Based on your Cobain it looks like the "U + 6 digits" may have been replaced by a new "J" style. Actually it kind of looks like Fender is trying to make the MIJ format come somewhat in-line with the USA and MIM format - to me I'm seeing maybe a "JO" for "Japan" (why "JO" - I suppose they wanted to use two letters since they use "US" for USA and "MX" for Mexico, or maybe the "O" signifies the factory that makes this model for Fender Japan since they use a couple of suppliers) followed by a "12", making the prefix "JO12" followed by the six digits for the actual serial number.

Regarding the rusted parts on the OP's guitar - I agree with you; you would think that the dealer would unbox and inspect the guitar before shipping. Evidently the OP's guitar was just stuck in the warehouse from the day the dealer received it until they day they grabbed the box off the shelf and shipped it out to the OP. That is clearly unacceptable and I certainly didn't mean to imply that it was; I was just trying to point out that I'm sure it didn't leave Fender Japan in that condition; it certainly should have been cleaned up before it was sent to the OP (or any customer).


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Post subject: Re: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Thu May 16, 2013 12:03 pm
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Yes, it has the contour in the hip section, and it came from an authorised dealer.

It's not a '65 RI (I think those are MIM??)

The serail number on my last Cobain Mustang started 'JD'


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Post subject: Re: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Thu May 16, 2013 2:15 pm
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magicrising wrote:
Yes, it has the contour in the hip section, and it came from an authorised dealer.

It's not a '65 RI (I think those are MIM??)

The serail number on my last Cobain Mustang started 'JD'


A contour would suggest it is a '69 (like Kurdtz) and not a '65 RI.

The reason I ask about who you bought it from is because there has been Ebay users selling modded Mustang with Kurt Mods before they even officially released it.

When I bought my '65 RI in 2009 it was MIJ.

I'm not sure how this happened although I don't think it was new old stock.

Hopefully the new one is correct.


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Post subject: Re: Cobain Mustang - Very Weird!
Posted: Thu May 16, 2013 3:22 pm
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I specifically asked for the guitar to be be checked over before being sent as I'm so sick of being sent either damaged, ex demo, NOS, customer returns etc.. but the The Fender dealer I bought it from said it wasn't in his shop but was in his warehouse, in an unopened, factory sealed box so he couldn't check it before despatch and said there wasn't any need to as it was in a sealed box (which in actual fact it wasn't)

What I am sure of now, is that many authorised dealers specifically seek to get rid of their crap first hoping you won't spot it. Just take a very very close look at a 'factory fresh' guitar - you will find little swirls here and there or scratches on the headstock. These should be perfect before going to a customer. I buy and sell a lot of guitars and the last 5, supposedly new, from different dealers have all been the same!

Just as a matter of interest, why are you spelling 'Kurt' with the 'D & Z' ??


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