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Post subject: Help me if u can i'm feeling down)
Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2014 12:18 am
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Hi,guys! I'll appreciate if u have time to help me out with my "new" guitar. The story is that I've just bought Fender Prodigy Guitar and couldnt't find a lot of an information of this model . Is "wiki" right, that the guitar was made completely in Mexico and it just has a "made in USA" sticker on it?
Maybe some experts here on the forum can determine is it really Fender or It's a combination of 6 telecasers and 5 squiers?)
I don't care 'bout the year of manufacturing and I also don't care 'bout all these scratсhes, just wanna be sure that is a really Prodigy from old times) Old school, yeah)
Thanx :D
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Post subject: Re: Help me if u can i'm feeling down)
Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2014 3:24 am
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Looks as it should to me. And the serial checks out (I guess N1 this time to be 1991 because of the standard tremolo).

On that wiki thing; actually it says that the woodwork is from Mexico (thus the plastic truss rod hole plug), but the finish, hardware and final assembly is MIA.
Some say it's all MIA - anyways, the serial is on the 'US instruments' page, so the country of origin filled the requirements in the nineties (if one cares for this kinda things...).


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Post subject: Re: Help me if u can i'm feeling down)
Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2014 7:29 am
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That was kind of an odd point in Fender's history. As they were trying to get the Ensenada, Mexico plant up and running they were doing the rough woodwork in the USA factory and shipping the milled (but unsanded) body and neck blanks down to Mexico - until the Ensenada workers got up to speed on the routers and could produce blanks that passed inspection. Plus there was a fire in Ensenada that set them back a while.

It's always been my understanding that since the Prodigy was supposed to be an MIM model, but with the issues they had getting the Ensenada factory up and running it was made in the USA but from MIM-spec/level parts for it's brief run.


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Post subject: Re: Help me if u can i'm feeling down)
Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2014 2:56 am
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@JohnC, can you elaborate on what parts are "Mex spec/level" in the Prodigys? And who sent blanks to whom, Mex to US or vice versa..? (Just trying to learn here...)
@Dark_autumn: measuring and documenting your Prodigy might be helpful for others, too - like you said, not a lot of info on these in the web.

Found the specs on another forum:
Quote:
Model Name: U.S. Prodigy Guitar
Model Number: 014-5000-(Color#) OR 014-5002-(Color#)
Series: U.S. Prodigy Series
Body: Poplar
Neck: Maple
Fingerboard: Rosewood P/N 014-5000 or, Maple P/N 014-5002
No. of Frets: 22
Scale Length: 25.5”
Width @ Nut: 1.650”
Hardware: Chrome
Machine Heads: Standard Cast/Sealed
Bridge: Standard Tremolo
Pickguard: 3-Ply Black
Pickups: 1 Standard Humbucking Pickup,
2 Standard Single- Coil
Pickup Switching: 5-Position Blade
Controls: Master Volume, Master Tone
Colors: (702) Lake Placid Blue,
(706) Black,
(725) Crimson Metallic,
(780) Arctic White
Strings: N/A
Unique Features:
Source: U.S.
Accessories: None
U.S. MSRP: $569.99 in 1991 $649.99 in 1993
INTRODUCED: 1991
DISCONTINUED: 1993


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Post subject: Re: Help me if u can i'm feeling down)
Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2014 7:01 am
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It's my understanding that parts could have gone both ways - while the Ensenada plant was either down due to the fire or in training mode the blanks were cut on the routers in Corona for the Ensenada-built MIM models. But that would have only been the rough cuts; these parts were then sanded and finished in Ensenada. These periods didn't last that long - but it was during that 1991-1993 time frame which corresponds to the production of the Prodigy models. If Tony Bacon is correct, then once Ensenada was fully functional the blanks for these were cut in Ensenada and shipped up to Corona for the Prodigy models. The bodies and necks could have still been done in Corona, but the would have still had the same specs which were MIM style

By MIM Spec/Level I meant that they used the plastic truss rod plug on the necks, and the bodies were from the same wood/same number of laminates as the MIM models. The Prodigy, since it was less expensive than the USA models, was probably set to similar specs that were later used on the MIM Deluxe series.


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Post subject: Re: Help me if u can i'm feeling down)
Posted: Mon Nov 03, 2014 1:14 am
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jmattis wrote:
Found the specs on another forum:
Quote:
Model Name: U.S. Prodigy Guitar
Model Number: 014-5000-(Color#) OR 014-5002-(Color#)

Sorry, I didn't get the model names: My number is N 100 5669. . So I have 100 (>14) and 5669 (>5000). Conclusion: the number is correct, right?)
Finally wanna shed light on that dark history)
And guys, did u play on em? How were your feelings of playin' on the instrument?
Cuz I feel very comfortable,and to be honest I do not see much difference in sound compared to "standart" . Prodigy has that recognizable Fender sound too, so it's pleasure to play...I guess)


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Post subject: Re: Help me if u can i'm feeling down)
Posted: Mon Nov 03, 2014 5:52 am
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You're confusing the serial number (on the headstock, and is individual for each guitar) with
the model number (on the paperwork that comes with a new guitar and/or on a sticker under the pickguard, and identifies a guitar to a certain series).

Your serial number (N1+six digits) is as it should be. Also otherwise the guitar looks right. So, unless you have a specific reason to not trust the seller, I'd say it's real.
BTW, the model number should be 014-5002-706, if you someday check under the hood.

I have test played a Prodigy briefly, but that was in the previous millennium, and even then I knew I'm a vintage style Strat guy - "Superstrats" just ain't my thing. So: no memories linger, either to good or to bad.

The Prodigy wasn't designed to be a Strat model, but rather a Fender model to compete with "heavy metal axes" of other brands. I suggest you treat it like that: set it up with low action, little relief, play with a light touch, shred your heart away. If you find a DigiTech DF-7 and accompany it with a delay pedal, the sounds would be period correct :wink:
But with HSS pickups and vintage trem, you should find sounds for most music genres.


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