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READ THIS FIRST
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have less than 5 positive feedback, or have received more than 5 negative
feedback, please contact me before placing a bid.
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If you
are from outside the UK,
please contact me before placing a bid in order for me to confirm the shipping
rate to your country.
FAILURE
TO DO SO WILL RESULT IN THE IMMEDIATE CANCELLATION OF YOUR BID.
Bidders
from outside the UK MUST be able to pay with PayPal. I cannot accept overseas
payment by any other means.
A
Japanese-made Telecaster copy, built around 1971 - 1972 by Fujigen Gakki, in Matsumoto,
Nagano. This guitar is identical to the early Ibanez 2352 model, but this
guitar is branded as Eros, a name used by British importer Rosetti. I should
point out that Rosetti's Eros & Eros Mark II brands were not connected with
the Italian E-Ros factory, which predominantly built acoustic guitars.
This
guitar is in very clean & original condition, and is cosmetically good for
a 35 year old instrument.
Body
construction is the sandwich, or pancake style seen in many Japanese guitars of
this era. This one is a little different, consisting of a front & back
laminated veneer, two thick slabs of timber, and a thin central layer with the
grain running at 90 degrees to the rest. This makes for a dense & very
solid feeling instrument.
The neck
is 3-piece maple, with a quarter-sawn centre section for added rigidity, and a
rosewood fingerboard fitted with 21 frets & pearl dot markers. The
rosewood board is quite unusual on a 70s Japanese Fender copy, maple seeming to
be more common. The neck measures 40mm at the nut, but is fairly parallel,
making it a quite narrow 53mm at the heel end.
Truss rod
adjustment is at the headstock, which features a broad chrome cover, These
only appear on pre 1972 Fujigen guitars, a small white plastic cover being used
on later examples. Tuners are covered vintage style, and there is a single
retainer for the B & E strings.
Electronics
are as straightforward as the original Tele, with a volume & tone control &
three-way selector switch, operating two single coil pickups. The pickups are
both chrome-covered, unbranded but probably Maxxons, outputting 8.84 &
8.89k respectively, making them pretty powerful for single coil units.
The
chrome control plate houses the output jack as well as pots & switch, while
the pickups are mounted on the scratchplate & bridge baseplate. The bridge
plate & 3 saddles are zinc-plated
& would originally have been fitted with a chrome cover.
This is a
35-year old guitar and it has been well-played. There is a fair amount of
fretwear & it has plainly never had any work done on the frets. However,
the wear is pretty consistent along the length of the neck, and it’s set up
with a nice medium-low action and plays with only very minimal buzzing, and no
choking. Of course some professional attention to the frets is recommended, but
the guitar’s pleasantly playable as it is.
There’s
some deterioration & blackening of the plating on the bridge saddles, and
to a much lesser extent, the base plate, probably due to sweat from players’ hands
over the years, but otherwise the metalwork & chrome is in fine condition,
with no rust & very little scratching & wear. All of the electronics
work as intended, with no crackling or cutting out, and output from the pickups
is strong & healthy. Soundwise, the bridge unit is very bright &
wiry-sounding, while the neck is fuller & rounder, and combined the two
give a rather Strat-like tone, to my ears.
Apart
from the chipping at the base of the body, a few knocks here & there, and
the usual shrinkage cracks around the neck pocket, the blonde paint &
lacquer is rich & glossy. There is no buckle rash to speak of and the
colour is nicely age-darkened.
I'll be
starting bidding at 99p, with no reserve, and postage to UK addresses
will be £18.
I
normally prefer to post guitars with the necks removed, if they have a
detachable neck. I always pack as sturdily as possible, but damage in transit
is always a risk, and posting with the neck detached minimises this risk.
I am
aware that some buyers may not have the necessary skill or experience to
rebuild and set up a guitar, so I will post fully-built & set up if
specifically requested to do so. The guitar will be posted with insurance cover
equal to or exceeding its final sale value.
PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING
BEFORE BIDDING:
Please understand that if
you place a bid, you are bidding to buy. A winning bid constitutes a legal and
binding contract of sale so please study and understand all the terms and
conditions of this auction before placing a bid.
I take some pride in both
the detail and clarity of my item descriptions and photographs, and these are
as accurate and representative as I am able to make them. If you are unclear
about anything at all, please do not hesitate to ask. I can provide more photos
by email if you need them.
Bidding starts at 99p, no
reserve, postage to UK
addresses £18.00. Postage to EU countries will be around £45 - but please
contact me first.
I will obtain proof of
postage at the Post Office. Once the
parcel is in transit, delivery becomes Royal Mail's responsibility.
If you are outside the UK, please
contact me prior to bidding so I can confirm the international postage rate.
I’d also like to request
that bidders with less than 5 positive feedback contact me prior to bidding -
failure to do so will result in your bid being cancelled.
Please
feel free to contact me if you have any questions about the item.