The saddest thing - a 1980 F-100 parted out

[yowhatsshakin]

Just saw something on eBay that made me really sad: a complete 1980 F-100 parted out. The pups even have the slot head poles to prove it was a real early instrument. If your interested in the parts go to the sellers store at http://www.ebay.com/sch/miked_heirguita ... 7675.l2562

If you buy all the parts, it adds up to $1,500, about 1.5 times what even a pristine F-100 should set you back. This all may make business sense, but it hurts to see it

- Jos

[Elwood]

Miked heirloom guitars goes on the sh*tlist/don't ever buy from/always talk bad about list.

Acme Music and Guitarville ...and now mr. miked.

thanks for the link Jos,

grrrwood

[y2kc]

I saw that guitar (parts) this morning. It is a II series with a #3 neck.

There is quite often a parted out G&L on ebay. Folks are desperate to make ends meet these days and for some this is a way to make a living. It is tough to see these guitars stripped down and sold as chop shop parts. Kinda weird.

y2kc

[Sprinter 92]

I saw that guitar (parts) this morning. It is a II series with a #3 neck.

I'm not sure what the number 3 means on that neck. I think when that F-100 was made, G&L only had two necks. That neck is a F-100 Series II. F-100 I necks were 12 inch radius and F-100 II necks were 7 1/2 inch radius.

[helle-man]

I see a lot of "parted out" guitars more and more on eBay. One reason guys do that is when they have a guitar that has a major defect, like twisted neck, or bad neck/body alignment for instance. If they were to try and sell it "whole" they risk a customer return and negative feedback, even if they describe the twisted neck.

I once had a Kramer guitar that I just couldn't get to play right. I parted it out rather than risk an unhappy buyer.

On eBay the buyer has all the power - all they have to do is file a case against you and your funds are frozen in PayPal until you work it out, usually resulting in you accepting a return and refunding the money.

So yes, I can see why people part out guitars. I don't like it but it's here to stay. It's the same with cars too, BTW.

Will

[Elwood]

I'm not sure what the number 3 means on that neck.

Inspector number IIRC

[Elwood]

On eBay the buyer has all the power

pretty much...same with everything else.

Vote with your dollars !!

[KenC]

It's disgusting. I just registered it as having been parted out.

Ken

[jeffmarshall67]

Jos, I showed our favorite G&L dealer an ad for a parted out Fender....and he replied that nowadays you can always make more $ selling them that way. Sad

[KenC]

I've bought some parts to assemble a mid-'60s DuoSonic (from different sellers), but I was careful to check each of the sellers' current and completed listings to be sure no other parts of similar guitars were listed to indicate active parting-out. I have also purchased a couple of early G&Ls with damaged finishes just because the listing prices were way too low, and I was concerned parts dealers would get their grubby little mitts on them.

Ken

[bloodied_fingers]

It's disgusting. I just registered it as having been parted out.

Ken

The guy says he has cancer and hasn't worked in 8 months.

[KenC]

It's disgusting. I just registered it as having been parted out.

Ken

The guy says he has cancer and hasn't worked in 8 months.

I didn't see that in any of his listings. If that's the case, then I really feel for him. What I did see on eBay was feedback showing parted-out guitars going back to at least 2007-2008.

Whatever this seller's circumstances are, the fact remains that it is increasingly common for eBay sellers to buy instruments cheap when the chance arises, and then sell them off in parts to make a quick profit.

Ken

[bloodied_fingers]

It's disgusting. I just registered it as having been parted out.

Ken

The guy says he has cancer and hasn't worked in 8 months.

I didn't see that in any of his listings. If that's the case, then I really feel for him. What I did see on eBay was feedback showing parted-out guitars going back to at least 2007-2008.

Whatever this seller's circumstances are, the fact remains that it is increasingly common for eBay sellers to buy instruments cheap when the chance arises, and then sell them off in parts to make a quick profit.

Ken

I just asked him directly why he was parting it out. Truth/Fiction ? Who knows...

[MAP70]

I saw that guitar (parts) this morning. It is a II series with a #3 neck.

There is quite often a parted out G&L on ebay. Folks are desperate to make ends meet these days and for some this is a way to make a living. It is tough to see these guitars stripped down and sold as chop shop parts. Kinda weird.

y2kc

Funny you say that.. I have noticed alot of Tribute ASAT's parted out on eBay lately as well..

Mark

[KenC]

Funny you say that.. I have noticed alot of Tribute ASAT's parted out on eBay lately as well..

Mark

I've seen it too, and it really baffles me. As much as I hate parting out, I can understand why a buyer would be after parts of an older instrument (e.g., fixing an old mod, replacing damaged parts, or finding that last missing piece of a project). But a Tribute??? Everything but the body and neck is available new, and if you're after the body or neck you probably aren't too far from the price of a complete instrument. I just don't get how any market could support that!

Ken

[MAP70]

I've seen it too, and it really baffles me. As much as I hate parting out, I can understand why a buyer would be after parts of an older instrument (e.g., fixing an old mod, replacing damaged parts, or finding that last missing piece of a project). But a Tribute??? Everything but the body and neck is available new, and if you're after the body or neck you probably aren't too far from the price of a complete instrument. I just don't get how any market could support that!

Ken

Dunno...None of it seems old... but I guess you can make a lot more $$$ parting it out... I did buy some USA stuff when I was working on my Legacy Tribute so I guess I am guilty as well...

Mark

[MrRoundel]

Yes, it's sad indeed, but it goes on everywhere, with every physical thing that's "part-able" (I won't get into the idea of organ harvesting. Yikes!). One of my hobbies is collecting antique American pocket watches. This is a hobby that was shared by the late Paavo Z.'s. Longtime members surely remember him. RIP.

Anyway, pocket watch collectors have been lamenting the same sort of thing for many years, as the escalating price of gold, when it WAS on the up-moving escalator, triggered a big melt of cases. Such things surely disturb the purists among us, but not the businessman/dealer who is in guitars exclusively for the money. That said, the guitar part-out guys will ultimately be doing a favor for the long-term lover/collector of G&L guitars, value-wise, as there will be fewer examples left that are whole. Personally, I can't think of any G&L that I have, that I'd even remotely consider parting out. But I'm not in it for the money, at least not yet. Salud.

[Echoes]

There are good and bad things to parted out guitars...

The Bad:
The loss of a whole guitar
Some else might get tricked due to a numbered plate floating around.

The Good:
Someone desperately needs a part that they cannot get otherwise
Sometimes the parts are worth more than the whole

Honestly, I personally do not see an issue with the practice, fact is, is the person who owns the guitar/parts can do what they like with it. It makes me wonder if anyone got pissed at Hendrix or Townshend when they broke/smashed/set fire to their guitars.