What color is my Tribute Fallout?

[Kit]

I bought this used Tribute Fallout with serial number indicating it was build in February 2106 from the web a couple of weeks ago and I'm curious as to what the color it is officially in the catalog of Tribute Fallouts. The seller said the color is "blue," but what I find curious is that the G&L site says that sonic blue Fallouts have a maple fretboard, but this one has a rosewood board. One reason I bought this particular guitar is because I prefer a rosewood (or ebony) fretboard. I have found other Tribute Fallout pictures online of mint green and surf green samples with rosewood boards, and this guitar's color is actually very slightly more green than my picture shows. I am certain it is not mint green. Still, I like to know what you think the color is.

When I first got the guitar it had slight setup problems. The high e action was set a bit high, but that was easily corrected. In general the action was a bit higher than what I usually like, but it played well enough that I'm leaving it be for the time being. The string profile conforms to the fretboard profile just fine except initially for the high e. The bass-side strings (E and A) did not have much snap to them. I have since raised the bass side of the humbucker by about 3mm and it has improved things. Compared to my SC-3 the bass is still lacking snap. The strings that came on the guitar looked quite new. I have visually, and with a ruler, checked the break angle of the E and A strings at the nut, and they appear to be OK.

All the electronics work on the guitar and the instrument sounds really good. I bought the guitar mostly because I have never had a guitar with a P90 pickup, and this one sounds great. The humbucker coil-splitter also yields quite pleasing sounds to my ears. The only bad sound is at the very bass end of the tone control, where the guitar just sounds dull. I have learned to set the tone control at least a quarter of the way up. As I got this guitar for quite a cheap price I'm very happy with it.

[Craig]

I bought this used Tribute Fallout with serial number indicating it was build in February 2106 from the web a couple of weeks ago and I'm curious as to what the color it is officially in the catalog of Tribute Fallouts. The seller said the color is "blue," but what I find curious is that the G&L site says that sonic blue Fallouts have a maple fretboard, but this one has a rosewood board. One reason I bought this particular guitar is because I prefer a rosewood (or ebony) fretboard. I have found other Tribute Fallout pictures online of mint green and surf green samples with rosewood boards, and this guitar's color is actually very slightly more green than my picture shows. I am certain it is not mint green. Still, I like to know what you think the color is.

When I first got the guitar it had slight setup problems. The high e action was set a bit high, but that was easily corrected. In general the action was a bit higher than what I usually like, but it played well enough that I'm leaving it be for the time being. The string profile conforms to the fretboard profile just fine except initially for the high e. The bass-side strings (E and A) did not have much snap to them. I have since raised the bass side of the humbucker by about 3mm and it has improved things. Compared to my SC-3 the bass is still lacking snap. The strings that came on the guitar looked quite new. I have visually, and with a ruler, checked the break angle of the E and A strings at the nut, and they appear to be OK.

All the electronics work on the guitar and the instrument sounds really good. I bought the guitar mostly because I have never had a guitar with a P90 pickup, and this one sounds great. The humbucker coil-splitter also yields quite pleasing sounds to my ears. The only bad sound is at the very bass end of the tone control, where the guitar just sounds dull. I have learned to set the tone control at least a quarter of the way up. As I got this guitar for quite a cheap price I'm very happy with it.

It looks like Sonic Blue to me.
Perhap a previous owner swapped the maple fretboard neck with someone who had a rosewood fretboard Tribute Fallout neck.
I recommend that you email G&L's Customer Support with your photo and include one showing the serial number. Here is the email address: repairs@glguitars.com.
They should be able to tell you the body finish and fretboard wood type associated with that serial number.

Let us know what you find out.

[dhgleaves]

Is that not the same colour as this one, which is listed as Himalayan Blue.

[dhgleaves]

And here is a Fallout in Himalayan Blue

[Craig]

And here is a Fallout in Himalayan Blue

Is that not the same colour as this one, which is listed as Himalayan Blue.

You cannot compare the US colors with Tribute colors because they are not exactly the same.

Here is the photo of the Tribute Fallout in Sonic Blue from G&L's spec page:


Here are the current combinations available (7/1/2015-present):

· Gloss Black, 3-ply creme pickguard, tinted gloss neck and rosewood fingerboard
· Fullerton Red, 3-ply creme pickguard, tinted gloss neck and rosewood fingerboard
· Sonic Blue, 3-ply white pickguard, tinted gloss neck and maple fingerboard
· Mint, 3-ply creme pickguard, tinted gloss neck and rosewood fingerboard [New in 12/2015] NOTE: not shown on G&L's website, so it may have been discontinued.

G&L does not have photos of the Mint (Mint Green) Tribute Fallout on their site, but I have seen photos of it from some G&L dealers and Kit's is definitely not Mint (Mint Green).

[Kit]

I have sent an inquiry to G&L just as Craig suggested. Seeing it is Saturday I don't expect an answer for a few days. I saw the same information for Tribute Fallout on the G&L website that Craig quoted above. If my Fallout is a 'current' production, then it has to be Sonic Blue. And yet the neck does not match the spec, making this an interesting mystery!

Actually when I first saw a picture of this guitar on the Internet I immediately noticed that the neck was rosewood, because every other picture of the Sonic Blue Tribute Fallout I have seen have been maple. But then I wasn't really sure at the time what color this guitar has. Since color is not typically a major factor in my choice of guitars I bought it as it was a good price. Now there may even be a good story behind it too.

[Tooslowhand]

I'm getting old, so my memory is not what it once was... . However, I recall a few months back a fellow selling a Tribute Fallout on Reverb where he said he had a Fullerton Red one and a Sonic Blue one and had swapped the necks. He was selling the Sonic Blue one. Perhaps this is that guitar, or something like that happened. Or I could just be imagining it...

[dhgleaves]

I'm getting old, so my memory is not what it once was... . However, I recall a few months back a fellow selling a Tribute Fallout on Reverb where he said he had a Fullerton Red one and a Sonic Blue one and had swapped the necks. He was selling the Sonic Blue one. Perhaps this is that guitar, or something like that happened. Or I could just be imagining it...

You're not imagining. See https://reverb.com/au/item/4058828-g-l- ... -fretboard

[Tooslowhand]

Good to know... Thanks.

[Kit]

I have heard back from G&L. But before I get to the answer I want to thank everyone for being so helpful.

Craig, Tooslowhand and ghgleaves, thanks for investigating for me. I am amazed that you can still dig up the ad on Reverb and it helped me know that mine is not the same guitar because the last picture with that ad is the serial number, and it doesn't match mine. But what it does make clear is that people swap necks on their guitars maybe more than I realized.

Memo from G&L told me that the neck (with the serial number) from my Fallout came from a clear orange Tribute Fallout. So I am now certain that my guitar had a neck swap at some point, but as to how it came about I'm not likely to find out. Another thing I know is that the body of my guitar is likely quite recent because the protective film was still on the pickguard when it came to me. Given that my guitar's neck dates from February 2016 I can be fairly certain that mine is a recent production. All that really isn't meaningful, except that I have a guitar I want with a neck that I prefer.

[DanDoulogos]

It's the same color as this, as far as I can tell.

[Kit]

It's the same color as this, as far as I can tell.

On that basis, my guitar could be clear orange!