Whats the holy grail of G&L guitars

[rockworthy]

Just wondering whats the most sought after rarest G&L? Pics would be nice.

[HLG]

Talk about subjective! If money were not an object my choices would be:
The Lacewood Commemorative - total of 7 made
The Buck Owens Asat Classic - total of 3 made
The original Asat signature - total of 1 made (the signature on this one is Leo Fenders actual autograph)
The HG1 - unkown number built but according to Dale Hyatt, they do exsist.
The Broadcaster
While the Broadcasters aren't as rare as the others, some were/are owned by people of celebrity status eg. Dale Hyatt, George Fullerton etc. and of coarse they have Leo Fenders signature in the neck pocket.
There are others that are extremely rare and little known such as the S300, the T400, the Marquie, and a few of the interceptors one of which was owned and kept by Leo Fender. Interestingly enough, Leo wasn't all that fond of the Interceptors and he wasn't a player.
Some pictures to follow.

[Craig]

Talk about subjective! If money were not an object my choices would be:
The Lacewood Commemorative - total of 7 made
The Buck Owens Asat Classic - total of 3 made
The original Asat signature - total of 1 made (the signature on this one is Leo Fenders actual autograph)
The HG1 - unkown number built but according to Dale Hyatt, they do exsist.
The Broadcaster
While the Broadcasters aren't as rare as the others, some were/are owned by people of celebrity status eg. Dale Hyatt, George Fullerton etc. and of coarse they have Leo Fenders signature in the neck pocket.
There are others that are extremely rare and little known such as the S300, the T400, the Marquie, and a few of the interceptors one of which was owned and kept by Leo Fender. Interestingly enough, Leo wasn't all that fond of the Interceptors and he wasn't a player.
Some pictures to follow.

While HLG get's his photos together, you can see most of these in the Rarebird section of the G&L Registry and the
Gallery.

Looking forward to HLG's photos and details, as he is one of the G&L historians who post here on the G&LDP.

Hope this helps.

[Mama Sam]

What is the Asat classic Buck Owens ?!

[yowhatsshakin]

Hey Mama Sam.

The Buck Ownes is the red, white, and blue colored guitar shown in HLG Avatar. Here is a link to a thread with better pictures: http://guitarsbyleo.com/FORUM/viewtopic ... 01&start=0.

[Anglewood]

I would throw the rear loaded G-200 in there as well. Something like 12 built if I recall.

Lates,

Connor

[westsideduck]

Along with those mentioned don't forget about the S-200 and the Innovator. I'm having a hard time finding my holy grail, an 82 S-500 with a maple body, Ihave two in ash and a hog but can't seem to come by that damned maple version.

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[Tundra]

Is this question for collectors in search of rarebirds or players (or player/collectors) looking for the ultimiate G&L Guitar tone?

[rockworthy]

Is this question for collectors in search of rarebirds or players (or player/collectors) looking for the ultimiate G&L Guitar tone?

I asked it just to see what is considered the most sought after G&L of all time.

[HLG]

Talk about subjective! If money were not an object my choices would be:
The Lacewood Commemorative - total of 7 made
The Buck Owens Asat Classic - total of 3 made
The original Asat signature - total of 1 made (the signature on this one is Leo Fenders actual autograph)
The HG1 - unkown number built but according to Dale Hyatt, they do exsist.
The Broadcaster
While the Broadcasters aren't as rare as the others, some were/are owned by people of celebrity status eg. Dale Hyatt, George Fullerton etc. and of coarse they have Leo Fenders signature in the neck pocket.
There are others that are extremely rare and little known such as the S300, the T400, the Marquie, and a few of the interceptors one of which was owned and kept by Leo Fender. Interestingly enough, Leo wasn't all that fond of the Interceptors and he wasn't a player.
Some pictures to follow.

While HLG get's his photos together, you can see most of these in the Rarebird section of the G&L Registry and the
Gallery.

Looking forward to HLG's photos and details, as he is one of the G&L historians who post here on the G&LDP.

Sorry about the delay, been out of town. Without going off on a tangent about the rarest or most collectible G&Ls, I've narrowed it down to two individual guitars that would be considered the Holy Grail of G&Ls. I have photos and info on the first and am currently gathering the info on the other. I am holding off until I can post them at the same time.

[HLG]

While not wanting to debate the philosophy of collecting, rarity, or investment values, these are my candidates for the title of Holy Grail of G&L Guitars. For clarity, the definition of Holy Grail as it is refered to here is: most sought after. This is the first out of a possible five or six that will follow in separate postings.

The original Asat signature:

This unassuming, almost bare bones G&L is very similar to the thousands of Asats currently in the hands of G&L enthusiasts. This particular guitar is very special though. Not only is it the very first Asat signature built, the signature on the body is not a decal. It was signed by Leo Fender himself. There are only three guitars known to ever have been signed by Leo Fender, two of which are G&Ls. According to Mr. Dale Hyatt, the original idea was to have Leo Fender sign the bodies on all of the signature guitars. After extensive trial and error with many different types of markers and finishes, Dale Hyatt finally found a combination that would work. The signature was put on after the sealer and before the clearcoat. After the guitar was completed, Mr. Hyatt once again approached Leo for his input. That's when Leo announced that this guitar was the only one he was ever going to sign. This resulted in the rest of the signatures being waterslide decals. During the course of selecting a marker for the signature, Leo humorously noted that Rembrandt never signed his work with a pen. Soon after, the guitar was affectionately named The Rembrandt. Several years ago, there was an offer made for this guitar well into the six figures. It was turned down.

[sirmyghin]

HLG, that is pretty cool, you play it though, right?

[HLG]

Unfortunately, I do not own this gem. I have had the opportunity to play it once though.
It sounds sweet as do most Asats but the signature gives it a unique aura. Had to sit while playing it. Had some unjustified fear of it hitting the floor.

[sirmyghin]

Ah, your post made it seem like it was yours. Dang I guess.

[replyman]

I thought it was the elusive HG-1...

[HLG]

I thought it was the elusive HG-1...

Quite right. The HG1 may be the most well known elusive G&L, but here we're going for the Holy Grail and indeed the HG1 may be in the running but without a picture, it doesn't exsist, Right?
I suppose the title of Holy Grail in this scenario, and once made aware of the options, would be the one in which the majority of G&L fanatics would walk away with if they were all in a pile with one of those all elusive free G&L signs in front of them.

[HLG]

Another of my candidates for The Holy Grail of G&L Guitars would be the Lacewood Commemorative.The later text is from one of my posts back in July under Does anyone have a G&L COMMEMORATIVE (October 1991). I've edited out the pictures for this posting to add some new ones. This particular guitar is the #3 Lacewood previously owned by the late George Fullerton. It is featured in Mr. Fullerton's book GUITAR LEGENDS The Evolution of the Guitar from Fender to G&L. One or more of the pictures are scanned from Mr. Fullerton's book for a more thorough preview of this ultra rare guitar. George Fullerton thought enough of this guitar to include it on the rear cover along with Leo Fender's first guitar. As a side note, the very first Commemorative guitar offered for retail sale was serial number #4 and was one of the six cherrybust versions built before the retirement of Dale Hyatt on November 4th 1991. None of the seven Lacewood Commemoratives were offered for sale on the retail market. These Lacewood versions at todays market will draw prices well into the five figures.
The two versions pictured are of serial number #1 and #3.






I have two more candidates for the title of Holy Grail to be posted at a later date.



The G&L Commemorative guitar. Designed and built by the G&L factory to honor Mr. Leo Fender for a lifetime of innovation and dedication to musicians and their instruments.
As stated by Mr.Tim Page, many of these Commemorative guitars never made it to the showroom floor. Many dealers and those that did get thier hands on one of these simply put them away and they remain virtually unplayed. Supposedly there were 350 Commemorative guitars built but according to George Fullertons book, there were only 250 guitars and 150 Commemorative basses manufactured. Exactly how many was actually realized is unclear. The production run was intended to be 1000 guitars but due to pending litigation by FMIC over the use of the Leo Fender name, the agreement reduced the total amount to 500 guitars. Some of this production quantity was used for Commemorative basses. Although the reduction in the total quantity of guitars was realized, the neck plates were all stamped XXXX of 1000. It's been stated that in the early nineties G&L offered to replace the neckplate with the proper serial number and ending with "of 350". I know of no G&L Commemorative owners that took advantage of this offer. As Greg Gagliano points out, seven of the guitars were made of Austrailan Lacewood and mahogany. It was soon found that these Lacewood versions were cost prohibitive and the body was changed to a cherry sunburst swamp ash design. Of the seven Lacewoods, five were built prior to Mr. Dale Hyatts retirement on Nov.4 1991, one seven days later and the final one approx. four months later. These rare Lacewood versions were kept as prized possesions by Leo Fenders lifelong friends and partners Dale Hyatt, George Fullerton, and a few key employees. The seventh and final one was presented to Mrs. Phyllis Fender on April 10 1992. Attached to it is a plaque stating "From the people of G&L to Mrs. Phyllis Fender with great affection and respect" It's highlighted in George Fullertons first book. Five of the cherry sunburst guitars were built before Nov 4 1991 and are considered pre BBE. The prototype for the Commemorative is based on the Asat Classic which is the last model Leo Fender designed that made it to production. At this point the graphics on the headstock hadn't been decided on yet and was still carrying the Asat Classic logo. The first prototype decals on the upper bout that stated the birth and death dates of Leo Fender did not have the long stem black and white rose. It did however, have the word Commemorative between the name and the dates. Interestingly enough, one of the dates was off by one year and stated 1910-1991. It was later corrected to 1909-1991 and the "Commemorative" was removed from the body and placed on the headstock which is how they appear on the production run guitars. It was at this point the rose was added to the body. All of the hardware is gold plated including the pickup poles and strings. The only options on the Commemorative was a #1 or #2 neck profile, a rosewood, maple, or a very rare ebony fingerboard. Sometime in 1992, the Commemoratives were sent from the factory with the new certification papers signed by Phyllis Fender. The end of the production run for the Commemorative guitar was May 1993. While most of these guitars see very little play time, quite often the owners still consider their Commemorative as the centerpiece of their G&L collection.

[HLG]

Right you are Tim!
All of which are highly desirable but there can be only one Holy Grail...or maybe two.
The G&L Broadcaster no doubt is on the list. But which one? During the one year production run of Broadcasters in 1985 through 1986, there were seven different variations made. George Fullerton had the #3, Dale Hyatt had a few, including #2, Leo had a one of a kind built for show, Roy Clark owns the one he used on his Russian tour. Can't have 869 Holy Grails. But which one? Let me look through my folders and I'll get back with some.
A little FYI. Dale Hyatt presented BC00001 to a major celebrity back in 1986. Thought the exposure would be good.
The guitar was found in a pawn shop butchered.

[HLG]

Right again Tim.
It's pretty cool just knowing you have one back at the house.
And when you open the case... Yup... pretty cool.
A shot in the dark here Tim. You have a soft spot for # BC00004?
Still working on them special pictures.

[yowhatsshakin]

Interesting to learn about the low S/N Broadcasters! It's sad to learn that #1 got butchered.

But I have a question on George's #3 that has always confused me. I am particularly curious on Tim's and HLG's take on it. If you look in the Registry, there are quite a few Broadcasters that have finish dates on the sticker in the neck pocket before the 5/1/86 date in the pocket of #3. When one states #3, I intuitively would take that to mean the 3rd one built. But this seems not to be the case here. So then the importance of the instrument is merely the association with the (previous) owner as stated in an earlier post by HLG. But what is the importance of a low serial number then? The first Broadcaster from the factory could have had any of the S/N's out there! Guess one has to compare all the dates of all the stickers in all neck pockets to resolve that question.

HLG also mentions that there have been 7 'versions' of the Broadcaster produced. Does this have any to with this? Would be great to learn something about that.

Thanks,

- Jos

[sirmyghin]

broadcaster 771 is on ebay (supposedly)

[HLG]

The lower serial numbers destined for the Broadcaster were intentionally held back. It was common place for G&L to start the serialization of some models well above #1. For example, the L1000 serial numbers started at B000500. In the case of the Broadcaster, serial numbers BC00001 through BC00050 were held back until the end of the production run with a few sporadic exceptions.. A few of these low serial numbers were not sold on the retail market due to an agreement with Gretsch over the name. The agreement was not legally binding. On May 1st of 1985 Dale Hyatt registered the name "Broadcaster" and received the trademark certification after finding the previous registration of the name "Broadcaster" had lapsed. Dale Hyatt being a man of his word, honored this agreement and did not sell anymore guitars named "Broadcaster"after the agreed upon date had past. A few more Broadcasters were built but these were not sold on the retail market and were never intended to be. This is what makes the lower serial numbered Broadcasters special. A few but not all of these lower serial numbered Broadcasters were intended for certain individuals and places. Once the sequence of serialized neck plates up to BC01100 were used, G&L started into the lower serial numbers until the end of the production run.
FYI... The Asat and Broadcaster production runs overlapped by three months. There's a reason why your '86/'87 Asat plays and sounds like it does. It's a Broadcaster of a different color. It's a good thing that Richard Smith suggested to Dale the name Asat. If not for that...we'd be playing The LACASTER!

[sirmyghin]

LACASTER eh, doesn't that sound LAME! haha.

[yowhatsshakin]

Reminds me of LA Fitness which I consistently pronounce with a French accent as if it is a female noun

Thanks for the info HLG! Explains a lot.

[ASATNoah]

The holy grail is the one i sold.

Definitely not a holy grail but also rare enough to mention: The ASAT Cat (Kat?) -- a guitar that a shop in Ohio modded for a handful of friends and clients -- an ASAT Special with an S-500 pickup in the middle. I guess this was a really nice combo, and it got popular enough that they actually gave it a name. Not a G&L production, but still worth mentioning.

[HLG]

Another of my candidates for the title of The Holy Grail of G&L Guitars would be this Asat bass built in Feb. of 1991. It was featured in the Sept/Oct 1991 issue of Bass Player magazine. Not only does this G&L bass look different, it is different.
Mr. Roger Carroll of Nashville was a G&L sponsored player up until 1991 and was the bass player for the late Hank Snow for the last twenty years of Hanks career. For those not familiar, Hank Snow was one of the premier country bands starting back in the thirties, playing the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville countless number of times up until about 1997. Needless to say this bass was played at the Opry house by Roger many times. The rather unusual looking top on the body is a laminate made from the stage floor that was in use at the Grand Ole Opry from 1974 to 1990 and at which time the stage flooring was replaced. Roger had this idea of using a section of the stage floor and having it laminated to the top of a bass body. He then ran the idea by Dale Hyatt and Leo, whom he had been working closely with for years. They agreed and sent Roger an unfinished Asat Bass body. A piece of stage flooring large enough to cover the front of the body was acquired with the help of Mr. Snow. Roger had Bill Merritt (a Nashville luthier) laminate the top to the body, (keeping the factory dimensions) match the factory routing, install the binding and put the finish on the body. The body was then shipped back to G&L to have the electronics and neck installed. After G&L completed the bass, it was sent back to Roger as a new G&L bass with all of the case candy you would expect. At a later date, there was a certificate of authenticity issued and signed by Dale Hyatt and the manager of the Opry House, Mr. Jerry Strobel. Rather than having this special guitar sit in a case since the day it was built, Roger played this on tour and at special venues. For six years however, it was on display at the Grand Ole Opry Museum in Nashville Tennessee. George Gruhn of Gruhns guitars did an appraisal of this bass and at the time he estimated the value well into the four figures but admittedly, had nothing to compare it with.
One would assume the cost of the stage floor would be added to this unique instrument. Soon after Mr. Carroll's bass was built, the remaining sections of The Grand Ole Opry stage was sold off and priced by the square inch.

[Elwood]

Holy Moly !!
...and thats some beautiful wood on the back, very classy.
That'd definitely be in fair contention for Holy Grail status .

I'd love to see an ASAT six stringer with the same attributes, I guess I'll have to wait for the next batch of renovations at the Grand Ole Opry.

Thanks

[sirmyghin]

That one is freaking neat. Is the back of that thing walnut though?

[smileradio]

So with all this talk about the Broadcaster... I haven't heard anyone say how it plays? Does it play nice? I know that it is what the ASAT turned into, but beside collector"ness", is it worth trying to find one to buy and play?
Thanks so much! I am just really intrigued by the broadcaster.
Paul

[yowhatsshakin]

Hi Paul,
Note that the following will be subjective. I own both an ebony board as well as a maple board Broadcaster. Both guitars have everything you would expect from a 26 year old instrument. When I got my 'ebony', I was my first maple bodied guitar, and I was amazed how good this tonewood sounds. So it wasn't surprising to learn that the 'maple' sounds as good but slightly brighter. If you do a search on Broadcaster on this site, you will find numerous posts on how owners of these instruments perceive them. And the overriding adjective is mojo. Whether that is just a figment of our imagination or not I'll leave up to you!

Here are a couple of resources you can check out:

• Greg Gagliano's pages on G&L. Also read about the early maple bodied ASATs built between '86 and '90. These are also great instruments with similar mojo; just without the inspection sticker and name.
• My own G&L pages.

Hope this helps,

- Jos

[Miles Smiles]

There are just a few F-100E with Dual Fulcrum registered. Mine is the only one in clear red with a maple neck, uups there's now another one, but with the newer headstock:



Built in 1982, it had been as good as never played.

[yowhatsshakin]

That is one immaculate looking tone monster. Clear Red is a beautiful color on a good piece of wood. Congrats Miles

- Jos

[smileradio]

Thanks so much Joe!
I only have the ASAT Z-3 in blue (the one just to the left of what you're reading , but I love it. I was always a "Fender" guy with telecasters until a friend told me about G&L. Now I am looking to get one that will work great for rock and roll to have in a studio, and one that might accrue in value over the years. A rare bird that I could possibly afford? Let me know if you think of one, one of course, that you're not planning on buying yourself
Thanks guys!

[darwinohm]

Miles, another fine G&L specimen in the best color on the planet!!-- Darwin

[Miles Smiles]

Thanks. Currently there are two F-100 in clear read at EBay.
One is an F-100E, but with chrome plates and almost as fine as mine, except it was in it's case for a while, with the strap on the body. So you can see it still there in the nitro finish.

[HLG]

Here's one I took a while back, all of which would be in the running for The Holy Grail of G&L Guitars.
At the time the photo was taken, these amazing guitars were part of Mr. Dale Hyatts' collection.

Left
The original G&L Asat Signature signed by Leo Fender

Center left
G&L Broadcaster BC00002

Center right
G&L Asat Lacewood Commemorative S/N 001

Right
The G&L "Buck Owens" Asat Classic

[Elwood]

Here's one I took a while back, all of which would be in the running for The Holy Grail of G&L Guitars.

Yesirree indeed !!

That's an amazing foursome .

Mine is the only one in clear red with a maple neck,

very nice...I used to have a couple of the Root Beer F-100's /maple neck ...I still have one F100e,
it's a rocker

[jmontgomery]

FYI I just saw a Commemorative on ebay. I had to do a search after reading this thread and was supprised to see one listed.

[willross]

I think the "Holy Grail" is any guitar with a G&L logo on it...


Cheers,

Will

[geoff douglas]

Hi again.
For some education for me, could i ask if there is a particular model of the Leo era guitars that is regarded as the Holy Grail of them all. I guess there might be differing views and accepting that i would love to know who the contenders would be,, Would any production models get into the final shoot out i was wondering. I would love to know you thoughts.
OK, its Friday here, the sun has set, off to the club for some fun.
Have a great weekend all and take care
Geoff

[Craig]

Hi again.
For some education for me, could i ask if there is a particular model of the Leo era guitars that is regarded as the Holy Grail of them all. I guess there might be differing views and accepting that i would love to know who the contenders would be,, Would any production models get into the final shoot out i was wondering. I would love to know you thoughts.
OK, its Friday here, the sun has set, off to the club for some fun.
Have a great weekend all and take care
Geoff

This topic has been discussed here in the past. Use the Search facility, with search string of "Holy +Grail" and you should be able to find it.
Also, check out the list of Rarebirds in the G&L Knowledgebase, too.

Hope this helps.

[geoff douglas]

thanks Craig,, i should have tried that,,, sorry,
Cheers
Geoff

[KenC]

We haven't debated this in a while, so I take a first stab at some candidates:

1. Broadcaster: I haven't experienced one of these yet, but I've had three ASATs with bodies and/or necks dating to Broadcaster production. They've been excellent guitars, but they didn't have Leo's fingerprints on them.

2. G-200: Whether or not the 24.75" scale is your boat, you have to admit they are unique among Leo's designs. It took me about four years to track one down.

3. X-Body Interceptor: I haven't seen or played one, and probably never will, so I can't comment on these.

4. SC-1: Less can be more. Like all of the early SC models, they are light, resonant and and a blast to play. For only having a bridge pup, volume and tone controls, they are extremely versatile guitars. This is high on my "desert island guitar" list.

Now for the more interesting list IMO, the ones that should be Holy Grails - in other words, the Sleeping Beauties of the rarebird world:

1. SC-3: Sonically these are Skyhawks with a single tone control, but the feel is entirely different. Tones that can out-Strat a Strat, packed into a (usually) lightweight, resonant body that's a little bit smaller and a lot more comfortable than their "professional" counterparts. I'm not suggesting that 'Hawks and Strats aren't comfortable, just that the SC-3 is even more so. Especially the ones starting around 1987 that have contours on the smaller body.

2. ASAT III with Skyhawk pups: OK, so this is basically an SC-3 in ASAT clothing...not quite as comfortable, but every bit as sweet. If I had to single out one of the G&Ls I've owned as the best sounding, it would be my '87 ASAT III.

3. Interceptor Bass: The OP didn't specify guitars-only. These basses look pointy, but mine is quite possibly the most comfortable bass I've ever played. The long upper bout gives great balance, the body contours are much smoother than any other bass I've tried, and the El Toro pups and circuit cover an incredible amount of sonic territory.

4. Lynx Bass: I couldn't leave this one off. Take a first-style SB-2 (which the original Fender Jazz was a very respectable prototype for ), and add contours. It's comfortable to play, it sounds great, and there aren't a million copies hanging on the walls in the big box music stores.

I'm looking forward to this thread taking off!

Ken

[Elwood]

I'd say the Commemorative's also bring the grail mojo, especially since Dale was still there.
The guy who bought BC000001 as part of a storage auction must have heard an angelic choir as he opened
the case.

Finding the first SC-2 logged would be cool.

The question almost begs the answer; whichever model of Leo-era G&L's is in arms reach

[willross]

The HG-1: and in my dreams, left-handed...

[Fumble fingers]

it would have to be the "Rembrandt or Buck Owens " for me , I guess you could make a good top 10 list easier than just picking 1