Although Leo’s choice of wood may have ultimately been a matter of cost, the decision to use ash was also based on aesthetics. The Blackguard’s iconic blonde finish, often referred to as ‘butterscotch’ on account of its aged yellow hue, is transparent and so reveals each guitar’s unique ash body grain ‘fingerprint’. In the ‘50s, smoking was super common – virtually everyone smoked – and I think that especially contributed to the darkening of Blackguard finishes.” I think the typical yellowing has more to do with environmental factors than UV discolouration, such as sweat and tobacco. In ’52 to ’53 the finish starts becoming thicker it’s very easy to see that. I would say that was a defect of the Broadcaster into early ’51. If you look at pics of Broadcasters that have an original finish, they’ll often appear very flaky and can have checking in both vertical and horizontal directions. “They were constantly fine-tuning the finish. “A lot of the time, you can take a look at the finish and get an idea of what year the guitar is from,” Richard tells us. It’s like that old joke: ‘Gibson built about 1,700 ’Bursts, but only 2,000 have been found.’ It’s similar for BlackguardsĪlthough it’s not advisable to date Blackguards using serial numbers, an expert with a well-trained eye can provide an accurate assessment of originality and condition based on a range of details including body/routing, finish, neck profile, hardware, plastics, pickups, electronics, pot dates, and markings. There’s also a pretty big problem with fakes these days. I think he could easily get $55,000 for it.” I think he’s high, but he’s not that high. Somebody recently posted a ‘near mint’ ’53 online asking what people thought he could get for it and he’s now trying to sell it for $65,000. Blackguards have increased in value so much and it’s a hot market right now. “Any time there’s value in something, there will be people trying to cheat others. I’ve caught several dealers out when I’ve had pictures of guitars – including their serial numbers – with white ’guards, that they’ve later advertised as Blackguards. “I see white-’guard guitars converted to Blackguards all the time. (Image credit: Future / Joby Sessions & Olly Curtis) Now, there’s no way we’ve captured that high a proportion! Some of them get converted to make it a more valuable thing – perhaps with a new decal or maybe with something more malicious.įender’s first custom colour guitar is believed to be this Ermine White ’51 Nocaster with gold-plated parts (from the Songbirds museum) that belonged to Nat King Cole guitarist Oscar Moore. “ already has 177 Broadcasters registered and we don’t know exactly how many Broadcasters were made, but some people will say the figure is as low as 200. It’s like that old joke: ‘Gibson built about 1,700 ’Bursts, but only 2,000 have been found.’ It’s similar for Blackguards, especially Broadcasters. “There’s also a pretty big problem with fakes these days. There’s no telling what history has been harmed in that respect. But the problem is these guitars are several decades old and it’s so easy to take a bridge off of one guitar and put it on another. “It’s always interesting to go and look at the min and max serial number by year, or min and max serial number by model. In addition to a lack of factory records, the ability to identify original Blackguards is hampered by the numerous fakes and guitars with non-original parts. Best Telecasters 2020: top Fender Tele electric guitars for all budgets and styles (opens in new tab).These snap-on covers are often referred to as ‘ash tray’ covers on account of their alternative (and perhaps more practical!) use. The biggest falsehood by far is that you can date a Blackguard based on its serial number.”ġ950 Broadcaster with original ‘thermometer’ case, strap and bridge cover. It’s 0065, which is a really low number, but it’s a Nocaster, not a Broadcaster. “One of my favourite guitars is a guitar formerly owned by the great Redd Volkaert. Those are generally ’52 Telecasters, but Mike Campbell’s famous 1950 Broadcaster has a 29XX serial number. For example, has recently been posting guitars around the 2200-3000 range. “The biggest myth bar none is that you can tell what year a Blackguard is based on the serial number,” reveals Richard. The biggest myth bar none is that you can tell what year a Blackguard is based on the serial numberĪlthough more and more pictorial and factual evidence is surfacing thanks to the concerted efforts of Fender historians worldwide, countless myths have arisen over the years in the absence of factory records – notably shipping figures and serial number information. I personally think the hype is self-serving to Tadeo neck owners, but I own two Tadeo signed necks and I’ll be the first to say it’s hype.” “The community sometimes gets very defensive at this perspective, saying I’m attacking Tadeo.
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