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Post by blademaster2 on Jun 26, 2018 9:23:10 GMT -5
I purchased a Washburn Mercury II guitar a year ago (from the son of a collector who had died, and he was selling off his Dad's guitars since he did not play - foreshadowing my own future, but that is not why I am writing this thread).
It was in extremely good shape - except for fret wear - and from what I saw the quality of the build and finish was excellent and the neck construction was cleaner than some Les Pauls out there. The man had evidently played it a lot and had also taken very good care of it.
So I went online to see what it was worth and noted that these are not at all highly valued (but I did not overpay, whew!). It made me wonder how a guitar so nicely built, with well-designed and unique hardware, made with pride by a company who has been around for so many years, has not developed a more sterling reputation.
Now, soundwise, this guitar has some nice settings but the pups are quite dull for my taste. I have guitars with humbuckers that are much more 'alive' than that, but the split coil tone and switching both pups on does give a very pleasant tone and the output can drive my Marshall nicely. Still, I might look into new pups for it down the road. Not a rush on that (I have 15 guitars to choose from at home). I avoided playing it until the past weekend when I set up my fret dress jig and did a quick fret job on it. Now it plays very well, low action and no buzzing. It now definitely rivals any guitar I have ever played for action and playability.
It reminds me of the poorer reputations that Teisco del Ray, Samick and El Degas have always had (although Teiscos have seen some renewed interest, probably because they made their own designs whereas El Degas and others seem to always make copies).
Does anyone else out there believe that there are some brands that are still undervalued and under-recognized?
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