sold already????

[mitchfit]

just heard about this'n early this morning on the ABC national news [USA].

warms a guitar players heart.

remembered to go check it out this evening and either the pictures aren't up yet, or it has been sold, not sure...

below from:

gruhn.com

EF8510 Fender Stratocaster 1954 EXF, neck date 1/54, body date is 4/54 in bridge pickup route, pot code 304221, serial number on trem cavity cover plate is 0100 (earliest known Stratocaster - numbers started at 0100), original "poodle" style HC $250,000.00

i guess when one is as well known as George Gruhn, premium equipment finds you. but where do these sorts of rarities come from?

i thought David Gilmour was supposed to have strat numero uno?

any other input/info appreciated,
mitchfit

[Brad Bechtel]

www.gruhn.com/features/EF8510/EF8510.htm for those who want more photos.

Everybody knows about George Gruhn.. He's one of the original vintage guitar dealers. I think his shop gets a lot of stuff from famous people because famous people know about his shop.

(By the way, if you're ever in Nashville, I'd consider the new location an essential visit.)

[Stevie]

I seem to remember reading that Seymour Duncan once owned (edit; or worked on before it belonged to) David Gilmour's 0001- probably in Guitar & Bass magazine article in the 50th anniversary bonanza. I believe that DG's "tech" bought it and sold it on to his employer but I could be wrong. Again, I seem to recall that DG's Strat was a bitza according to SD. This means that most folks (including DG) realise that his guitar, besides being extremely desirable ( if you like Strats) is most unlikely to be sporting a gen-u-ine serial number.

So- what's in a number then eh? Back in the late 1970s, a well known music store ( could have been Orange Music but I cannot remember now) advertised 00001 Stratocaster in "salmon pink" in the Melody Maker classifieds, as "Leo Fender's own personal Strat"! Yeah- right-oh!
I didn't know that much back then (and not much now either considering how much information is available in the age of t'interweb!), but after pouring over Ken Achard's book, "The History and Development of the Fender Guitar" (well thumbed now!) I knew enough to know that they did not use 5 figure serial numbers in 1954 so I didn't bother to get the number 18 / 58 up to Waterloo for a gander. There's a picture of DG's axe in Ken's book that is credited to Seymour Duncan so it all matches up ( and this was a while before DG acquired it)

I would be inclined to believe George Gruhn though, too valuable a reputation to hang his hat on a fake. This one will have had everything up to and including the black light forensic treatment.

[mitchfit]

Brad,

guess Mr. Gruhn was just waiting for pics and additional info before moving advert to "featured inventory"
front page coverage. my above copy/paste was from the "Fender Electrics" [read: ~mere~ mortals] section.
same is gone now.

think we've been here in a past thread before, but i still need to make the pilgrimage to guitar "Mecca".

wonder how much the flooding cost in insurance $$$ at the old store... know Brad Paisley had a sizable
claim for the instruments/amps he had stored in Nashville for tour/recording use due to media coverage.

as well as many others:

latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2010/05/lost-in-the-nashville-flood-musical-instruments-galore-1.html



Stevie,

would also bet along with you as to the accuracy of gruhn.com claims. thanks for the clarification about Mr.
Floyd's** axe, was also among the "great misinformed" on this end.

mitchfit

**
Well I've always had a deep respect,
And I mean that most sincerely.
The band is just fantastic,
that is really what I think.
Oh by the way, which one's Pink?

[Brad Bechtel]

Mitchfit, the 2010 Nashville floods stopped about a half block from the front door of Gruhn's old shop on Broadway downtown. No damage from that, although they had a water pipe leak that caused considerable damage later.

Gruhn moved to 8th Avenue South last year, mostly due to the carnival atmosphere that surrounds lower Broadway now. The new building is much larger and better laid out and it attracts people who really want to check out instruments, not just looky-loos.

[mitchfit]

and now, just 11 days later.

just shows how volatile the vintage musical instrument market is...

below from:

gruhn.com/

..."1954 Fender Stratocaster #0100 - SOLD"...

mitchfit

[bananafist]

This guitar, I believe, belonged to Richard Smith of California, (who wrote a book on Fender) and had unimpeachable provenance. I think he bought it from the original owner, or his widow, some years ago. He had original receipts, etc., from 1954.
Still - a lot of moolah!