Fender lawsuit threats

[mandobob]

Fender Musical Instruments has issued cease and desist orders against a few highly regarded copy makers (I'm not saying I disagree; trademarks are binding). There is also a rise in private ebay auctions being pulled for copy type instruments.
You guys think there will be an impact on the mando market?

[Jeff_Stallard]

What exactly do they claim people are copying?

[mandobob]

So far headstock design, something that has been the cause
of a few disputes already. Again I have no real complaint if someone is building a 'copy', but now they've gone after folks selling the copies they've been able to buy freely for decades.

[Jacob]

Wasn't the "Fender" headstock originally designed by Merle Travis working with Bigsby (http://www.bigsbyguitars.com/products_guitars.html)?

Here's a 19th Century guitar by Johann Stauffer (http://homepage.ntlworld.com/gary.southwell/stauffer_large.htm).
The tuners are all on one side of the headstock, but the tuner nearest the nut controls the high E string.

[mandobob]

That's a great point!

[JeffS]

Headstocks on which instruments? I am assuming the Strat and Tele. One glance at those shapes and you think Fender. Their mandos are pretty unique as far as headstock designs go and they're not highly sought after. Now Gibson on the other hand has the coveted headstock that everyone copies in both A and F models.

[thistle3585]

I can appreciate protecting your rights, butI wonder how licensed dealers fall into this. Let say I go to Warmoth and buy a licensed fender body, or a licensed replacement neck, does that mean I can't build my own instrument using those parts?

[mandobob]

JeffS
I guess that's my question; are there exact mando copies made?
And yes Tele and Strat so far. There is a post that says the order recv'd from Fender legal says the reseller can only sell a licnesed product to replace a licensed product;
break a Fender neck; replace with Fender neck
break a Fender copy neck, SOL.
No idea how they could inforce this.

[TommyK]

JeffS
I guess that's my question; are there exact mando copies made?
And yes Tele and Strat so far. There is a post that says the order recv'd from Fender legal says the reseller can only sell a licnesed product to replace a licensed product;
break a Fender neck; replace with Fender neck
break a Fender copy neck, SOL.
No idea how they could inforce this.
A Dealer repairs a copy w/ a licensed neck once in a while and no one's the wiser. #If a dealer buys 10 necks a week, the license holder will be looking at work orders. #If he can't substantiate OEM repair with serial numbers, they'll probably confiscate any OEM parts, etc. and pull the dealership and possibly sue if the numbers are high enough. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/coffee.gif

[TommyK]

" Here's a 19th Century guitar by Johann Stauffer (http://homepage.ntlworld.com/gary.southwell/stauffer_large.htm).
The tuners are all on one side of the headstock, but the tuner nearest the nut controls the high E string."
Yep, all tuners on one side is not a new idea. #I think, though, they are taking issue with copied shape. #The Fender shape looks vaguely like that vintage model, but not the same. #If someone is using a Fender headstock for a template to misrepresent the lineage of a guitar, Fender has a decent gripe. #It would be like me building a car from scratch and puting a chevy bow tie on the grill. #If it's my home-built, GM has no beef. #If I build and sell a bunch of them, they've got a legitimate infringement. #I think the F style body and headstock has been copied so much, Gibson, (if Loar designed it) has lost their opportunity to fight the use of it.
Similarly, I think Fender's missed the boat on the body shape of the Strat. Because, it's been done by so many others and they've not disputed it, they've lost the ability to fight is use. Could be the head stock shape is the only thing they can try to salvage http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/coffee.gif

[John Flynn]

Many of you are probably aware of what is perhaps Fender's most famous and I think, outrageous copyright defense. Gibson first introduced the Firebird to compete with the Stratocaster. Originally, the Firebird was "upside down" from the way it is now, but Fender sued and said it looked too much like the Strat, which was a real stretch of the imagination. Fender won, however, and Gibson compromised by re-introducing the Firebird the way it is now. That is why it looks so "bass-ackwards."

As for mandos, the only copying I see being done is the widespread F-5 and A-5 copying, but that has been going on for so long with no credible copyright defense that I can't see any defense happening now. You have to consistently defend a copyright to keep it in force and that has not been done for those two basic designs.