Just when you think you have seen it all........

[f5loar]

along comes this at ebay:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Excellent-19...item4164fa7481

So let me get this right. Someone wanted to copy the absolute peak of the worst Gibson F5 ever made in it's history. They didn't have to do much to succeed although Forrest Gump would have told you before you did it that "Stupid is as Stupid does". You take a standard 80's Washburn upper range F model (I forget the model number, MW6?), remove the Wasburn logo in the headstock and tailpiece cover and replace with a "The Gibson" pearl inlay, spray it over with heavy poly-lacquer, add a new cheap plain TP cover, remove the Washburn label and instant mid 70's Gibson F5 replica! That should up the value of an old Washburn. Before ebay came along what did I do for a good laugh and entertainment? I guess I watched old reruns of the "The Three Stooges", "Amos and Andy" and "Car 54 Where Are You".

[Ben Milne]

Ever the eagle eye, Tom... Before eBay came along I reckon you spent at least some of your time at festivals explaining to folks that they didn't in fact get the deal of the century, and pointing out why their awesome new Gibson Mandolin is perhaps not as awesome or as Gibson as they thought.
Keep 'em coming.

[Ed Goist]

Copying a poor example from Gibson makes the instrument much less likely to fall under severe scrutiny (except by you Tom!).
It's kinda like counterfeiting a $5 bill.

[Jim Garber]

Hmmmm.... now if I can only find a copy of a Gibson Nouveau and a cherry-red, plastic bridge J-45 ... then my collection will be complete!!

[journeybear]

Really? Your collection, complete? Just when I thought *I* had seen it all!

[f5loar]

Good luck on finding the ever so rare Nouveau F model. I've only seen 3 in my lifetime! Now the plastic adjustable bridge mid to late 60's cherry-burst J45 will be easy to find.

[Jim Garber]

Even rarer was the Nouveau prototype A12 lumpscroll -- less than one exists and that was in an imaginary museum.

[pfox14]

Maybe the "replica" was built in the 70s, as it appears to copy the 1920s style of the F-5. Just a thought

[John McCoy]

OK, Tom. Ya got me thinking....

We've seen lots of fake Gibsons on eBay posing as real Gibsons. Now recently we've seen a handful of declared fake Gibbies.

If the seller admits the item is a fake, nobody can fault him for selling a fake, right?

So now I'm wondering whether some of these guys have figured out a way to legitimately sell a pseudo-Gib (at a moderately inflated price) to somebody else who'll flip it and describe it as a real Gibson (at a hugely inflated price)?

[Of course, this marvelous genuine whatever has been in my family for 241 years, ya know?]

Law of the marketplace? The Bigger Fool theory?

== John ==

[f5loar]

Flipping for quick profit does happen on just about anything that has a value. It seems Pawn Shops do get the mega share of these fake Gibsons making them easy prey and I would call this one a Fake Gibson as well. However this one has a reserve likely close to the BIN price which to me indicates the seller has already paid too much for it. They said they could not authenicated it even though it does appear to have a Gibson like serial no. from the mid 70's. Gibson never used that inlay in the headstock is the big red flag. Had they removed the whole headstock veneer and replaced it with more exact 70's F5 flowerpot pattern, bought some of the real blank 70's labels to put in it, this one could really fool most any vintage dealer. So yeah do that and you could easily turn another $1000 profit on it from some unsuspecting misinformed buyer.

[Dave Greenspoon]

Hey Tom, I have to say that I LOVE my Washburn M6SW Jethro. For the $350 I paid for it used it's probably a much better deal than any Gibson you've bought. Here's a suggestion: Go ahead and knock Gibson's Dark Years all you want. But you don't have to make your point at the expense of anyone else, be they a person or a company.

[journeybear]

I don't think Tom was knocking Washburns in general, but what someone did to this one, in particular.

[f5loar]

sorry. I can't go back and change the past. What Gibson did in the 70's and Washburn did in the 80's is now history. It is what it is depending on what your definition of "is" is. (Bill Clinton,1998) I've never knocked Washburn at all. In fact I almost bought a new Jethro model in the late 70's because it was better than a new Gibson at the time. Gibson made some major changes to the F5 in the early 70's and they really thought it was for the better. It didn't take them long to realize they needed to go back to the drawing board again and revamp it one more time. I'm thinking Edsel, Tucker, Hudson Hornet, AMC Hornet, Corvair, DeLoren, etc. Sometimes changes just don't catch on. Jethro sure liked Washburn. He was not afraid to play his own signature model in public. And I can't go back and figure out why anyone would remove the Washburn name and label (if that is what it was) and replace it with "The Gibson" but I can sure speculate why. I will stand behind this one 100% that it was not made by Gibson Co. from any year. That's more than the seller can say.

[almeriastrings]

If the seller admits the item is a fake, nobody can fault him for selling a fake, right?

Well, Gibson will... and so will Ebay and Paypal. Declaring something as a fake, forgery or counterfeit does not get you off the hook as far as copyright violation or the prohibition on the sale of counterfeits is concerned. If a buyer purchased this and paid via paypal then complained - they'd be told to destroy it, and the money would be returned and deducted from the seller's account.

http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/...unterfeit.html

[f5loar]

Ahhhhh...... too bad folks. The seller was forced to end the auction early so now this FAKE Gibson will not be sold.