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Question about vintage Musicman guitars

J

jk22

New member
Joined
Dec 2, 2013
Messages
4
I'm interested in maybe getting one of those original Sabre/Stingray models from the late 70s, but I prefer playing a rosewood fretboard and all I've seen have been maple. So I was just wondering if Musicman made any of those early models with rosewood boards?

If not, do you know if a strat neck would fit, if I wanted to change necks?

Thanks
 
FYI, those models were made before Ernie Ball bought the company. There isn't really any overlap between those guitar designs and the current ones.
 
kestrou said:
Different bolt pattern, different size pocket, etc.

You're trying to bolt a Ford part on a Chevy there buddy - and that was never designed to happen! :)

kestrou
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That's a poor analogy. Leo Fender, the designer of the strat, is the same person who designed the sabre/stingray. So its not like bolting a Ford onto a Chevy at all. Its like bolting one Fender-made part onto another. Anyways, thanks for the responses guys, you've been real helpful lol
 
beej said:
FYI, those models were made before Ernie Ball bought the company. There isn't really any overlap between those guitar designs and the current ones.
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I wasn't asking about the current models. If this forum is for current MMs only, my apologies. I couldn't find any other musicman forums though. Thanks anyways, I'm done here
 
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jk22 said:
That's a poor analogy. Leo Fender, the designer of the strat, is the same person who designed the sabre/stingray. So its not like bolting a Ford onto a Chevy at all. Its like bolting one Fender-made part onto another. Anyways, thanks for the responses guys, you've been real helpful lol
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No, it isn't. If you're still around and checking this. You can't bolt a Fender neck onto a G&L either - Leo changed the neck pocket with the Music Mans, and he continued that with G&Ls. Bottom line - Music Man neck heels go all the way down to the 22nd fret (and actually beyond it); Fender necks are made with a heel that fits a 21-fret neck pocket and the 22nd is on a "shelf" that extends beyond the body. I believe that Music Man did make some with rosewood fingerboards but they are more rare than the maple fingerboard models.

As other have said there isn't much activity here on the Leo-era guitars since EB never put them back into production because they were poor sellers.
 
I had the chance to talk with a pro (Paul Barrere from Little Feat) who used to play one. He said "Thank goodness for modern guitars" - he used one for quite a while, but no longer does.
 
John C said:
You can't bolt a Fender neck onto a G&L either - Leo changed the neck pocket with the Music Mans, and he continued that with G&Ls. Bottom line - Music Man neck heels go all the way down to the 22nd fret (and actually beyond it); Fender necks are made with a heel that fits a 21-fret neck pocket and the 22nd is on a "shelf" that extends beyond the body.
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Correct! John C gets a star on his copybook.

If you put a 20-something fret neck onto a body designed for 20-something-else frets, the guitar will be horribly and unfixably out of tune all over the neck (assuming the shape of the neck heel is even compatible with the pocket).

(And yes, "unfixably" is a cromulent word).
 
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