I think this is getting silly now! Is any knob worth this?

Voxman

No, not a rude post ...but I was looking idly on EBay and came across this:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1969-Fender-Stratocaster-Volume-Knob-Original-/122163023298?hash=item1c717bcdc2:g:4NEAAOSwFe5Xxe-S

$175 (plus $16.47 postage) for a single 1969 Fender Stratocaster volume knob! ? Really?!!

andrewaward

too expensive.............especially since it probably won't be an exact match to the ones it will be joining.............they all end up slightly different shades depending on the life they've had..............

guitars4you

you are certainly correct in questioning it - how many have the required info to actually evaluate it - however more info now on various sites and many guys on FB who can help

I suppose the market for this is the guy who has a good 69 Strat yet someone has lost the original knob - now they can buy an original knob and make their guitar all original again - Is it then original - well no one could ever tell

Gassage

guitars4you said:

you are certainly correct in questioning it - how many have the required info to actually evaluate it - however more info now on various sites and many guys on FB who can help

I suppose the market for this is the guy who has a good 69 Strat yet someone has lost the original knob - now they can buy an original knob and make their guitar all original again - Is it then original - well no one could ever tell

David Pym's ultraviolet machine! LOL!!! He honestly has one!!!

BigMonka

Will it make my Squier sound any better?

DulcetJones

But does it go to 11?

Sassafras

Thanks for the link, I've been after one of these for ages.

Voxman

BigMonka said:

Will it make my Squier sound any better?

I suppose it depends on your wrist action and exactly how you twiddle your knob!  (sorry, couldn't resist at least one knob gag!)  

guitars4you

this is a knob from 69 - makes you think doesn't it about what type of person is selling it

Voxman

guitars4you said:

this is a knob from 69 - makes you think doesn't it about what type of person is selling it

Bryan Adams maybe? 

jpfamps

Gassage said:

guitars4you said:

you are certainly correct in questioning it - how many have the required info to actually evaluate it - however more info now on various sites and many guys on FB who can help

I suppose the market for this is the guy who has a good 69 Strat yet someone has lost the original knob - now they can buy an original knob and make their guitar all original again - Is it then original - well no one could ever tell

David Pym's ultraviolet machine! LOL!!! He honestly has one!!!

As should any vintage guitar dealer......

stonevibe

Good grip on a '69 though...

WezV

andrewaward said:

too expensive.............especially since it probably won't be an exact match to the ones it will be joining.............they all end up slightly different shades depending on the life they've had..............

That's not a deal breaker for me... they can  end up different shades anyway.  its rare for all 3 to be used consistently

the price however, is bonkers!

lasermonkey

I remember putting a couple of  sure grip knobs from my old Ibanez SB70 on eBay and getting almost £50 for them, about ten years ago.
 Crazy.

andrewaward

personally I've never saw a vintage strat or jazzmaster (that was 100% original) with mismatching knobs (the knobs, pup covers, switch tip usually age to the same patina).........not so much to do with using the knobs consistently , more to do with exposure (smokey bars etc).

Having owned a few hundred (all original) vintage Jazzmasters/Strats, the plastics were all consistent in colour..........its usually very easy to tell when a knob or pickup cover has been replaced.

WezV

andrewaward said:

personally I've never saw a vintage strat or jazzmaster (that was 100% original) with mismatching knobs (the knobs, pup covers, switch tip usually age to the same patina).........not so much to do with using the knobs consistently , more to do with exposure (smokey bars etc).

Having owned a few hundred (all original) vintage Jazzmasters/Strats, the plastics were all consistent in colour..........its usually very easy to tell when a knob or pickup cover has been replaced.

I am not saying your experiences are incorrect, but I have seen quite a few guitars (not all vintage, but some) with tell tale signs of pinky volume control use.

knobs do get wear as well as discolouration , and the amount of wear will depend on position and use.

WezV

in fact, here are a 70's set I used on a restoration.  colour doesn't tell you much because they are all black, but the wear is quite different

andrewaward

I know what you're saying - but pinky use might add a little more dirt to the spines, and/or wear away the numbers..........but overall shade/patina will remain constant over the 3 (and on the pup covers and switch tip - they should all "age" the same)..............black knobs are different really (different material)....but on your example above they look the same set, same fonts etc.............even though the vol looks more relic'd you can tell it belongs to that set.

But really I was referring to vintage white ones.............I'm sure its just me - I just don't like seeing Strat plastic with non matching shade/patina :-)

WezV

I get it, you certainly wouldn't but this if your other 2 knobs were the colour of coffee.  But like a toothpaste advert, a lot of white knobs will fall on the same scale with an average colour tone somewhere in the middle

worse case is a mismatched set of contemporary parts rather than an obvious new knob.  Best case is it's close enough to the original two to not look out of place.  Either way, it's going to protect value more than a new knob

Sassafras

The only knob under discussion is the one that buys it.

thebreeze

I think it depends on how easy it is to get a 69 knob, doesn't it?  If I had a 69 Strat that was otherwise good and it was missing a knob I think I'd pay that to get the finished article.