prowla

Hmmm - need to see if I get a new job...

If it's a registered trademark, then it is theirs.

Trademark is specific and you have to register the designs. Rickenbacker have their headstock, the TRC, and elements of the body shape registered. The companies do have to show they are actively protecting their IP. It's no different really to fake Levis, Louis Vuitton handbags, Mac clones, Concordski, and so-on. (For Rickenbacker there is a bit of hypocrisy though, as they are now selling a treble pickup inner cover which is a straight rip-off of a 3rd party one.)

It's not about people thinking they're buying a Gibbo; it's about another company making things which look suspiciously similar. For it to be trademark infringement, Gibson have to register their features as a trademark. It's not sufficient for something to look like the original (that's copyright which is is different branch of law); for trademark it has to be registered, and in every country. Normally companies register their brand logos, but some do more design features too; in particular Gibson registered their "bookend" headstock and successfully protected it a few decades back (the so-called "lawsuit"). Fender took a different approach to protecting the intellectual property (IP) and positioned the Squier brand to compete with the fakers.

Sigh, maybe one day...

A butchered Squier with a pickup routed using a black & decker, including going right through the body at one point. Plus an extra knob jammed in so it looks a bit wonky. And the neck looks a bit knackered.

Enjoy it - Warmoth make good kit!

The neck looks a bit chunky.

Ah - I was expecting a much more involved story than that! 🙂

Gwonthen - why???

"...tried to fit it on one of my fender jazz basses, turns out it didn’t fit unfortunately..." Hmm - I wonder why this 24-fret neck didn't fit a genuine Fender body?

I think the companies tend to focus on trademarks, rather than copyright.

https://www.gearnews.com/gibsons-mark-agnesi-to-guitar-builders-youve-been-warned-over-copyrights/

Look at those tuners! NB. click on the "Report" button on ebay.

I bought this one at a car boot sale a year or two ago; I'm trying to strip off the paint ad get it back to original... (The touch where the kid who owned it wrote "Fender" in gold Sharpie is especially inspirational...)

The Warmoth Jazz was indeed part of a pair (the other being a fretless), but I'm not sure of the previous owner; I bought it from Big Deal in Wolverhampton.

My bad - I got confused! 😕 Doh!

I don't think they did it on the 4000. 🙂

Well, I go to browse the stalls and try stuff out. I've been to two and only watched one of the artistes.

Yes, each bass needs the EQ tweaking. The 4000 doesn't have the bass-cut cap on the treble pickup circuit, so it should be quite full sounding. (Of course, it also doesn't have the bass/neck pickup either...) If you listen to Bachman Turner Overdrive's Not Fragile, that was a 4000; there's plenty of bass there to be had...

There's always a tiny bit. Incidentally, if you are tempted to tighten the screws, don't over-tighten the 3 under the bridge piece, as you are pulling the centre of the assemble into the well and can make it worse...

Oh man - those machines are horrible! The middle one in this pic has Hipshots, which are really good! It's got a pair of SDs, but I haven't yet wired it up; I previously had the SD on another Ric, which I did to combat the stock one picking up interference.

There’s this thing called tail-lift, which can be attributed to string tension. The other Achilles heel of the Ric ain’t such an issue with the 4003, where the neck-body join is weak.

My 2x10 has a pair of 5" speakers in it too.

Hehe... 🙂 How does the SD sound in a non drop-edged pickup surround? I had one in my 4001, but have now shifted it to a 4003 which is pending completion.