Dear Gear Abby, fake logo or no?

[lespaulreedsmith]

Dear Gear Page Abby,
I have some Warmothcasters that I put some waterslide decals on that of course make them look like Fender strats. I think the registered trademark of the strat is in big part their headstock so I feel it looks kinds wierd for a partscaster that looks identical pretty much to the real thing to have a different logo.
I hate Warmoths logo but I love their gear and parts.
So I choose to put an aftermarket 'F' logo on these guitars that I am keeping and not selling. I assembled them myself and I like Fender's logo on them even if they are not real 'Fenders'

Does this make me a bad person?
signed,
Wannabe

[derekd]

Horrible!

[snarkle]

Dear Wannabe:

Yes...but not a VERY bad person. In life, some small deceptions are allowable, if they keep us from hurting the ones we love. And you, for instance, clearly love yourself very much, as you've gone to the trouble of fitting yourself out with guitars that do just what you want them to do.

I don't know the exact particulars of your situation, but if, say, you have built these guitars with the intent of mimicking the $30,000 vintage Fenders you desire but can't afford, then you'd only be hurting yourself by displaying a Warmoth logo you dislike. And we don't want you to hurt yourself, or anyone else.

Now if you end up selling these guitars by passing them off as the real thing, that's another matter...the greater good of society would demand that you be severely punished!

Yours,

Abby

[Redhouse-Blues]

IMHO it would be better to have no logo at all then to fake it.

[doublee]

I once put a Fender decal on a new T style neck. For another guitar I am leaving the decal off, it feels better to me. If you do put a decal on it, it would be fair to subsequent owners to indicate somewhere what it REALLY is. Maybe in the PU routes or somewhere like that.

[Thomme]

the warmoth logo is in the neck pocket and neck heel, I don't think any scrutinizing customer would buy a "vintage" or "reissue," fender without checking that everything was original. Plus the lack of seriel number kind of gives it away. I see no problem with putting logos on unlogo'ed guitars. Do what you want, you paid for the guitar. If you wanted to put a Fender logo on a Martin acoustic, it's your choice.

[mc5nrg]

I'm looking for a decal that says "F*cker" in the Fender script. Also "Scrapocaster" to go along with it.

[HoboMan]

Originally Posted by lespaulreedsmith

So I choose to put an aftermarket 'F' logo on these guitars that I am keeping and not selling.

If I had a nickel for every guitar that I was never going to sell......

[darth_vader]

Well they're waterslide decals, so can't you just waterslide them off again if you decide to sell?

I don't see any problem with it. Warmoth parts are licensed by Fender after all.

[doctorx]

As long as you don't try to sell it as a real Fender, who cares?

When I built my Tele I used a Squire neck, and since I didn't want people to think it was a Squire I sanded the decal off and refinished the headstock, and left it blank.

I don't need a decal, but if you want one, go for it.

[Rhomco]

You assembled a parts guitar that looks just like a production guitar but it cost you more than the production guitar you copied. You may never sell it but if you ever want to sell that parts guitar, the lack of the decal will cost you about 30% from my experiences. This is in spite of the fact that you describe the guitar as a parts guitar. Do the math on that $10.00 decal.
Go figure

[TieDyedDevil]

I'm surprised that Fender's not attempting to do something about these decals. Seems to me they risk having "Fender" become a generic term...

Regardless, what's your rationale for putting someone else's name on a guitar into which you've put so much thought and effort?

[airwarrior]

I put a Fender decal on my partscaster, and I sleep fine at night.

I don't think it would look right without it. Mine is a 70s type guitar with the CBS headstock and the big black logo is a large part of the look.

[whitehall]

I would do it in a heartbeat, but then I pull the tags off my mattresses too. as you can see , I live outside the law.

[jtm622]

On the "Dr. Phil Show", this question was asked during a "gear-hound" intervention:
"Does that possibly indicate that you never really wanted a "Warmoth", but were desirous of owning a REAL Fender instead???"