Hawk Posted May 23, 2014 Posted May 23, 2014 Hello, some time ago I bought a H555 from eBay, and I really have enjoyed it since. Looks, sounds just perfect. Now I checked the serial, and it´s a "z" so 2009. But there is also the "2" stamp beside the serialnumber. So I found out from this page that it´s some kind of second class delivery ? Cosmetic faults and so on. But I really cant see what should be wrong with my guitar. Can't see anything cosmetically, neck is straight, frets are perfect etc. So I was wondering what was your experience with the "2" stamp guitars ?
HANGAR18 Posted May 23, 2014 Posted May 23, 2014 It is a "factory second" meaning that it had some sort of less than acceptable quality feature to it, and thus costs a little less to buy. Too good to scrap but not good enough for full price. You may never even figure out why it got the 2 stamp.
MartyGrass Posted May 23, 2014 Posted May 23, 2014 2nds are due to minor cosmetic flaws. There are plenty of examples in which it is hard to find the flaw. And there are some guitars that look like they should be 2nds but are not stamped as 2nds. Not to worry.
davesultra Posted May 23, 2014 Posted May 23, 2014 I've had 2 "2s". Both of which were superb sounding/playing instruments. 1 had faults that I could not see. The other had some very light finish checking. I would not worry about a "2" stamp.
chico Posted May 23, 2014 Posted May 23, 2014 The comments posted thus far are spot on in my opinion. The only thing to add, or elaborate on, is that a factory second should be disclosed as such by seller to purchaser, and thus the price reflective of it. BTW I have a HFT with re-glued neck break that happened during production. The guitar was never buffed out due to this and another defect with a split along the spruce seam on the top. Neither defect would or do affect playability or tone, but they were enough to stop the production of this guitar. I got it before it went to scrap, buffed it out, strung it up, and it's my main companion in my guitar world. This guitar was defective and would NOT have been designated a "second". More like "reject". A second is often a great value.
Redsand Posted May 23, 2014 Posted May 23, 2014 Seems to me that 15%-25% below normal cost is what the #2's typically go for. If the seller failed to mention it prior to the sale, I would by default consider them a big-time jerk.
tulk1 Posted May 23, 2014 Posted May 23, 2014 And here I always thought the "2" meant it was twice as good as the regulars. .............
Hawk Posted May 23, 2014 Author Posted May 23, 2014 Ok this clears some issues for me. Not that I did worry, but just strange when I found out my precious guitar was stamped "2" (rate) :-) I got the guitar relativly cheap (won it on a ebay private auction). I payed something like 60% of the prices in the shops. It was 2-3 years old, but totally mint. Anyway, it's a great guitar, and currently my no.2. Play most of the time Musicman AL with p-90's.
HANGAR18 Posted May 23, 2014 Posted May 23, 2014 Ok this clears some issues for me. Not that I did worry, but just strange when I found out my precious guitar was stamped "2" (rate) :-) I got the guitar relativly cheap (won it on a ebay private auction). I payed something like 60% of the prices in the shops. It was 2-3 years old, but totally mint. Anyway, it's a great guitar, and currently my no.2. Play most of the time Musicman AL with p-90's. You are now required to post pictures.
schundog Posted May 23, 2014 Posted May 23, 2014 As the guitar is your #2, that must be why it's stamped "2." Haha. Oh, welcome, and yeah, we'd love to see pics!
brentrocks Posted May 23, 2014 Posted May 23, 2014 My experience with Heritage #2s is that most of the time it's just a minor cosmetic flaw. Nothing structural.
Thundersteel Posted May 24, 2014 Posted May 24, 2014 And there are some guitars that look like they should be 2nds but are not stamped as 2nds. +1. I've had several!
Hawk Posted May 24, 2014 Author Posted May 24, 2014 Well might as well post the pictures o'from the seller, since they are better that anyone than I can ever make.
HANGAR18 Posted May 24, 2014 Posted May 24, 2014 Well might as well post the pictures o'from the seller, since they are better that anyone than I can ever make. Dear God in heaven! I gotta start looking for factory seconds. That guitar looks incredible!
MartyGrass Posted May 24, 2014 Posted May 24, 2014 I'm not familiar with that vibrato system. What do you think?
Hawk Posted May 25, 2014 Author Posted May 25, 2014 Yes its a nice guitar, and finish is just great. Most of all I like the playability. Maybe later I'll try some experiment with other pickups. The 59's are good, but in my experience with other guitars(LP's), there are even better ones on the market. The tremolo is a Les Trem II, that the pervious owner had put on. I never used it, so now it's back to the tonepros.
Cajun Posted May 25, 2014 Posted May 25, 2014 I love my 2 - nicer than most standard production guitars. I recommend some Fralin Unbuckers - a really good pickup. You can get standard PAF winds, or go a little hotter (8k and 9k - which is what I did). Outstanding tone. Seth Lovers are great too. Stew Mac has a poor man's version of Seth Lovers (made overseas) - the Parsons Street humbuckers. I prefer Alnico 2s mags - seem to give more chime. Enjoy!!!!
soybean Posted May 29, 2014 Posted May 29, 2014 By the way, Gibson used to do the same thing. Not sure if they still do.
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