May '81 Brass Beauty??

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Author Message   Michaelkaufman Username: Michaelkaufman Registered: 11-2002 Posted on Friday, September 14, 2007 - 3:12 pm:    I've come across a May 1981 AR50 with 'brass beauty' features, including knobs, pick guard and truss rod cover. Do you think it came from the factory this way? I've asked for more pictures. mk   Michaelkaufman Username: Michaelkaufman Registered: 11-2002 Posted on Friday, September 14, 2007 - 3:16 pm:    The nut is not brass. I don't know if the pickup selector switch or jack plate is brass. Catalog shot for reference: http://www.ibanez.ru/info/catalog/1981/03.jpg mk   Johns Username: Johns Registered: 2-2001 Posted on Friday, September 14, 2007 - 4:29 pm:    MK: Looks to me that you could order the brass parts separately to upgrade any AR. I doubt that the factory would put brass parts on a guitar with Nichrome for the rest of the hardware?   Fox Username: Fox Registered: 2-2003 Posted on Friday, September 14, 2007 - 7:06 pm:    As Johns said, those parts could be obtained separately, or as an "upgrade set".. I have seen once a whole NOS set for sale in fleaBay. The "official" Brass Beauty was in fact AR 300 with flamey top, catalogue picts show also an AR 500 equipped with BB parts.. I could use those knobs..   Jimh Username: Jimh Registered: 9-2006 Posted on Friday, September 14, 2007 - 7:47 pm:    According to that catalog scan, the brass beauty is a different guitar from te AR300, with a neck-through design rather than a set neck. Has anyone seen one of theese?   Michaelkaufman Username: Michaelkaufman Registered: 11-2002 Posted on Friday, September 14, 2007 - 8:58 pm:    Search ICW for Brass Beauty and you'll see some. mk   Jimh Username: Jimh Registered: 9-2006 Posted on Friday, September 14, 2007 - 9:11 pm:    Sorry to hijack this thread, but I was under the impression that the brass beauty was an AR300 with some brass stuff on it. If it has a neck-thru than it is not an AR300. Is there any other Artist model with neck-thru, or is the brass beauty a completely different beast from every other Artist?   Fox Username: Fox Registered: 2-2003 Posted on Saturday, September 15, 2007 - 3:53 am:    There is one Brass beauty in our studio.. I have not taken her apart, to verify if it is a neck-thru construction.. I have my doubts that it is just an ordinary Artist, with flametop and special brass fittings, and was sorta "campaign model" as was the "Catch the Tiger" AR 300. However, when I change the strings it is easier to verify, by removing the pickups and observing the neck joint. If it is a neck-thru construction, the neck extension is sandwiched inside the body in a rout, because the back is one piece mahogany, without any signs of maple neck wood visible, nor there is anything in the flame maple top either. I doubt that craftsmen of Ibanez would have made such tedious work, but, like we have seen, in Ibanez everything is possible. Or, they have made just one or two for catalogue picts (I have also seen that catalogue + magazine ads of The Brass Beauties) and afterwards they have returned to normal models with extra "eye candy".. More investigation needed..   Gemberbier Username: Gemberbier Registered: 5-2006 Posted on Saturday, September 15, 2007 - 6:37 am:    It is somewhat confusing that they talk about it in Plural. But I'm with Johns that it is not likely that Ibanez itself would combined nichrome and brass hardware. Only the fact that the nut is NOT brass shows that the brass parts are aftermarket upgrades. What would be really beautiful IMO, is when all hardware would be replaced by gold (just like on the Telecaster Black and Gold), but that's personal of course. Beauty and originality are two separate things. But a gold Gibraltar bridge and Quik Change tailpiece and Velve Tune machine heads would make this guitar quite expensive. Then it be better to buy a higher type with a cloud and maple neck instead of birch right away (AR100). Ginger   Lespaul Username: Lespaul Registered: 10-2004 Posted on Saturday, September 15, 2007 - 12:23 pm:    I had three AR300 Brass Beauties and I have seen two others and all of them were regular, set neck, AR300 with some brass parts added. None of them were neckthrough. Offcourse with Ibanez anything is possible...... P@ul   Dave_g Username: Dave_g Registered: 1-2002 Posted on Saturday, September 15, 2007 - 8:45 pm:    I think there was some discussion a few years ago about this and the consensis at the time was that the literature that stated "neck thru" was a misprint. There is a thread out there somewhere with picts etc from years ago

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