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Roberto Jiménez Díaz (Rob)
Posted on Tuesday, March 20, 2001 - 1:55 pm:   

I have just bough an Ibanez RG wich is more than 11 years old. It's a very strange model: it has only 22 frets, it's made in Italy and it has a Schaller Floyd-Rose II bridge made in West Germany. The colour of the body is yellow, and the pickguard is black. I don't know whick wood is made the body but the neck is made of maple and dark rosewood. The construction is bolt-on the same way a Stratocaster is, not like actual RG's. Pickups are humbucker for neck and bridge and single coil for middle pickup. Tuners are Schallers made in W. Germany. The headstock front is painted in black, and it can be read only the word "Ibanez". The serial number can't be found anywhere (I haven't opened the pickguard nor the cover of the truss rod, but in the tremolo cavity there's nothing written). I've bought it in Spain for 30000 Spanish pesetas (second hand, of course), it's 180.30 European euros and about 162.2 US dollars. The old owner told me that it cost him 11 years ago 45000 Spanish pesetas, I think it was in those dates about 400-450 US dollars, but I'm not sure of this.

The questions are: is this guitar a raritie or is another one of more? Where can be written the serial number? How do I know which RG model is? Does anyone have some information about this guitar?
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JohnS
Posted on Tuesday, March 20, 2001 - 2:44 pm:   

Roberto:

How do you know that it was made in Italy? Does it say that anywhere?

I've never heard of any Ibanez guitar being manufactured in Europe. Only Japan, Korea (maybe some parts sent out to the Phillipines) and the Custom Shop in the US.

I'm not saying it isn't possible, just that it would be news to me.
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Roberto Jiménez Díaz (Rob)
Posted on Wednesday, March 21, 2001 - 1:10 pm:   

Sorry, I missed to say that on the black plastic cover of the tremolo cavity there is a sticker which says "Made in Italy", it was there when the guitar was bought as new. The guitar was bought in Barcelona in the late 80's. I'm sure it's made in Europe because it uses Schaller components rather than Edge or TRS bridges.

Someone told me that in the early 90's Ibanez owned a company in Italy called Shadow and they made less than 1000 guitars. But this guitar is from the late 80's, not the early 90's.

I couldn't find any information about this company anywhere. If you know something about this maybe you know the "secret" of this strange guitar.

Thanks for any information you could give me.
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JohnS
Posted on Wednesday, March 21, 2001 - 9:07 pm:   

Roberto:

Let's hope someone can shed some light on this Italian connection. It would be an interesting chapter in the Ibanez saga.

Have you asked about this guitar on www.jemsite.com?
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Mark Munchenberg (Munch)
Posted on Thursday, March 22, 2001 - 4:26 am:   

Roberto,

I remember seeing Shadow guitars and pickups reviewed in magazines in the late '80's and early '90's. If I remember correctly Shadow products were made in Germany - however I could be wrong

Regards,

Mark
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Roberto Jiménez Díaz (Rob)
Posted on Thursday, March 22, 2001 - 8:43 am:   

Well, I only knew about Shadow pickups. Is there some information that can be found through the Internet about Shadow guitars? I would appreciate any comment which could give me some "light" about this guitar.

I will ask about this too on www.jemsite.com, haven't heard about it before.

I'll try to post a photograph this next weekend. If someone could identify at least the model of the guitar I'm sure it would be a great help.

Thanks a lot
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Jimi D
Posted on Thursday, March 22, 2001 - 12:19 pm:   

It sounds like a Shadow guitar with an Ibanez neck attached. Shadow is a German company best known for their pickups. They made a few guitars in the late eighties, early nineties - I used to own one. Anyway, all the hardware on that guitar is typical of Shadow, but Ibanez never made any guitars in Italy - I'll guarantee it. That thing's a Frankenstein. God only knows where the made in Italy sticker came from, but maybe the guy who pieced it together had a sense of humor :-)
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Roberto Jiménez Díaz (Rob)
Posted on Friday, March 23, 2001 - 7:10 am:   

But the body shape is a RG one! I saw a similar shape RG550 but with the usual 24 fret neck (this guitar has 22 frets). And I don't think this is a Frankenstein, it was first bought *new* (without any use) in a shop from Barcelona (Spain). The man who bought it couldn't afford a Strat or a Les Paul and found this was an excellent guitar.

Let's wait for the photo and see with you own eyes.
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ponzo
Posted on Friday, March 23, 2001 - 2:03 pm:   

This is very strange, because I'm from Italy and in a shop near my house owned by two of the strangest luthiers I've ever met. Something like ten years ago passing in front of the shop I saw few very unfinished necks, so I stepped in and asked about it, the answer was "we made an arangement with Ibanez to build an all Italian series but after a little run they decided to terminate the project"
They told me that Ibanez was supplying all the materials and they had to do all the routing and assembling and painting.
I'll try to get more infos on this subject but since I'm living in the states now it will take few days
The name of the shop is "Lapio Brothers", and is located in Vergaio near Prato Italy, by the way this is the village which gave birth to Roberto Benigni, you can only immagine how weird the people is.

Sincerely

Stefano Giusti
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JohnS
Posted on Friday, March 23, 2001 - 3:37 pm:   

Stefano:

Maybe you've discovered the missing link in this saga?

BTW, anyone who has NOT signed up for an account, please do it ASAP. After next week you will NOT be able to post messages in any forum (except the Free Classifieds) unless you have registered.

JohnS
ICW
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Roberto Jiménez Díaz (Rob)
Posted on Saturday, March 24, 2001 - 7:35 am:   

Thanks a lot, Stefano! I'm from Spain and here is *really* difficult to get information about guitars, even components.

Here are two photos of this guitar. Maybe this neck is one of that?

Front view Rear view (webcam)

Sorry, the quality is not as good as I would like. The webcam photo is one sent by the man who sold me the guitar.

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