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togps said:
Is on one of the decal a point after "STRAT"?

Hard to say for sure, but it looks like mine (the first one) doesn't have a period and the other one does. Can't say 100%. Also the typeface on mine looks a bit heavier/bolder and the fill inside the 7okai logo looks brownish, while the other one is more gold-metallic.

I'm thinking my decals may not be original?

Thanks for your help.
 
The decal above isn't original.
There are nevertheless more indicators to determine, without any doubt, the original decal exactly.
At present time I don't like to share that on a public forum.
I don't like to educate the fakers.
Please understand ...
 
The guitar does have tokai tuners and saddles, If it has an end of neck stamp and non-steel trem block (not visible in the photos) it's very likely to be a proper Springy IMHO. :)
Quite possibly someome put a Fender decal on it at one stage and was then changed back.

/Magnus
 
togps said:
The decal above isn't original.
There are nevertheless more indicators to determine, without any doubt, the original decal exactly.
At present time I don't like to share that on a public forum.
I don't like to educate the fakers.
Please understand ...
Very good !
Exactly why I don't buy Springys unless numbers match and they have a stamped last fret-
 
mrsuspend said:
Quite possibly someome put a Fender decal on it at one stage and was then changed back./Magnus
Sure or maybe...
But that's not the point of the thread
Original decal or not - that's the question!
 
Yeah, I don't have any doubt that it's a real Springy Sound. But it's a bit of a bummer to realize the decal's not original. Wish I'd noticed that before I bought it.
 
ochay said:
Exactly why I don't buy Springys unless numbers match and they have a stamped last fret-

Springys from 1980 onwards didn't have the stamp, so you're ruling out over half of the production run!

Mike
 
My white Goldstar has a replaced decal, but it's still my favourite Goldstar. It cost me more than the other 3 too!

132_3253.jpg

132_3254.jpg
 
stratman323 said:
ochay said:
Exactly why I don't buy Springys unless numbers match and they have a stamped last fret-

Springys from 1980 onwards didn't have the stamp, so you're ruling out over half of the production run!

Mike

Is that right? Because this one does have the stamp, and someone else wrote to me and said that early Springy Sounds had a non-metallic logo. So maybe this is a late 70s ST-50?

It's got a 7-digit serial though, starting with a 9. Does that tell us anything? And "8=6 YS" stamped in the pickup cavity.

Thanks in advance for any more help...
 
I wonder if you're just worrying too much? Decals are just transfers. The decal on my ST80 doesn't line up wit the straight line on the headstock.

129_2911.jpg


Whereas on the ST60 I sold a few months back, it did. I don't think that tells us anything about originality though.
 
I wouldn't say I'm "worried" just "interested" or even "fascinated." These are such interesting guitars and the details are hard to pin down.

On the other hand, if this was a post-spaghetti logo Goldstar Sound or had no logo the price I paid was probably too high. So I would like to think the seller didn't inflate the perceived value of the guitar by surreptitiously adding a $10 repro decal.
 
Exactly why I don't buy Springys unless numbers match and they have a stamped last fret-
If the Numbers match on the Neck Butt with the control cavity stamp and the it has Final Prospect Saddles with 2 piece tremolo(meaning the sustain block has 3 screws) and stamped last fret-
Than I'd says it original Old tokai-anything else-personally I wouldn't buy it-Spring Sound or not......
 
ochay said:
Exactly why I don't buy Springys unless numbers match and they have a stamped last fret-
....

I'm delighted to hear that, that means more of the best Springys are available for me! The early RW board ones were all wrong - headstock plug, skunk stripe, 8 hole scratchplate. It wasn't until 1980 that Tokai got them right, & by that time, they had replaced the neck stamp with the paper sticker. By 1981 (I believe) they even had the steel trem block.

So by only buying the ones with neck stamps, you're missing out on the best ones.

:p :p :p :p
 
ochay said:
Exactly why I don't buy Springys unless numbers match and they have a stamped last fret-
If the Numbers match on the Neck Butt with the control cavity stamp and the it has Final Prospect Saddles with 2 piece tremolo(meaning the sustain block has 3 screws) and stamped last fret-
Than I'd says it original Old tokai-anything else-personally I wouldn't buy it-Spring Sound or not......

It does have a stamped last fret, and it does have a 50 hallmark at the 21st fret, ST-50 inside, "Tokai" kluson style tuners, "U" stamped pickups, correct pots, switch, etc. and it does have a 1979 serial number. It does not have "Final Prospec" saddles, it has Tokai saddles. This is good, as Final Prospec appeared around 1984 (?) or so. If you find a guitar with a stamped last fret and Final Prospec saddles it is NOT original -- at least that's my understanding. This would have to be some kind of Frankentokai.

The one I bought appears to be an all-original 1979 ST-50 Springy Sound. My only question was about the originality of the decal.

I will know more about that when it arrives and I can see the decal and headstock finish closely. (One tip: if the headstock lacquer has been touched up or resprayed over a new decal it will almost certainly show up under black light.)
 

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