1981 Greco MSV850 with Dry Z pickups

the December 1981 Greco flying V with Dry Z pickups has arrived
http://www.tokaiforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=14122

Catalog shows this model as having uncovered PU-2 pickups
http://psyco.jp/greco/file/a8110b.html

The bases have no indication of ever having covers
My previous theory for the waxy substance on the bases is BS, as I stated I thought it was to seal the covers :roll:
These have the waxy crap but of course, these don't have covers :lol: ...........

From all indications the Dry Z pickups do in fact look to be original to the guitar.
The solder looks to to undisturbed & original.
Also, the patina on the 13 pick guard screws, the four mounting ring screws & the two height adjustment screws on each pickup, and the pole tops on the pickups all have oxidation that matches; it's all rusted to Hell :lol:
See photo below ...............


Thanks go out to Toshi (same seller that just sold the gold top Bacchus BLS-120 :wink: ) for this extra rare bird 8)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UbhRib75jA

http://www.youtube.com/user/mschenker2



................




December 1981 8)


Dry Z pickups x 2


bridge pickup


neck pickup


electronics assembly


bridge pickup pot solder


neck pickup pot solder

I am having a birthday soon Rich, want my addy ?......... :wink:

Mick

Nice catch............ :wink:

There you go...Nice one.
Now you just gotta get rid of that weirdly shaped piece of wood around the pickups

Thanks for the nice replies folks; she is quite an odd ball but also very interesting.

I have always been intrigued with the Flying V, purchased two previously, sold them both, and now this is my third V.
I really wonder if the third time is the charm?

Never thought in a million years that I would purchase a Michael Schenker V, even tho? I was a big fan back in the late 70s, 80s, and early 90s.

I bought this guitar with the sole purpose of robbing the Dry Z pickups, and putting them into one of my Lesters but that idea is now on hold

I have done quite a bit of tweaking, and set-up work on this girl; all in all about six hours of work that has paid off very nicely.
One of the really cool things I did was to over size drill the TOM stud holes in the pick guard.
To remove the pick guard before my fix, the TOM studs had to be removed first.
Now, once the screws are removed, the pick guard just slides right past the TOM studs 8)

I?m currently in the road test period but I?m leaning toward the idea that this girl needs to stay intact.
The MSV850 is fairly rare, and with the Dry Z pickups I think she qualifies for pretty **** rare.
She also looks pretty cool sitting next to my 1982 Mint Collection gold top

Big pluses include:
Neck is a perfect profile for my hand.
Frets are not only tall but also wide, and are in excellent condition.
Nice light weight of 7 lb. 9 oz.; the weight of a good Strat with the sound of a Gibsonesque monster.
The Dry Z pickups sound truly amazing; better than my zebra Dry Z set in the EG, or in the Bacchus.

I just played her for an hour straight, and she is a very good girl 8)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpfafzd80B8&feature=channel

one of the really odd things about the MSV; both the pick guard & the TRC are fashioned from two different pieces of plastic

one half of each is made from a black piece, and one half a white piece

the black & white pick guard pieces are held together by the two pickup mounting rings, via the eight screws (four screws/each ring)

the black & white TRC pieces are held in place by the three TRC screws

quite ingenious of Greco to come up with these ideas

Maybe the Z is for Zebra?

Man, that's a wild looking V!

Once again, those stock Dry Zs are potted. I don't recall ever seeing proof that they were available unpotted, but perhaps they did it in some of their guitars intended for lower volume levels? Obviously, this one is made to crank up.

She is a wild child; made for speed ????

I would be curious to know which manufacturer was the very first to make a Michael Schenker signature black/white Flying V.
Maybe it was Greco; not sure tho? but I imagine the MSV850 has to be one of the earliest MS signature black/white Vs.
It's really a treat to have one with the Dry pickups.

AFA potting pickups, it can be done several ways.
True potting however will only be accomplished via immersion of the pickup for a minimum 15 minutes in a 20% beeswax/80% paraffin mix, at 150 degrees F.
This allows hot/liquid wax to permeate the windings, and to inhibit any movement of wiring and/or magnets within the pickup.

I have the two matched sets of Dry Z pickups; the zebra set with covers (now removed) and the set in the MSV which never had covers.
Both sets show no indications of ever having been wax potted.

For real? I can see the wax in the baseplate screws in the pics. Maybe my eyes are playing tricks on me.

cryptozoo said:

For real? I can see the wax in the baseplate screws in the pics. Maybe my eyes are playing tricks on me.

Click to expand...

Right, there is wax on the baseplate without question. I think Rich's point is that there is not a trace of that same wax anywhere beyond the baseplate. When I sold Rich his first pair (with the original covers still attached), I described them as potted, as I assumed the same as you. But once he removed the covers, he realized they had not in fact been potted.

Now, as for the purpose of the waxed baseplate? That seems to be the million dollar question...

Hope this helps.

That is rather mysterious. So no other signs of wax on the tape or inner lead wires? I see wax residue on the braided lead as well as the screws, which means these parts were obviously dipped at some point during assembly.

As you probably know, wax will wipe off very cleanly after potting if it's still warm, and with minimal effort one can get the bobbins in very clean shape with a rag. Maybe Maxon saved the final outer tape wrap and cover installation until after potting, or perhaps they just lowered the baseplate to secure the screws or something. Seems odd to me, but at any rate, nice axe! I'm curious, do you know the ohm rating on the stock V set? Are these hotter than your other set?

cryptozoo said:

That is rather mysterious. So no other signs of wax on the tape or inner lead wires? I see wax residue on the braided lead as well as the screws, which means these parts were obviously dipped at some point during assembly.

As you probably know, wax will wipe off very cleanly after potting if it's still warm, and with minimal effort one can get the bobbins in very clean shape with a rag. Maybe Maxon saved the final outer tape wrap and cover installation until after potting, or perhaps they just lowered the baseplate to secure the screws or something. Seems odd to me, but at any rate, nice axe! I'm curious, do you know the ohm rating on the stock V set? Are these hotter than your other set?

Click to expand...

here's a link to the zebra set that I eventually removed the covers from
http://www.tokaiforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=14150

If you check the second & third photos, there is absolutely no evidence of wax residue anywhere in/near/etc. the bar mag, the poles in the white bobbins, the spacers, etc.

If these would have been emersed in 150 degree wax, and properly potted, there would be obvious signs of traditional wax potting.

There is a waxy substance on the bottom of the bases, as all Greco pups I've seen, and that's pretty much it.

AFA an ohm reading, don't have a meter, sorry .............
The MSV set does sound hotter to my ears, than the zebra set

MIJvintage said:

I?m currently in the road test period but I?m leaning toward the idea that this girl needs to stay intact.
The MSV850 is fairly rare, and with the Dry Z pickups I think she qualifies for pretty **** rare.
She also looks pretty cool sitting next to my 1982 Mint Collection gold top

Click to expand...

--------------- 1981 Super Real MSV850 ------------------- 1982 Mint Collection gold top ------------

Thnx for taking time to share this. Very helpful.