# Got kicked out of a Pawn Shop.........Again.



## djmarcelca (Aug 2, 2012)

Was just at a Pawn Shop in Town.
They had a Fender Stratocaster set @ $2999.99. Naturally I looked it over.

Sign claimed it was a 1960 Custom Shop reproduction , Modded at Factory with a Humbucker and Floyd Rose trem in it.

No Custom shop logo engraved into the Neck plate
No Made in USA markings on brand label
Small custom shop logo stamped into the BACK of the headstock that was unclear other than the V

Serial number came back as 1985-87 MIJ fender strat.

For that type of guitar it looked Correct.
Correct trem, humbucker, neck dimensions, body, etc.

When talking to the manager He Said " It's authentic, we have the original paperwork"

I told him I do not believe this is a Custom shop model.
I think it's a MIJ Fender production model only worth about 600.00 not 3K and he should get it authenticated directly from Fender, not "The guy we have come in for these things"

Wouldn't let me check the back of the neck heel, or the wiring under the pickguard to look for serial numbers and mini asian electronics

He wasn't pleased with me, asked me to leave the shop.


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## NoTalentHack (Jun 17, 2017)

Good on ya for calling him out. That's the height of shady dealing.


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## greco (Jul 15, 2007)

Same pawn shop that kicked you out before?

My congrats on calling them out also.


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

djmarcelca said:


> Was just at a Pawn Shop in Town.
> They had a Fender Stratocaster set @ $2999.99. Naturally I looked it over.
> 
> Sign claimed it was a 1960 Custom Shop reproduction , Modded at Factory with a Humbucker and Floyd Rose trem in it.
> ...


Did you tell him you were calling the BBB or the fraud police?


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## marcos (Jan 13, 2009)

Good on you. I wish i had the balls to do that.


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## Guest (Jun 17, 2017)

Call the cops! It is a fraud.


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## NorlinNorm (Dec 31, 2016)

djmarcelca said:


> Was just at a Pawn Shop in Town.
> They had a Fender Stratocaster set @ $2999.99. Naturally I looked it
> I hate that crap...far too much of it going on...
> 
> ...


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

You should'a pulled a Pete Townsend and calmly walked out.

Or a Jimi, for a more dramatic effect...


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## djmarcelca (Aug 2, 2012)

greco said:


> Same pawn shop that kicked you out before?
> 
> My congrats on calling them out also.


no different one.

I did not say it was a fake, just a production model dressed as a custom shop


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## hedzup (Apr 23, 2009)

I was in one here last week, I stop in a couple times a year, everything's way over priced and mostly junk. But there was a decent looking old NJ series Mockingbird for $229. When I picked it up one of the employees comes up and asks if he can help. I asked, what happens if I take it home and there is an hidden issue , like a maxed out truss rod?
He says - well that's why the owner has me here. I have been selling guitars for 30 years and there aren't many people in town that know as much about guitars as I do. I will be able to tell if you did something to damage the guitar at home so you won't get away with any funny stuff. But I will teach you how to adjust a truss rod properly if you buy something , at no charge.

I didn't buy anything.


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## greco (Jul 15, 2007)

hedzup said:


> I have been selling guitars for 30 years and there aren't many people in town that know as much about guitars as I do.


Tell him you have some property right on the side of the harbor to sell.


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## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

Steadfastly said:


> *Did you tell him you were calling the BBB* or the fraud police?


PROMISE ME you will let you me know the next time you threaten an ethically questionable business owner with a call to the BBB. 
I need more humour in my life.


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

hedzup said:


> I have been selling guitars for 30 years and there aren't many people in town that know as much about guitars as I do.


And that's the reason he is working in a pawn shop for minimum wage instead at a music store where he could be making at least a bit more and wouldn't feel like he needs to wash his hands every ten minutes.


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## Guest (Jun 18, 2017)

Steadfastly said:


> And that's the reason he is working in a pawn shop for minimum wage instead at a music store where he could be making at least a bit more and would feel like he needs to wash his hands every ten minutes.


What? Miss out on giving people 1/10th the value of their last possessions? To feel the hope drain from their miserable lives?


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## Dorian2 (Jun 9, 2015)

Yeah, I'd call the fraud cops on that guy. I've had a couple of run ins with some of the Pawn Shops in Edmonton over the past 30 years as well......but they seem really bad at this point in time. Ther's even one that sells brand new guitars at a hiked up price compared to the other reputable music shops in Edmonton. I actually called one (they always have a listing in Kijiji (hint hint haha)) and asked the lady who answered why they were selling the exact model of new guitar at more than a L&M was. She told me it's like comparing an apple from Safeway to an apple at Superstore or something.

I laughed my ass off and hung up. Yes, I just wanted to raise a ruckus...I can get bratty at times!


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## djmarcelca (Aug 2, 2012)

There's a shop near the courthouse that has lots of gear, but high prices. good thing about that place is they will haggle and not hold it against you.
One in the west end will only haggle if you beat them down over like 10 mins and grinding them.

Any of the Cash Canada locations are fantastic, always had good experiences there.

I don't sell much at Pawn shops, but I do frequent them.

I can almost see their shoulders shrug when I walk in.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

1) Whether it's a pawn shop guy, an auto mechanic, your teacher, your manager/supervisor or anyone else, you will NEVER get any degree of cooperation from them if they believe they are doing an honest job at their job and you begin the conversation by essentially tell them they do not know how to do their job. Even IF one begins with the phrase "I'm not trying to tell you how to do your job, but...". Even IF they really don't know their ass from a hole in the ground. People crave their dignity and sense of competence, and challenging that right off the bat will get one nowhere fast. Indeed, I'll bet some of you reading this who applauded DJMarcelCa's actions are probably thinking right at this very moment "Who the f*** does he think he is criticizing me like that?". See what I mean?

The better strategy is to present the information that straddles the gap between what you know to be true and what the salesperson _thinks_ is true as a source of risk to the vendor. In other words, the differences you noted are subtle enough that the vendor might be at risk of being duped by an unscrupulous client in future - someone blustering on about something and trying to squeeze a higher price for the item than is warranted.

2) Pawn shops sell a lot of different stuff, a great deal of it unrelated other than by the fact that someone inclined to find themselves in desperate situations was the original purchaser, whether it be a flashy watch, a crossbow, an overpriced Strat knockoff, power tool, or home entertainment system. Expecting the salesperson at the counter to have Gruhn/Fjelstad-like knowledge of every little niggling production detail is a bit much. They should obviously know _something_ in order to price things reasonably appropriately, but unless they advertise otherwise, they aren't specialists. Hell, even the folks on the various pawn-shop TV shows bring in experts. _A pawn shop is not a vintage music gear store_.

3) Having said all of that merchants should know how to keep their cool, even IF the customer is dead wrong or embarrassingly right. I am pretty confident Marcel is not busy drumming up business for this place at the moment.

4) I've gotten some amazing things from pawn shops over the years, but my sense is that the glory days of fantastic pawn-shop finds are generally behind us now. Particularly with the availability of Kijiji/Craigslist, e-bay, and vintage shops. The odds of finding a sensibly-priced piece of music gear in a pawn shop are about as good as the odds of finding the resistor value you need in The Source.


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## Brett Pearson (Apr 26, 2016)

I have a pretty good pawn shop beside where I work (very dangerous...I know) and I have bought several guitars from them over the years. They like to sell so I have never paid full asking price for anything in the store and I have gotten good deals and some great deals over the years. They are always happy to check what they have paid for an instrument and haggle with you accordingly. We don't always agree but the exchange is always cordial. I just wanted to post a positive experience that I have had.


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## GuitarsCanada (Dec 30, 2005)

The glory days....... it's all over now. But I used to live in the pawn shops from Niagara to Mid Michigan and all in between. All through the 90's. Picked up some ridiculous deals and made a lot of money on resale's. It's too bad really. Was a ton of fun dropping in to check out the new gear. I don't even bother now. Most of it is way over market value


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## Dorian2 (Jun 9, 2015)

djmarcelca said:


> There's a shop near the courthouse that has lots of gear, but high prices. good thing about that place is they will haggle and not hold it against you.
> One in the west end will only haggle if you beat them down over like 10 mins and grinding them.
> 
> Any of the Cash Canada locations are fantastic, always had good experiences there.
> ...


I was going to mention Cash Canada....I've had very good results with them.....and they seem to be very fairly priced. Down by the Court House I know what shop you're talking about. They're one of the old ones from the old days that get in some pretty nice stuff....haven't been to Uncle Eds in a while though.


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

Dorian2 said:


> I was going to mention *Cash Canada*....I've had very good results with them.....and they seem to be very fairly priced.


That's where I bought my first guitar. I was going to buy a new one for around $100.00 but one of the clerks was a musician and he picked out an S & P Cedar 6 for me. It was in very good condition with only a couple of almost unnoticeable pick marks on the top. It was $125.00. I still stop in there if I am in the area and have a bit of time.


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## BigMoney (May 31, 2017)

Props for calling the guy out and props for knowing your shit. I wouldn't have caught that. Maybe it's because I don't own a Fender. Some day...


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## djmarcelca (Aug 2, 2012)

BigMoney said:


> Props for calling the guy out and props for knowing your shit. I wouldn't have caught that. Maybe it's because I don't own a Fender. Some day...


I don't own fender's anymore either. 
I've always wanted a strat, until I had one. I love how they sound. Turns out I hate how they play. 
Uncomfortable. 

But looking over guitars at pawn shops has become kinda a hobby, and truth be told, I'm not so good at Spotting a Gibson Fake yet, but Fender's I'm reasonably well versed on thanks to spending time on Fender's own website. 

They provide lots of information on the difference between genuine Fender/Squire and the knock off's

Truth be told most Major manufacturers do have some sort of outline on how to spot fakes. The ones I know of are:
FEnder: This just has information of serial numbers: 
How can I find out when my American-made instrument was manufactured?

Gibson: 
Gibson Guitar Music News: How to Spot a Fake, Gibson Leads Industry Fight Against Counterfeit Goods

Ibanez: (Not very helpful)
Ibanez - Ibanez Counterfeit Warning

PRS: Just serial number ID
Customer Support Center | Year Identification


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## Distortion (Sep 16, 2015)

Player99 said:


> Call the cops! It is a fraud.


 My thoughts exactly


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## Robert1950 (Jan 21, 2006)

djmarcelca said:


> I don't own fender's anymore either.
> I've always wanted a strat, until I had one. I love how they sound. Turns out I hate how they play.
> Uncomfortable.


I'm the opposite. I love the way the strat feels and plays. I just wish I could get it to sound like a Les Paul sometimes. but I find a Les Paul uncomfortable. Each to their own I guess.


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## gtrguy (Jul 6, 2006)

djmarcelca said:


> Was just at a Pawn Shop in Town.
> They had a Fender Stratocaster set @ $2999.99. Naturally I looked it over.
> 
> Sign claimed it was a 1960 Custom Shop reproduction , Modded at Factory with a Humbucker and Floyd Rose trem in it.
> ...


I guess we just have to assume you know what you were looking at? Fender Custom Shop guitars often don't have an engraved neck plate, simply a serial number... nor do they have "Made in USA" markings. If it was my shop I wouldn't let you take the guitar apart either. Without pics/info this thread is worthless.

I'm not saying you're wrong, I'm saying we have too little info and only one side of the story.


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## zontar (Oct 25, 2007)

I haven't been in one in ages--any time I've been in one I encounter one of two things (or both)
Overpriced or stuff I'm not interested in--and often both.
And the gear they have is often showing signs that the gear's previous owner and the store employees don't know much about taking proper care of the guitar.
One of the last times I was in a pawn shop I tried a Dean Reso--the neck had a giant bow in it.
This was likely due to the guitar being strung with very heavy strings, which may have been okay, but the guitar was tuned at least a step & half high.
The strings were very tight.
I wasn't sure if the neck was salvageable or not--even with lighter strings a lower tuning & some tweaking, but I decided against taking the risk--especially based on the price.
They would have had to cut it in half for me to take the risk.
I mentioned it to them that the guitar should be tuned lower--especially with the strings that heavy--but I felt like I was brushed off.

But mostly it's being way to optimistic on the prices...


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## Jimi D (Oct 27, 2008)

GuitarsCanada said:


> The glory days....... it's all over now. But I used to live in the pawn shops from Niagara to Mid Michigan and all in between. All through the 90's. Picked up some ridiculous deals and made a lot of money on resale's. It's too bad really. Was a ton of fun dropping in to check out the new gear. I don't even bother now. Most of it is way over market value


This is my experience too... I made some wonderful scores in the old days; came way ahead most of the time and really enjoyed venturing out Saturday mornings with a friend to check out the various pawns around town... I don't bother stopping in any more, either... there are no more deals to be had there...


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## Ronbeast (Nov 11, 2008)

It's unfortunate that I missed out on "the good ole days" , but I've snagged a few deals at the local pawn shop. Perhaps nothing to write home about, but definitely good deals. 

I got a US made Peavey Fury bass for $150 in mint condition. Not the deal of the century, but it's still my main gigging bass.

A 2003 limited edition Squier Strat in "Electric Blue". It's pretty beat up and abused, but it was a gift for my 18th birthday and mom used her dealing skills to get the shop to drop the taxes and $30 from the list price. I've since upgraded just about everything on this guitar and I'm into it for less than $200.

My third deal was a little bittersweet. I came across two way huge pedals , a swollen pickle and a pork loin. They were $65 each in mint condition; they're listed on L&M website for roughly $200 each. I was a broke student at the time, so I could only afford the swollen pickle. Unfortunately I passed on the pork loin and I really wish I hadn't.

There's currently an Ibanez ts-7 tonelok pedal sitting in the case there. I'm gonna let it sit for a few more months and then off $30. The owner has no idea what it even is.


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

Ronbeast said:


> My third deal was a little bittersweet. I came across two way huge pedals , a swollen pickle and a pork loin. They were $65 each in mint condition; they're listed on L&M website for roughly $200 each. I was a broke student at the time, so _*I could only afford the swollen pickle.* _Unfortunately _*I passed on the pork loin* _and I really wish I hadn't.


That must have been hard to swallow.


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## High/Deaf (Aug 19, 2009)

When I think pawn shops, I fondly remember a few I picked up but the ones that got away really haunt me, like a Mesa Mk III for $600 bucks or a nice Vantage LP copy with case for $325. Shouldn't have had second thoughts about those - I snoozed, I losed.


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## Rollin Hand (Jul 12, 2012)

When I was a broke student, the local Cash Converters had a Desert Yellow Jem 777, formerly owned by Marvin Birt of Haywire for sale. It was the early days of grunge, so it was only $800. I didn't have the money, but I was sorely tempted to get it anyway.

Now, the pawn shops in Ottawa have no good deals whatsoever, unless you want to pay close to the full new price for a used guitar or amp.


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## colchar (May 22, 2010)

Dorian2 said:


> I was going to mention Cash Canada....I've had very good results with them.....and they seem to be very fairly priced.



I've never heard of them so I just checked online. Apparently one of their Calgary locations has an ES-335 available for $1450!


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## djmarcelca (Aug 2, 2012)

Rollin Hand said:


> Now, the pawn shops in Ottawa have no good deals whatsoever, unless you want to pay close to the full new price for a used guitar or amp.


Haggle!

Offer low, keep on them, show cash in hand, they'll move on price. I've never met a pawn broker that doesn't haggle and swear and call you all kinds of names when doing it as well. But they will move the price for cash money, not plastic. Cash.


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## Roryfan (Apr 19, 2010)

Rollin Hand said:


> When I was a broke student, the local Cash Converters had a Desert Yellow Jem 777, formerly owned by Marvin Birt of Haywire for sale. It was the early days of grunge, so it was only $800. I didn't have the money, but I was sorely tempted to get it anyway.


Shoulda dropped the needle.....


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## Guest (Jun 22, 2017)

Roryfan said:


> Shoulda dropped the needle.....


I was in that situation a few years back.
PRS McCarty owned by Gino Scarpelli of Goddo for a reasonable price.
This was before the gas bug bit me and I didn't know much about them.


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## Rick31797 (Apr 20, 2007)

I go to Greenbacks, i think they are the best bet for deals, the items they get are clean or cleaned up, and some items are reasonable , some over priced..but ...best of all, you get a 30 day money back warranty.If you decide you do not want it, yes they give you your money back. My latest buy is a EVH flanger, for 90.00 total.


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## Rollin Hand (Jul 12, 2012)

Roryfan said:


> Shoulda dropped the needle.....


I was nearly dancing with desire, but financially I was at the short end of a wishbone. It made me feel like one of those bad, bad boys. I was black and blue inside.

Joking aside, I should have jumped on deals like that in the early 90s, because those guitars that no self-respecting grunger would ever want are now worth some serious money. I also missed out on a Reb Beach Voyager once.


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## guitarman2 (Aug 25, 2006)

Rollin Hand said:


> Now, the pawn shops in Ottawa have no good deals whatsoever, unless you want to pay close to the full new price for a used guitar or amp.


I think its an Ottawa thing. Most ads I see from the Ottawa area have unrealistic prices. I've gotten so that when I'm looking for something, Ontario wide, I simply ignore the Ottawa ads.


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## hedzup (Apr 23, 2009)

I went in to the other Peterborough pawn shop yesterday for a look see. Place is full of guitar gear. Some prices I saw

Korean made Peavey Wolfgang Special $999
Fender Pawn Shop Series Mustang guitar $799
Peavey teal stripe Bandit amp $299
Boss DS1 pedal $79
Peavey red stripe Chinese Studio Pro amp $269
Danelectro Fab Tone pedal $49


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

guitarman2 said:


> I think its an Ottawa thing. Most ads I see from the Ottawa area have unrealistic prices. I've gotten so that when I'm looking for something, Ontario wide, I simply ignore the Ottawa ads.


I have found the same thing.

A funny little side note; when I was looking for a used car, Ottawa had the best prices. Go figure.


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## Rollin Hand (Jul 12, 2012)

hedzup said:


> I went in to the other Peterborough pawn shop yesterday for a look see. Place is full of guitar gear. Some prices I saw
> 
> Korean made Peavey Wolfgang Special $999
> Fender Pawn Shop Series Mustang guitar $799
> ...


That Wolf has been there forever.


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## djmarcelca (Aug 2, 2012)

Rollin Hand said:


> That Wolf has been there forever.



Then make an Offer on it. New is 1400.00 from L&M 
He's asking 1000.00 
Offer 700 and go from there. It doesn't make him any money sitting on the wall. If it's been there for longer than 6 months He'll want to sell it

Fender Musical Instruments - Wolfgang Special, Maple Fingerboard, Matte Army Drab


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## Guest (Jun 23, 2017)

I think most pawnshops buy guitars off eBay or Kijiji so they can have a guitar or 2 in the window. Sort of something a pawn shop must have, but nobody is bringing them in, so to keep up the pawn shop image they buy them as props.


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## Lincoln (Jun 2, 2008)

Player99 said:


> I think most pawnshops buy guitars off eBay or Kijiji so they can have a guitar or 2 in the window. Sort of something a pawn shop must have, but nobody is bringing them in, so to keep up the pawn shop image they buy them as props.


one of my friends brought an acoustic from our local pawn shop. It had been hanging in the window for so long, that when he peeled the price sticker off it, there was a dramatic difference in the colour between what was covered by the sticker & what wasn't. That guitar will always have a circle on it.


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## Rollin Hand (Jul 12, 2012)

I won't be in Peterborough any time soon. I sold my cottage.

Besides, a Korean Wolf Special is a different animal than the current EVH Wolf special. Arched top vs. flat, graphite reinforced neck with jumbo frets vs. medium jumbos, and the hardware is considerably better.


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## sakana (Oct 14, 2016)

Not all Japanese Fenders will have mini Asian electronics, they made all kinds of models at many levels of quality, it would be marked if it were an order made in the neck pocket, would also say if it were a Custom Edition or an Extrad on the back of the headstock....too bad you`re not allowed to touch the guitar anymore.....and NO SOUP FOR YOU!


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## djmarcelca (Aug 2, 2012)

sakana said:


> .....and NO SOUP FOR YOU!


that's funny right there.

Wasn't allowed to check out the important places. I'll go back in a month or so and see if it is still there.


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## Stratotone (Jan 29, 2014)

The counterfeit strat that started this thread has been sold- guess someone must have picked it up this weekend at the "moonlight madness" sale.


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

Stratotone said:


> The counterfeit strat that started this thread has been sold- guess someone must have picked it up this weekend at the "moonlight madness" sale.


I love a happy ending.


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## High/Deaf (Aug 19, 2009)

Everybody loves a 'happy ending'!


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## Stratotone (Jan 29, 2014)

Fender Custom Shop Floyd Relic Stratocaster | Guitars | Edmonton | Kijiji

Guitar that started this thread now up on Kijiji.......


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## djmarcelca (Aug 2, 2012)

Stratotone said:


> Fender Custom Shop Floyd Relic Stratocaster | Guitars | Edmonton | Kijiji
> 
> Guitar that started this thread now up on Kijiji.......



DAMN!!! that's the guitar


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## guitarman2 (Aug 25, 2006)

That is supposed to be a 1960 style strat? The logo looks like the 70's strats. I guess if it was made in the custom shop anything is possible. It doesn't look like a 80's MIJ to me.


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## guitarman2 (Aug 25, 2006)

djmarcelca said:


> No Custom shop logo engraved into the Neck plate


I have a custom shop masterbuilt nocaster and a custom shop 55 strat. Neither one has an engraved logo in the neck plate.


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## sillyak (Oct 22, 2016)

Is it a fake?


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## gtrguy (Jul 6, 2006)

I'm pretty confident that's a legit guitar. The stamped custom shop logo on the back of the headstock was used up until about 1999 (around the time they transitioned relics from Vince Cunetto to in house), so that's probably legit. They also used to use those Custom Shop neck plates on lots of guitars back then. Anything that wasn't intended to be a dead accurate vintage replica got them.

Logo is accurate for 1969 as is the 4 bolt neck.

I'd say that's a just post-Cunnetto relic... easy enough to call Fender and confirm from the serial number.


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## Stratotone (Jan 29, 2014)

gtrguy- this makes sense now. I just checked a picture I had taken of the backplate: f logo on plate with a serial number starting with CN7 which would correlate with Custom Shop Nineties 1997


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## EchoWD40 (Mar 16, 2007)

Looks real to me. doesn't look like a MIJ. 
I think theres a lesson to be learned from this thread.


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## mawmow (Nov 14, 2017)

I once walked in a pawn shop as I arrived too early at a meeting. There were a bunch of brand new colored entry level acoustic guitars, some of them clearly showing an awfully cracked top ! The ticket read same price as the others ! Did not try any !


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