Why does my D-55 have a sticker over the original serial number?

[phinegan]

Educate me...What's MIRC?

 

[chazmo]

http://mircweb.com

 

[fronobulax]

It should have been advertised as refurbished, and as a result, the price should have been discounted, at least a little. If you're still in contact with the seller, and if you paid the typical full price for a used D55 in excellent condition, you might point this out. If the ad for the guitar said nothing about it being refurbished, I think there's an argument there for false advertising, and you may be able to get the seller to pay you back the discount you should have gotten in the first place (maybe 10%? Hard to say.) If the ad showed the sticker though, you should have known it was refurbished and agreed on a price accordingly.

Hmmm.

If the seller was a dealer who obtained the instrument directly from MIRC then I agree with you that "used" is an incorrect description and "refurbished" is more appropriate. But if the seller is not a dealer or if they did not obtain the instrument from MIRC then "used" is accurate and claims of false advertising are not appropriate. IMO. YMMV.

 

[chazmo]

Yeah, what frono said... Sorry, I don't agree with you Cougar. The seller can only disclose what they see. If they didn't mention the USED stamp on teh back of the headstock, that's a little questionable, but it's also not that significant now.

The point is that as the instruments get older and change hands multiple times, their condition (and warrantee) when they were new becomes less relevant to value.

 

[Cougar]

The seller can only disclose what they see....

Well sure, the seller might have inherited it and know little about guitars. That's not false advertising. And a buyer who doesn't see a photo of the label before buying is taking his own risk right there.

 

[The Retro Rocker]

MIRC label doesn't bother me in the least! My only point is...if you had two used D-55s side-by-side, in pretty much the same condition, except one with an unaltered serial number, and one with the label over the serial number...and they were offered up at the same sale price...I would think most knowledgeable buyers would naturally go for the one with the unaltered serial number! This would be true on any make and model...especially on the more plentiful and popular models.

If its a rather rare guitar, then the label matters little, compared to condition, playability, tone, etc. But it should still be disclosed.

Having said that...I will say that I have owned two MIRC guitars, and they are both VERY nice playing and sounding guitars. The MIRC label does not bother me because in each case I received a substantial discount. (And both of those guitars were extremely hard to find elsewhere in decent condition.)

BTW, I never had any luck in receiving a response from MIRC as to what was done to these particular guitars. However, under very close inspection, I could see a bit of finish work that was done on both. No problem for me, and I knew going in what I was paying for.
And when I sold the Epiphone, it was with full disclosure! And if I ever sell the JF30, I will disclose the same! Because it's the right thing to do.

Interesting fact....my Epiphone didn't have the serial number factory-stamped in the headstock, so MIRC very lightly stamped "USED" on the back of the headstock. My Guild does have the serial number factory-stamped on the back of the headstock, and MIRC just over-stamped the last 3 numbers of the seiral # and did NOT stamp USED. In BOTH cases though, the label was affixed over the soundhole serial number. And even though they were years apart, they still started with the same three numbers...311.

(It's almost like selling a car with a "salvage" title at auction. Sometimes that means a car was involved in an accident that the insurance company felt it was better, $-wise, to just write off than repair. Someone could get that car and fix it up like new...and have a great car at a DEEP discount...but it still has that branded title, so re-sale will be affected accordingly. And most insurance companies will not insure a branded-title car. I used to be in the car biz and I had guys that would come around looking for salvage-title high line cars. That way I never had to turn down a trade-in.) Which is NOT to say that all salvage title cars are OK. Some are complete junk. You just have to know what you're buying. There's CarFax to help out...but we don't have a "Guitar-Fax" LOL!

 

[The Retro Rocker]

Sticker. Duh. I just noticed it was made in Tacoma, Washington, but I don't know when it was made:

The guitar:

I didn't see any other serial numbers anywhere.

I think you were right, it looks like a MIRC sticker from the searches I did on the internet. For some reason, this kind of bums me out.

But it was advertised as used. Does MIRC do a good job at reconditioning instruments?

Well...you can narrow it down a little. The other guys know more specifics...but I think Tacoma only made guitars from 2005-2008, give or take some months on either side. The others can chime in on when YOUR model was in production there.

And, if you are keeping the guitar, you MIGHT be able to CAREFULLY...VERY CAREFULLY...take a hair-dryer and SLOWLY AND CAREFULLY heat up the MIRC label just enough to heat up the adhesive and remove it to see the numbers underneath. (You don't want to cook the guitar, so go slow.) The original characters may be obliterated as well, however, some of the characters MIGHT be able to be read. Probably not worth the effort though.

 

[JohnW63]

Do D-55s have any serial number inside on a block, or just on the sticker ?

 

[Neal]

OTOH, all of the Tacoma Guilds I have ever encountered have been outstanding players. Don't worry about the label. It neither enhances nor subtracts from tone or playability. Just play that D-55, a lot!

 

[williawd1955]

Yeah no sticker was shown. Bought at Guitar Center. It looks to be in great shape though and I paid around 1,800. for it.
I think that is a good price.

It should have been advertised as refurbished, and as a result, the price should have been discounted, at least a little. If you're still in contact with the seller, and if you paid the typical full price for a used D55 in excellent condition, you might point this out. If the ad for the guitar said nothing about it being refurbished, I think there's an argument there for false advertising, and you may be able to get the seller to pay you back the discount you should have gotten in the first place (maybe 10%? Hard to say.) If the ad showed the sticker though, you should have known it was refurbished and agreed on a price accordingly.

Nevertheless, it looks like a very nice guitar. Love that abalone rosette. :encouragement: It's hard to say why a particular guitar was sent to MIRC for resale. Often it's just a minor finish flaw. On occasion, even MIRC can't tell why the guitar "didn't pass quality control" at the factory. But regardless, if you ever go to sell the guitar, you'll not be able to get the same price as a non-refurb, theoretically anyway.

I know guys who practially prefer buying refurbs. They typically give you a very good deal, and whatever problem they have is minor, insignificant, and doesn't affect the playability or tone at all. Yeah, MIRC is pretty good at getting a guitar in the best condition they can.

 

[williawd1955]

Yeah no 'Used' on the back of the head.

The back is very nice and still beautiful and glossy. I am not complaining at all.
I am going to throw some light Martin strings on it tomorrow and see how she sounds.

 

[chazmo]

Don, I think I'm seeing the branded "USED" there right at the crown, except all I see is "ED". Am I wrong? Did someone try to conceal this or was it just a sloppy branding? (or am I completely washed up)?

Anyway, she's a beauty. She looks perfect! Use her in good health!

On, and please don't try that trick to lift the MIRC label off... I'm not certain that there's anything underneath, and frankly these identifying marks are what we expect to see on a MIRC-sold item, as we Guild mounties are ever-vigilant to keep our membership informed of what's out there in the used market. If you're interested in dating the axe, you can probably call MIRC and find out when they sold the guitar to a dealer.

 

[Cougar]

Yeah no sticker was shown. Bought at Guitar Center.

You mean bought online through GC?

It looks to be in great shape though and I paid around 1,800. for it.
I think that is a good price.

If it's in great shape and you're happy with it, that's really all that matters! HNGD!

 

[williawd1955]

It never hit me that the ED was part of USED but you may be correct. Maybe a sloppy marking.

Don, I think I'm seeing the branded "USED" there right at the crown, except all I see is "ED". Am I wrong? Did someone try to conceal this or was it just a sloppy branding? (or am I completely washed up)?

Anyway, she's a beauty. She looks perfect! Use her in good health!

On, and please don't try that trick to lift the MIRC label off... I'm not certain that there's anything underneath, and frankly these identifying marks are what we expect to see on a MIRC-sold item, as we Guild mounties are ever-vigilant to keep our membership informed of what's out there in the used market. If you're interested in dating the axe, you can probably call MIRC and find out when they sold the guitar to a dealer.

 

[williawd1955]

Yes

I was it online at a GC in Florida and had it shipped to my local store.

You mean bought online through GC?



If it's in great shape and you're happy with it, that's really all that matters! HNGD!

 

[davismanLV]

Yeah, I'm with Chazmo. Don't try to take that sticker off the label!! That's part of this guitar's history and it tells part of the story of the instrument. Tacoma wasn't making Guilds for very long so you might never know EXACTLY when it was made, but just a date range. And it's a beautiful guitar and you got it for a good price so, just feel lucky and play the hell out of that D55!! Congrats on a super nice guitar!!

Oh and welcome to LTG!! :encouragement:

 

[williawd1955]

Thanks Tom!

 

[gilded]

I had a Tacoma D55 for about a year. A wonderful guitar in every way. Only sold it because the neck shape was a little bit wrong for me for the kind of music I used it for.

I hope you have a blast with your guitar.

 

[chazmo]

It never hit me that the ED was part of USED but you may be correct. Maybe a sloppy marking.

Can be fixed with little blue pills.

 

[mavuser]

Id guess for sure it was just unsold/overstock with no flaws (but also no warrantee). The Tacoma factory was closing *and* the economy was tanked. i have a feeling whatever was left in the factory that day went to MIRC, much of which was just unsold stock. at worst there may be a cosmetic flaw or it needed a set up, or a nut or something. but that is a top shelf guitar, and Tacoma D-55s have a solid reputation. id guess it was simply unsold.

I own a MIRC Epi Allen Woody Rumblekat bass. when i got it, it was brand new, zero flaws. had all the quality control and Epi stickers. the serial number was left alone, no sticker. a very, very faint "used" stamp (if you can even call it that) on the back of the headstock. if you look super close in the right light you may see the other letters, ever so faintly. i didnt even notice the "used" text for about a month on mine. and then my eye just randomly caught it. Very confident on mine the only thing MIRC did was apply the "used" stamp/text. I even felt like in buying an Epi online, at least getting a MIRC piece i knew it would arrive set up and ready to go, and it definetly did.