Alembic Guitars Club
Connecting => Miscellaneous => Topic started by: gtrguy on October 15, 2018, 10:12:48 PM
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This has no doubt been covered somewhere; I am interesting in buying 2 used 1980 Gibson V2 guitar pickups from a Japan dealer in Tokyo.
Is there a duty or tax or what do I need to know to get them shipped to Oregon? The price plus shipping is 388.32 US dollars.
Thanks
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What do you need? A pic of them hooked to a meter with today's paper in the background would be my first thought....... 8)
Peter
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Good one. I agree.
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If you can prove the pickups were manufactured or originated in the USA you should not have to pay any duty however you may have to pay customs fees. Some shippers such as UPS can act as the customs clearing agent and will charge extra for it though I have no idea what the cost is.
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Just curious, what are the features of these pickups that they command such a price?
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you actually need v-shaped pickups?
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you actually need v-shaped pickups?
Doesn't everybody?
Peter (Who really does think those are about the hippest-looking p/ups this side of caramel Alembics - and who finds it strange that using multiple question marks for emphasis gets you ??? ?)
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you actually need v-shaped pickups?
If you have one of these, then yes. :D (https://images.reverb.com/image/upload/s--JhFDbVtz--/a_exif,c_limit,e_unsharp_mask:80,f_auto,fl_progressive,g_south,h_1600,q_80,w_1600/v1379087218/rh8gxiqxkcevmjvqfl7a.jpg)
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That's the one. The business is Tc-Gakki in Tokyo.
https://www.tcgakki.com/eng/items/?pk=089283
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Now there is a picture that explains a LOT! :)
I have never seen one irl.
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Are those low impedance pickups?
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No, just odd shaped bright Tele sounding Humbuckers wound in a V shape. I recently acquired one of these guitars that is missing the original PUPs and thought I'd like to have a set of the correct ones on hand if I ever decide to return it to original condition.
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Now, I get it! Cool!
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No, just odd shaped bright Tele sounding Humbuckers wound in a V shape. I recently acquired one of these guitars that is missing the original PUPs and thought I'd like to have a set of the correct ones on hand if I ever decide to return it to original condition.
I would grab them while you can. Those things have gotta be like hens teeth!
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I agree. Really a handful of these guitars created - grab the pickups while you can!!
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Would it be worth going through someone to get it? There's an interesting guy who buys up a lot of the old Japanese basses (mostly late-'70s/early-'80s?) that are clearly modeled on the Fender classics - he also gets the current boutique kind of stuff like Moon, Dragonfly etc. Here's the reverb store: https://reverb.com/au/shop/bass-japan-direct (https://reverb.com/au/shop/bass-japan-direct)
Disclaimer: I've never ordered anything from him, just follow him on Instagram because I lived in Japan in the '80s and a lot of the stuff he finds is from that time.
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They say they only ship using 'EMS'. Can that service send them to my USPS PO Box?
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Well, I just trying charging these to my credit card yesterday and a 3rd party credit card company affiliated with my credit union jumped in and 'declined' the purchase on my behalf, as they thought it seemed suspicious. I had placed 2 calls to my credit union before attempting to buy these and asked what I needed to know, and they never mentioned this might happen. What with the time zones between here and Japan, communication is a pain to let them know what is going on. I'll try again.
This whole thing is surprisingly hard to do.
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My crazy credit card company requires that you notify them, prior to any out-of-state purchases, or they decline them.
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EMS is Express Mail Service, so if you get mail there, you should get this parcel just fine.
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I just bought the pickups from Japan and learned a lot doing it. I contacted both my credit card companies in advance to let them know I was purchasing something from Tokyo. The first one 'declined' the sale anyway, when I tried to make the purchase. Then they started issuing fraud alerts to me with case numbers. I answered both the text and the call they made, telling them I had made (or tried to make) the purchase, but they then would not let me use that card until I cleared it up with my credit card company AND the 3rd party company that my credit card company uses for its credit cards.
Then I tried my big credit card company. I also called them first and the helpful service person told me he would stay on the phone with me while I filled out the purchase info online. This one started to go through, but then stalled as the online Tokyo store site bounced over to my big credit card companies site, and they asked to send me an email to verify I was actually buying the items. However, they had my wrong email address. Luckily the service person on the phone was able to update that before the sale was declined.
Finally I was able to purchase the items. I still got a call within 2 minutes from the credit card folks asking If it really was me trying to buy this.
What I learned:
Make sure your contact info for your credit cards is up to date.
It may be helpful to call your credit card company first before buying overseas. However, my 1st card company was not knowledgable enough to know the problems involved.
Stay near your phone and email while making the purchase, you may likely get a call/email with a fraud alert, which you need to respond to quickly.
Many companies issuing credit cards are actually 3rd party, and your credit card may be run by another company you have never even heard of, which means the service people for the company named on your card may be no help.
If a sale is declined, your credit card may no longer work, which can play havoc with any automatic bill pay you have set up.
Shipping was with EMS, which is tied into the US Post Office.
Customs and duties may apply
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David, appreciate you sharing your experience/ tips.
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Helluva learning curve...congrats on getting there ;D
(and thanks for the tips)
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Well, the pickups are here! The actual shipping, including clearance through customs, only took 48 hours, which amazes me.
No extra fees or anything.
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Wow - they still have the plastic on them?!! How old are they?
Oh, and congrats on the deal!
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Indeed! Congrats on the deal! (And, as I'm sure you know...most folks would have gladly waited a few weeks!!)
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They look to likely be NOS and would be from around 1980. Each has a reading of a little over 12K ohms, which is normal from what I have read. The store in Tokyo is TC-Gakki and they were extremely helpful. I would not hesitate to buy from them again.
[edited to remove unintentional formatting]
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They look to likely be NOS and would be from around 1980. Each has a reading of a little over 12K ohms, which is normal from what I have read. The store is TC-Gakki and they were extremely helpful.
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They look to likely be NOS and would be from around 1980. Each has a reading of a little over 12K ohms, which is normal from what I have read. The store in Tokyo is TC-Gakki and they were extremely helpful. I would not hesitate to buy from them again.
Way cool, Massive even. (tryin' to recall my early 80's lingo)
Do you have the rest of the parts for assembly ?
P.S.
Another extremely helpful thing I've found is the second button from the right above the text edit window, it removes formatting...like this:
" They look to likely be NOS and would be from around 1980. Each has a reading of a little over 12K ohms, which is normal from what I have read. The store in Tokyo is TC-Gakki and they were extremely helpful. I would not hesitate to buy from them again.
"
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Three times is the charm, for sure.
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I will have to fabricate a pick guard, which should not be too hard. I can trace one from a V2 guitar for sale that I know of. The 'cone' shaped head and the wood sandwich kinda remind me of an Alembic.
This German website (you can hit translate on your computer) has good recordings and pictures of this guitar.
https://www.amazona.de/zeitmaschine-gibson-flying-v-v2/2/
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Cool, I gather they're low-Z pickups.
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I thought the same, but apparently they’re humbuckers.
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Flying V2 from Norm's Guitars, all the particulars, 'Boomerang' pickups and all.
. . . . . though I got to admit, when he starts discussing the 'sandwich body', it looks like 'Laminating 101' or 'Sandwich Bodies for Dummies' after Alembic . . . . .
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I thought the same, but apparently they’re humbuckers.
It can be inverted double coils like Precision splited single...
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Considering Gibson was a pioneering company using a laminated maple cap on a solid mahogany body from clear back in the early 50's (think vintage Les Pauls) and getting some of the best tones in the world ever produced by an electric guitar, well, there you go...
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How's your V2 project going?
I saw a couple V2 straplocks on ebay,
...got straplocks? :)
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I am playing it with the humbuckers right now (it sound great!). I plan to make an original style pick guard and install the V shaped pickups in a bit. I am also gluing up the sides of the well worn case. I have also started a serial number database on the V2 and have the numbers on about 30 so far. I suspect that fewer than 500 were made.
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ahhh...Sweet! (I'm playing an old G&L now)
Nice that you have the case too.
thx for the pic. :)
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That's such a cool old guitar, David. :)
A newer (reissued?) Flying V recently came into the local store I do bass repair and setup work for, and I thought about yours. http://fretmill.com/product/gibson-the-v-1982/
The 'boomerang' pickups are specific to certain years? Or is it a special model of V here?
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The Flying V2 was made 1979-'82; it used the V p/ups all but the last year, when they changed to "Dirty Fingers" humbuckers.
Peter
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Huh. Well, I've learned something today... Thanks Coz! ;D
I can count on the fingers of one hand the Flying V Gibson guitars that ever came through the doors there. And we used to be a dealer back in the day. Actually, we 'split' the dealership with another music store in town... Kelleys Music http://kelleysmusic.com across town carried Gibson electrics, and we carried their acoustic lines. There was a gentleman's agreement that all deals on used were fair game. Interestingly enough, both stores are still in business today, the only brick-and-mortar music instrument dealers in Roanoke.
Sorry for the thread hijack David! I'll see if I can snag the serial number for your V database. ;)
*actually, you can see it in the picture from the store's ad.
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With that figured top and binding, "The V" looks like they took some cues from Hamer. Who of course "borrowed" the classic Gibson shapes in the beginning. Nice looking guitar!
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Hijack OK! I love all that back in the day info!
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I found this great Youtube video of someone playing a V2 in Germany. It really sounds like a Tele!
https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/h3DbhgfbES8