Fake spolier for sale?

[cosmic]

Is this a fake? The headstock/logo sure looks fake:
 
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7337767949&category=4713&ssPageName=WDVW&rd=1

[effclef]

No, I think the earliest Spoilers had decals.
 
EffClef
 
PS at least it doesn't come with 3 fretboards!

[57basstra]

Yeah, what's up with that one? Was that some kinda special deal or is it a fake or what? How do you change the fretboards? That bass has gone past ebay at least 6 times that I've seen. The reserve could have been rather low if he had no thad to have paid all of those ebay charges

[mica]

The earliest Spoilers have decals. Pretty quickly we got the feedback that folks didn't want an Alembic with a decal, and all the subsequent Spoilers and every other new model has had the cast metal logo.  
 
The earliest Spoilers were also all solid Koa bodies with 3-piece Maple necks. I emailed the seller for the serial number, which he reported as 82S2219. Everything looks typical for the time and confirmed in the file. It needs a pickup selector knob.

[kungfusheriff]

It needs a pickup selector knob.
LOL--you're so much better at details. I've been laboring under the assumption somebody switched the selector for a toggle and maybe more basstardization, as on my old Spoiler, and I know at least four people who share that assumption.
57--If you're referring to the maple bass, that one has aftermarket Novatone fingerboards (the boards have magnets on the back, that's how they switch) and is owned and offered by Guitar Center (gcrep), who are legendary for jacking up prices and waiting until a sucker comes along.
They also blew their Alembic dealership...persona non grata, dig?

[David Houck]

David; as Shawn said, the three fretboards are a non-Alembic modification.  This bass and the modification have previously been discussed here, here, here, and here.  Fellow member David Grego (Bigbass) previously owned the bass and has posted some comments on it in some of the threads.

[57basstra]

As always Dave, thank you!

[sfnic]

I've purchased items from the seller of this Spoiler, Orange Pawn Shop, in the past.  They're _very_ good; the gear I bought was in much better shape than they described; their shipping costs were quite reasonable; and they packed the items to withstand a nuclear attack.  I have zero worries about them, for this sale.

[sfnic]

Oh, and another tidbit:  this Spioler, 82S2219, is the earliest example I have in my database.  That doesn't necessarily mean it's the first one, but it's pretty close to it.

[toshikatsuboshi]

It needs a pickup selector knob.
 
Mica . . . do you mean it's missing the pickup selector knob or that the knob is broken?  Is the pickup selector knob the pan knob that I had on my old Epic?  What is the stock knob/switch arrangement supposed to be on this Spoiler?
 
Aloha, Tim

[David Houck]

Most likely, the knob is just missing and can be replaced with a new one from Alembic.  It's held on with two small hex screws.  I would suggest you ask the seller just to be sure, but he doesn't appear to know much about the bass and probably won't know whether the switch is working properly.  Spoilers come with a pickup selector switch; Epics come with a pan control.  They are not the same thing.  The pickup selector switch is a four position switch; standby (no pickups), neck pickup only, both pickups, bridge pickup only.  For more information, see the FAQ.

[dannobasso]

I would venture a guess that the knob cracked. I've replaced at least 3 on my spoilers and never the switch itself.(83, 86 models)
Danno