Music Zoo Mahogany - When did the issues start?

[Jack71]

I'm interested at what point in the run people started having QC issues with these? Also, I've heard that the neck profile changed as well. Everybody seems to rave about the first 1-10 that came out.

[tmmsjm]

What kind of QC issues?

[Big D]

I got in on the first batch of the Mahog 2 hum run. I've played the shit out of that guitar live and no problems at all. It has been perfect since the beginning.

[quiksilver]

This is the first I've heard of any QC issues. Please elaborate.

[Predator1]

The first run tended to be on the heavy side. I have had 3 of these. I had 2 from the first batch and I crrently own one from the second run of 1 hummer's. My first was sent back because it weighed almost 10lbs and was tonely dead to my ears. The second one I sold to fund another purchase and it was a little heavy to me but other then that it was killer. The one I have now is my favorite of the 3, it weighs 7.4lbs and is one of the most toneful guitars I have ever owned. The wood grain is perfectly matched and it looks like one piece of Mahogany. I love it and will probably never part with it. It did arrive with a couple of pick marks and a small dimple on the arm contour but I would gladly live with these blems in trade off for the tone and feel. I inquired about the 1hum/1sc units they have but all of them weighed too much for my taste. These Mah guitars tend to be on the heavy side according to Tim at the Zoo. I almost forgot, the wood is very soft and it will ding easily if your are careless but the lack of a poly finish does seem to make for a more toneful guitar IMHO.

[Jack71]

I thought I had read here somewhere that the quality of the fretwork and shape of the necks had not been up to par with that of the first run. Think some people complained that the necks in the later runs were thinner, which they didn't like. Anyone have a MZ with a stamped number in the 30's? Which run would that be part of?

[MountainDog]

The first TMZ MAH run was 12 total not 10 (with the Custom Shop logo). I have MZ sequence #012 which was Predator1's "2nd" one he mentions above. I also have TMZ sequence #071, the 1st of the Single/Hum floyd MAH. By my 'certified' bathroom scale, #12 is about 7-1/2 lbs, #71 is around 8 lbs.

The neck thickness and shape between the two are very close.
Thickness @ 3rd fret #12 is .754", #71 is .764"
Thickness @ 12th fret #12 is .824", #71 is .842"
Width everywhere virtually equal.
#71 has a very slightly more "D" shape to it. Being slightly thinner and very slightly more 'flat' on the back radius could just be from a few seconds more on a sanding machine.

Frets, fret ends, rounded fingerboard edge, bodies, and everything else is virtually the same on both, I don't see any QA issues or lower quality.

By the way, I'm not convinced yet that the Custom 5 bridge pickup is the best for these. On my S/H I put in a Duncan Parallel Axis trembucker PATB-1 and it was much better (at least on my amp pre-sets).

[MountainDog]

Anyone have a MZ with a stamped number in the 30's? Which run would that be part of?

Most of the TMZ sequence numbers are shown here, look at right hand column:

http://rz-home.de/~jweber0/charvel/7000-7499.html

[~K~]

Hmm .. I just got #7432 yesterday ...

[busdriver]

Hmm .. I just got #7432 yesterday ...

Is this one a 1Hum/Single?

[surfreak]

I have owned #8 of the 1st batch, 1H, and it was very close to what I consider a perfect guitar: 7.8lbs, tight-grained hard mahogany (you could not dent it with a fingernail), perfect neck dress and rounded fret edges.
Great tone, very thick, and perfect playability too. I sold it because I needed a 2H.

Then I got #7259 from the 2nd batch, and you could tell that it was a completely different type of mahogany: wider grain, lighter, almost pink in color and very soft.
This was also the guitar that had Q/C issues, the pickup switch was malfuctioning (probably a hard knock while it was being shipped), noticeable dead spots on the neck, and the fretwork was much less accurate and detailed. So I returned it.

Finally, I got #7257, again from the 2nd batch, and it is not perfect: again, the mahogany appears to be of lower quality, and the fretwork is not as perfect as the first batch, but still very good.
What makes this guitar a keeper is however its playability and tone: it is a screamer, the Custom 5 seems to be even more toneful, the harmonics are just so loud and detailed.

[Predator1]

I agree with surfreak. My keeper is #7246. I found that the neck shape was diffrent from my first two guitars more of a D shape. The first one I had felt alot like my Pointy Bullseye RI #6330 I was told by Tim that all of these were ordered at the same time and all the necks were ordered as the standard series neck profile with the Strathead. JCMI decided to change their standard Strathead neck profile half way through the order and that some of the second batch had the same profile as the first run and that alot of the necks were all made at the same time. How many no one knows except JCMI. As for the Custom Shop logo, JCMI decided to only put that on Custom orders not small batch runs?Go figure.

[Soap]

Wow, thats suck big time, thats theres that much differemce in quality from various batches. You think the quality should be the same throughout. Its very common when pinching pennies quality usually suffers. They are imo beautiful guitars nonetheless.

[shreddermon]

With all due respect, some of you guys seem quite overly anal.

I'm not saying there may not have been a QC issue here or there. I haven't played any of these runs, so I'll take you words for that at face value. But IMHO it also seems like quite a bit of what's being discussed in this thread as "poor quality" is what I would consider quite normal guitar-to-guitar variances.

[MountainDog]

Is this one a 1Hum/Single?

It should be! My 7431 was the 1st of the H/S.

Mayday, let bussdriver know if 7432 is a H/S and if its sequence is TMZ 072 so he can add it to his awesome serial number chart!