Fender tells Lentz to Cease and Desist...

[Newc]

Re: Fender tells Lentz to Cease and Desist...

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I guess it's only a matter of time before Les Paul starts enforcing his "solid body guitar" rights and runs everyone else out of business.

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Actually I don't think that one was ever settled - Fender claims they had it first.

In actuality, Rickenbacker is the one to watch - they had the first electric guitar - the Lap Steel.

Newc

[dinkyjacksonman]

Re: Fender tells Lentz to Cease and Desist...

Opinions are everywhere on internet, not only here on JCF.
Harmony Central Forum has a very long thread of GMW that I found yesterday where people showed off their GMW too.

About Charvel with Strathead or strat body, I guess it was very lucky that Fender bought Charvel/Jackson.
If wasn't, the return of Charvel never happened.

[Chuckracer]

Re: Fender tells Lentz to Cease and Desist...

Threads very similiar to this are mysteriously vanishing on other forums. [img]/images/graemlins/brow.gif[/img]

[Jim Shine]

Re: Fender tells Lentz to Cease and Desist...

"People will always buy Fender Strats and Teles because they have the tone and feel. Obviously if someone's building exact replicas of Strats (pickguard, same dimensions on the route, etc etc) then there's a legitimate beef, but if someone's just making one that LOOKS like a Strat, I see no problem. It's just a copy and the Fender fans know the difference between a Fender and a not-Fender."

Well, some people like to advertise that Fender doesn't build them right and to get an authentic to vintage you have to buy from them (cough cough...Callaham). It is pure snake oil, but they sell guitars using this technique. Mainly because much of the target buyers are less skilled musicians blaming guitar tone on their inability to play.

[SEEGERMANY]

Re: Fender tells Lentz to Cease and Desist...

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law says that it also has to be a discernable difference from fifty feet away.

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As musicians and guitar fanatics, we most likely could tell the diferences in models from 50 feet. However, if you took an ESP, Charvel, Anderson, Suhr, and Fender Strat style guitar and painted each one identical, I doubt a non-musician or judge could determine many (if any) differences from 50 feet.

[A. Pulver]

Re: Fender tells Lentz to Cease and Desist...

Just when you start to like them, they go and pull this heavy handed ****.

[markb]

Re: Fender tells Lentz to Cease and Desist...

Hmmm... what will Fender do with the case of G&L?? G&L is an embarassment for Fender, since many highly visible publications, forums and even artists always assert that if you want a real vintage quality/vibe strat, go to G&L. That isn't really true, cuz G&L's are very different feeling (12" radius, larger frets, un Fender neck profiles, etc) but thats the perception.

But it would be in bad taste to go after G&L, a company started by George and Leo, two guys who have a right to use those shapes, especially if Fender lets copying in general go for 50 years. Maybe there is no legal 'right', but I would say George and Leo would have 'the blessing of the guitar community' to use those shapes. If you are Fender, do you attack part of your founders history?

Negative perception of these events on the web could have a large impact. Companies like Fender are all over the web, lurking on all the forums, gathering info about the marketplace/customers/trends/younameit. If there is a huge backlash across the web about this, they'll see it right away, and it will pose a problem for them.

If Fender went after everybody and their brother, it would definitely drive the used market for non Fender high end guitars up. Owning a NonFender would probably become much more like the in thing to do.

Most companies will pay the licensing fee though, if it comes down to that or go out of business, so just expect higher prices from competitors.

PRS is back in court fighting Gibson I believe. If they end up winning that could change things as well.

[speed monkey]

Re: Fender tells Lentz to Cease and Desist...

Another thought - don't be at all suprised if a company like Warmoth (who is paying the lic. fee) didn't have something to do with this...they're feeling the heat from somebody like GMW kicking their ass up and down the block too...

Steve E

[shreddermon]

Re: Fender tells Lentz to Cease and Desist...

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I know this isn't the point, Shreddermon, but perhaps FMIC, instead of siccing their lawyers on anybody who is percieved as a threat, could have used that same energy towards being competitive in the market that GMW dominated.

If ya can't beat 'em, sue 'em?

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Oh, I totally agree, Chuck!

Guys, I didn't mean that we shouldn't talk about these smaller builders at all. (...And no, Sully, I didn't take your post to imply that, either.)

Let's face it: much of GMW's guitar building business - as well as other similar shops - is by word of mouth and reputation. We should support people who give a great product, price and good service. I simply meant to suggest that folks think about what words they choose to say about them, and how often and where they say it.

Many people here know that FMIC is in the process of rebuilding the Charvel brand, including limited edition stratheads. Many people also understand that FMIC has a reputation for going legal over stratheads. ...So does it make sense for someone to go plastering on a Charvel enthusiasts' internet board - 50 times over in a year - how great GMW's replicas are, how well they're priced, that they'll do stratheads, and because of it why would anyone ever want to buy a new "real" Charvel, again? [img]/images/graemlins/scratchhead.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/poke.gif[/img]

I'm simply suggesting that, perhaps, it might be better if folks use just a little bit more discretion. ...Post it 5 times, not 50. If others have questions, talk about how great the company is generally, and refer them to the shop's web site, etc. Maybe trim off the headstock from your pics here and there. Maybe even e-mail others off-line once in a while, instead of posting? Little things like that.

Of course we should talk about these shops, and give them the support and reputations that they deserve. But try to do it in a more descreet way, that doesn't paint a bullseye on their forehead for the big boys' lawyers. [img]/images/graemlins/toast.gif[/img]

[gtrbuyer]

GMW loses???

can soemone answer my earlier post reagrding GMW losing its Jackson dealership..this is all news to me..when and why did GMW lose their Jackson dealership. I never heard this till this thread.

anyone..please

[sully]

Re: Fender tells Lentz to Cease and Desist...

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Another thought - don't be at all suprised if a company like Warmoth (who is paying the lic. fee) didn't have something to do with this...they're feeling the heat from somebody like GMW kicking their ass up and down the block too...

Steve E

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gmw is no threat to warmoth; warmoth doesn't make complete guitars like gmw does. also, i'm sure that warmoth does 3-4 times the business that gmw does. i doubt they really felt any heat.

sully

[shreddermon]

Re: GMW loses???

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can soemone answer my earlier post reagrding GMW losing its Jackson dealership..this is all news to me..when and why did GMW lose their Jackson dealership. I never heard this till this thread.

anyone..please

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Tracy, I'll PM shortly.

[dinkyjacksonman]

Re: GMW loses???

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can soemone answer my earlier post reagrding GMW losing its Jackson dealership..this is all news to me..when and why did GMW lose their Jackson dealership. I never heard this till this thread.

anyone..please

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Why not to contact Lee instead?

[Chuckracer]

Re: GMW loses???

Shreddermon, I agree completely, however the cows are already gone, so I guess there's not much sense in barring the barn door now, ya know?
Hindsight is indeed 20/20 and if you had proposed this idea a year ago, we probably would have shot it down, soo...it's a good point, but it's a moot point.

[shreddermon]

Re: GMW loses???

True enough. But not all of the chips may have fallen, you know? Lawyers, possible lawsuits, and all. And it's more than just GMW. Better safe than sorry.