About to buy a Rhoads Pro, anyone wanna help a newbie out?

[ddrisgood137]

Hey everyone, just found this awesome forum. I'm trying to identify a guitar I'm pretty sure I'm gonna buy. I've done some research, and it looks to me like it's a 1990 Rhoads Pro model from the Professional series, but I just want to double check with all the seasoned Jackson intellectuals around here. I've talked to the seller and emailed him and here's what I've dug up about the guitar:

Serial number: J001766, this leads me to believe that it was made in 1990 in Japan.

Pickups say Jackson on them, he thinks they're probably Dimarzios or Seymour Dunks under the Jackson covers.

He told me the bridge says Schaller on it, which seems like the standard for early 90's Rhoads, right?

Nothing on the truss rod cover, which is also standard for models from 90-92ish, right?

Says Jackson Professional on the headstock.

He says it isn't just standard white but a "pearl" white, like it has a pearlish complexion. It's got black bevels too.


So yeah, that's about all I've got. He labeled it as Rhoads Pro, and it certainly fits the bill for what a Rhoads Pro from 1990 should be like. Here are some pics:



It looks legit to me, I'm 99% sure of it, but just feel like I should double check since I've never really looked into Jackson guitars before this and this is only gonna be my second electric guitar purchase. For $520, sound like a good deal? He says it's in great condition, he hasn't played it in ten years and it's got no fret wear, dents, nicks, etc. Also comes with a case. Gonna check it out later this week and hopefully buy it if all goes well.

Anything I should look out for when trying this guitar out? Sound like a good deal? Never played on a floyd before. Anyway, thanks in advance



Edit: Also, anyone know what the typical price range for a Rhoads Pro in this condition would be? And the Rhoads Pro is the model that's comparable to the modern RR1's, right?

[RacerX]

Just a quick glance, ddr, everything in your post is correct (except for the pickups, Jackson wound their own), 520 is a great deal, go get it...but we better not see it on eBay for twice that next week, ya fugger!

[Newc]

Shit, put that bitch on Ebay for twice the price and grin like a monkey!

Damn, $525. The guy's name isn't Don Billingsley from Thorntown Indiana is it?

[Jacksonguy666]

Damn. I have never even seen one of these in purpose, but I NEED one! lol

[etepbbb]

Buy it, $520 is a great deal for RR pro.

[pro-fusion]

Nice! $520 is a good deal, but the market right now seems a bit soft on the more common Pros, like Soloists, RRs and Fusions. Nobody's going to turn that guitar around and make a pile of cash off of it. The rarer Pros, such as Warriors and the Soloist and Collen archtops, seem to be holding their value better. I think there was a bit of a "bubble" on these for awhile.

[ddrisgood137]

Thanks guys. Nope, ain't Don from Indiana. And trust me, I'll be playing the hell out of this thing. So I'm getting a good deal, huh? How much do these usually go for?

[Sunbane]

Before the crisis hit, they were close to 1k USD, unless I'm misremembering? When I joined the JCF in 2001, they went for around $700.

[m2pmd70]

I was gonna say the last few i paid attention to on ebay were between 9 and $1200.

[pro-fusion]

A guy here couldn't even get $500 for his Soloist Pro in the classifieds within the last month or so. The market is *really* soft right now. I track this stuff closely because I own a Soloist Pro and like to know the going rate.

RR Pros are not quite as common, so I wouldn't be surprised to see them sell for a bit more. Even at $700 or so, the early Pros are a heck of a deal. 90%+ of the quality of a used USA model at 60% of the price. I'd say that's a good deal.

[ddrisgood137]

OK, a little update.

I went and checked out the guitar, and it's not in as perfect condition as I would have hoped, but I might have just had my hopes way too high for a guitar this old so I could use some help here.

The pain has yellowed a bit in certain areas, not just the binding, and I guess that just happens to white guitars after 20 years. The fretboard was pretty dirty and kinda had finger srease stains everywhere, but that's an easy fix, right? The Frets themselves seemed to have a little bit of rust/corrosion on the outer edges and they definitely weren't shiny. The Floyd was also pretty dusty and had a few little rusty spots, most prominently on the area I circled in this pic:



And just to be clear, I didn't take that picture, that's a different guitar. I'm just using it as an example.

Here are some more pics that I took on my crappy phone:













You can kinda see the rust in that one ^


Sorry if the sizing is weird on those, my phone's camera is weird.

Anyway, I could use a little input. The guitar played pretty well IMO, so I'm still thinking about buying this. Will it be easy to clean this thing up? Is the little bit of rust in the bridge a huge problem? Let's say I do buy it and somehow decide I no longer like it over the summer or something, will I be able to sell it easily and get back what I paid for it?


Also, one more question. You guys always mention market value... where is the market? Where do you guys buy and sell these things? I couldn't find another Rhoads Pro from the 90's on ebay or craigslist, so am I looking in the right places?

Thanks

[potatohead]

If the frets are not worn too bad, the rest is easy. Surface rust is no big deal on the frets (easy to clean off) and Floyd parts are all replaceable and cheap like borscht, especially the screws which is what looks rusted. Heck, you can buy a brand new Floyd for $180 or so and still come under market value for the guitar.

[etepbbb]

The Pro models came with cream binding, not white. For the price I'd buy it.

[wildrat666]

ive just bought a white one professional. for800 dollars, great guitar...beats my RR1 usa

[pro-fusion]

For $520? Buy it! It doesn't appear to have substantial fretwear, which is what usually ends up requiring professional repair on older guitars. It should be good to go right from the shop. That rust on the Floyd is no big deal. If the screw still turns, you'll never notice it. I have Floyds and Schallers in far worse cosmetic shape that still work perfectly.

The rust and gunk on the frets will come off with a simple application of #0000 steel wool.