Soloist help

[GrimRiffer]

So I am trying to figure out what type of soloist a fella is offering in trade. H/S/S three mini toggles to switch each pickup on/off. Volume and tone. Neck thru construction. No binding. Dot inlays. White Jackson Logo and Made In USA. Rosewood board. Neon Orange color. EMG pickups. serial number is *( cant make out in photo) *2511 Any help regarding what year, model, and estimated value would be greatly appreciated. I tried uploading photos but I kept getting an error. Thanks.

[pianoguyy]

what type of Soloist he is selling???

Back when the serial was J2511, they were called Soloist. There was no other 'type'.

No binding, dot inlays, and rosewood would qualify as a Student Soloist, if it was during the years the Student was made. If it wasn't, then it would just be a Soloist that was ordered without any bling.


Don't let the term 'student' scare you. It isn't a 'mini' or an entry level unit. They were every bit a Soloist. It just means that it didn't have the 'niceties' - such as what a student on a budget would get. A plain guitar to go along with that Raman Noodle dinner. None of the flashy stuff that was needed for the professional working musicians of the day.


Think of the Student models like...
If you've ever bought a Carvin, or even just toyed with their "build a guitar" website -
Model X starts at $1000, which is the equivalent of the Student.
There are a few choices (black white red) that are free.
But once you start actually "building a guitar" (adding a trem and a nut lock or a special color like blue), you are now looking at $3000.

[GrimRiffer]

what type of Soloist he is selling???

Back when the serial was J2511, they were called Soloist. There was no other 'type'.

No binding, dot inlays, and rosewood would qualify as a Student Soloist, if it was during the years the Student was made. If it wasn't, then it would just be a Soloist that was ordered without any bling.


Don't let the term 'student' scare you. It isn't a 'mini' or an entry level unit. They were every bit a Soloist. It just means that it didn't have the 'niceties' - such as what a student on a budget would get. A plain guitar to go along with that Raman Noodle dinner. None of the flashy stuff that was needed for the professional working musicians of the day.


Think of the Student models like...
If you've ever bought a Carvin, or even just toyed with their "build a guitar" website -
Model X starts at $1000, which is the equivalent of the Student.
There are a few choices (black white red) that are free.
But once you start actually "building a guitar" (adding a trem and a nut lock or a special color like blue), you are now looking at $3000.

Thanks! Any idea of value. This appears to be a 1989 Student model Soloist.

[pianoguyy]

Any idea of value.

It is a Jackson Soloist Made in the USA

It's financial value will be somewhere between $400 and $12,000 - depending on the buyer and the day of the week.
Do you want this guitar more than you want the other one? If yes, it is worth making the trade. If not... send them my way. I have something he will like.

[metalhobo]

In my opinion, which may be wrong, I would think a fair value for a 1989 student would be $800-$1600 depending on the condition. like pianoguyy said there can be a huge variability in what is actually obtainable when selling a vintage guitar, especially one that was built to order.

[Number Of The Priest]

A serial number of J25xx would place it in 1986: https://www.jacksonguitars.com/support/neck-thru

You didn't say what type of bridge it has. If you prefer a Floyd Rose bridge, the guitar could have an Original Floyd Rose (though they weren't standard for Jackson or Charvel for that period) or possibly a Jackson JT6. More than likely the bridge is a Kahler. If you're not someone who has a preference, then that likely won't affect the value for you. If, for example, you're the type to "hate Kahlers", you might not be as tempted to spend as you might for a Floyd-style bridge.

[Landshark2020]

My '86 "Student" is as basic as they get. 1 pickup, tone/volume/boost, Kahler trem., no binding, dot inlays, rosewood neck. Still plays great.

https://ibb.co/BZ1bvz4
https://ibb.co/qDd48Zf
https://ibb.co/d22YkS4
https://ibb.co/LQXrTPk

[GrimRiffer]

A serial number of J25xx would place it in 1986: https://www.jacksonguitars.com/support/neck-thru

You didn't say what type of bridge it has. If you prefer a Floyd Rose bridge, the guitar could have an Original Floyd Rose (though they weren't standard for Jackson or Charvel for that period) or possibly a Jackson JT6. More than likely the bridge is a Kahler. If you're not someone who has a preference, then that likely won't affect the value for you. If, for example, you're the type to "hate Kahlers", you might not be as tempted to spend as you might for a Floyd-style bridge.

It has a Floyd (German) and will likely be coming home with me!

[pianoguyy]

My '86 "Student" is as basic as they get. 1 pickup, tone/volume/boost, Kahler trem., no binding, dot inlays, rosewood neck. Still plays great.

I remember that one. We couldn't figure out why it had that style of Kahler on it. When we speak of Kahler on a US guitar, we are talking about the other model.

[pianoguyy]

It has a Floyd (German) and will likely be coming home with me!

From the factory, a Floyd on an early Jackson is very rare.
Floyd Rose had a deal with Kramer. Only Kramer guitars came with Floyd Rose tremolos. If you wanted a Floyd Rose you would have to buy one somewhere, and then send it to Jackson to put on your guitar.

[pianoguyy]

A serial number of J25xx would place it in 1986

1989 to 1986 also changes the factory from Onatario to San Dimas and was when Grover still fully owned the company.
Which, as we all know, makes it special.

[Number Of The Priest]

It has a Floyd (German) and will likely be coming home with me!

Sounds like a winner! Looking forward to seeing the pics you post!

[slayer]

Definitely. Can`t wait to see pictures of it!! I`d love to have a 1 hum student soloist with a real floyd or kahler pro.