The Electra Forums

When I bought my Endorser in 1983, the thing (besides the price) that influenced me the most was a poster. It was an advertisement in the music store. It had the X935CS on one side and a Les Paul (Custom, I think) on the other. It pointed out all of the things that made the Electra better, and I believe it is.

Has anyone seen this? Do you think it still exists somewhere?

Hello and Welcome to the forum b2b. You bought your Endorser new in '83? Very cool. Did you buy it in the midwest? What's your serial number? Did you change the pickups (looking at your avatar)? I have a pair of Pro Endorsers, and I recently bought what I believe is a 'BlackBurst' Endorser, Forum topic forthcoming. I haven't seen the ad that you speak of, but it sounds desirable, what were it's dimensions and material (card board, glossy paper?). Take care, Mike.

Yeah, I bought it new and changed out the pickups about a year later. These are Seymore Dunkin I can't remember what model (I think 1957 patent pending) I got one black and one zebra. The poster was on cardboard about 24" high and 18 wide.

B2B, do you still have the original pickups? I bet there are members of the forum who would be willing to take them off your hands. I'm curious what the serial number of your ProEndorser is, and where you bought it new? I don't think many of these were retailed outside of the midwest, but we're still gathering information. Thanks, Mike.

As a matter of fact , I think I still do have the original pickups. I'll have to check. I'll get back to you later. I purchased it from a music store that was going out of business in Webster, NY a suburb of Rochester. Funny thing is that I didn't see the poster in question at that store. I actually saw it in another music store in the Finger Lakes region of NY. The store was advertising it, but didn't have any. So I stumbled upon it later on. I'm trying to locate the receipt (I have it somewhere)so I can tell you what I paid. The s/n 3062493. What's the significance of the serial number?

Hello b2b, if you still have those pickups, have them 'waxed' since they are already out of the guitar. They are actually pretty nice pickups, but because they weren't waxed at the time of production, they will 'squeal' at high volumes. Apparently the wax takes care of any pockets of air which cause the wire coils to vibrate, or something, anyway it definitely helps. I don't have any wiring diagrams for the Endorsers, but we'll continue looking for that.

As I understand it, the 306 portion of your serial number indicate Year, month it was built (or at least when the neck was stamped), in your case June of 1983. All of the Endorsers I've seen were made between May and September of 1983, but thats why I ask, always looking for more information. The last four digits represent the consecutive guitar production for that year, which seems to indicate that Matsumoko was only making about 400 or 500 guitars a month for Electra SLM. One of my Endorsers is 3062429, which was probably made the same week as yours.

I've lost all kinds of receipts over the years, when I do find them now, I slip them in the case. It's always cool to be able to prove that you were the original purchaser. If I could only find my 1981 Rickenbacker receipt!

As many of the Members here have said, it is a both a blessing and a curse that Electras haven't appreciated relative to other guitars of the same period. It's really great that they are still reasonably priced and that some excellent guitars (both in condition and design) can be had by players who don't make six figures... but it's a shame that so many have been carved up and modified (not pointing at you!) because they are so inexpensive and people figure 'what the heck' it's not like its a Gibson. Also frustrating that they haven't gone up in value, all three of my Endorsers were had for less than they listed for 25 years ago. Which may eventually change, and I continue to keep an eye out for them.

Despite their Name, because no high profile Artists are seen using Electra Endorsers the market value never really reflected just how nice these guitars are. I read somewhere that SLM stopped making the Endorsers because they were just too expensive to produce at the time, and basically taking a loss on each one that they sold. Remember that probably less than 400 were actually produced, compared to the 1800 LP Standard 'bursts made by Gibson between '58 and '60. But again, Jimmy Page, Duane Allman and every other artist wasn't using Electras. Anyway, thanks for the info, Mike.

(ever go to Hesse Music in Binghamton, NY?)

Here is thorny's fantastic article on how to wax pot your pickups:

http://www.guitarnuts.com/technical/ele ... /index.php

I've potted 3 or 4 sets of Electra pickups, and it's done the trick every time. It not hard or expensive, either, and if you use scented candles it makes your pickups smell wonderful!

Matthew

...certainly much nicer than the blood, sweat and tears on my p'ups!!

Thanks for the info. I agree that the Endorser has never gotten the recognition that it deserved. Didn't Roger Fisher (or whoever was the guitarist for Heart), play one? As far as your point about the cost to produce the Endorser, you are absolutely right. I spoke with a guitar tech in the custom shop at St Louis Music some years ago, and I remember him telling me that to produce the guitar today (I don't remember what year that was), it would have to retail upwards of $2500!! So you know it's a quality piece.

(no, I've never actually stopped in Binghamton. Passed through a number of times.)

One of the guitar players for Heart - Howard Leese - endorsed a Washburn A20 - also a Matsumoku guitar! Don't know about Roger Fisher though - All the stuff I saw of him he was playing a LP or a Strat - but no telling what he was endorsing. What a GREAT player - all the classic Heart tunes from the 70s.

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Thorny