The Electra Forums

Up for sale is a guitar my dad purchased in the 80's and gave to me about 7 years ago. The guitar is all original and has not been played much in the last few years. I started a new guitar build project and I am selling this for cash OR trade for specific Fender Strat parts/ pickups. I will take as many pictures with my HD camera as you would like. For now here is a stock photo that pretty much identical to how my guitar looks. http://imgur.com/SOS9J - Email me at Jakemoss82@yahoo.com with Electra in the subject line for any questions. As for the price. I am willing to negotiate and am not looking to rip anyone off or be ripped off.

Thanks for looking,

Jake

Hello Jake, I hope you can stick around and catch the fever for these well made Japanese guitars. The guitar pictured is a X185. About the only difference between a X185 and the X189 is the bridge. The X185 (in your linked picture) has a 'vintage vibrato', whereas the X189 would sport a more refined two point floating tremolo. The pickup / electronics / hardware and some of the paint finishes were the same between the two models.

Can you post any pics of yours, or at least describe the bridge? You can check the spreadsheet in the members only section for a historical listing of sale prices for phoenix (as well as other) Electra guitars. Best of luck.

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Electra Guitar Videos ===> http://www.youtube.com/user/mjm33mjm?feature=watch

Thank you for that information. I plan on owning another Electra (different style) as soon as the funds will allow. I will post pictures as soon as I can.

Sorry for the delay. Pics will be posted today. It looks like the x185 Phoenix - the bridge is not a "two point" it is vintage style.

Here is a pretty good picture of the bridge and pickups http://imgur.com/xJp5k (confirming it is indeed an X185RD) I have more pictures of the neck and headstock coming in just a moment.

Here are the rest of the pics I took. Keep in mind this guitar needs polished/dusted.

http://imgur.com/anP0I

http://imgur.com/D7hpq

http://imgur.com/rGNzQ

Thanks for posting the pictures Jake, it looks nice. It has the somewhat rare knobs with the phoenix bird on them which tell you what the different push/pulls do, a nice touch on the part of SLM. I'm not sure if those are just stickers or different knobs, they are uncommon enough that I've never seen them up close.

I'm reading your above post and feel compelled to try to make you reconsider selling it, it's been in your family for nearly 30 years after all.

i) There are very fews things a Strat can do that a Phoenix can't
ii) Only made for about three years, and not being made anymore!
iii) The Stratocaster has been in continuous production for nearly 60 years, and has been cloned to death
iv) 18 different tones possible compared to a Strats almost anemic 5 sounds
v) Very consistent necks, compared to the potpourri of strat neck profiles

Obviously there are cosmetic differences, and the Phoenix line doesn't have the strongest resale, but maybe that is another reason to hold on to her... I decided a while back that I like playing uncommon guitars, and not be part of the crowd of followers, kind of like the guy who rides a Triumph or Indian instead of a Harley Davidson. Best of Luck, Mike.

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Electra Guitar Videos ===> http://www.youtube.com/user/mjm33mjm?feature=watch

Once again I gotta agree with Mike here, Jake. The current value of that axe in terms of $$'s unfortunately does not come close to touching it's value as a player. Bags and bags of versatility are standard with that guit.

To give you an estimate of dollar value I picked one up exactly like yours (minus original control knobs) about 8 months back for $180 from an area Music Go Round and the manager was more than happy to deal me down from the $275 they were asking for it.

If at all possible keep it man... you would pay several times over for a current model from anyone to get it as loaded with the options that are stock on that Phoenix.

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...throw me a frickin' bone here, people...

This. Absolutely.

It pains me to even contemplate this, but it would even serve better as a wall hangar in your house, being a family piece, and then at least it can be taken down and played!!

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"... and on the eighth day, God created New Zealanders.

Because even the Australians need heroes."

I completely understand what you guys are saying. The versatility of being able to go from single coil to humbuckesr is definitely amongst my favorite features of this guitar. I guess my main motivation of selling this guitar is that cash flow is not the best and my love for guitars has me knee deep in a vintage strat build/restoration. You folks might have "talked me off the ledge" per se. I have other things I can sell to finance my guitar build. Although, if I were to sell the guitar to anyone it would be someone from here who appreciates the guitar's history and craftsmanship. That being said, if i hear the right offer it might be tempting. Oh and here are some close ups of the control knob http://imgur.com/TMHYY

Jake

I just found a graphite 185 at a pawn shop looking all ignored and very underpriced. I never cared for these by the looks of them but after plugging it in I bought it in less than 5 minutes of playing it. Heavy nice playing beauty and excellent sounding. To me it sounds just like a Strat and then some. It was nice to read the nice things y'all said about this guitar. I couldn't agree more! So very happy

Congrats! It'll probably sound and play even better once you put some new strings on her. I never see Electra's at the pawn shops up here, but love reading the stories! Have fun, Mike.

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Electra Guitar Videos ===> http://www.youtube.com/user/mjm33mjm?feature=watch

The middle pickup has a mean buzz. Is that just the nature of the beast?

Well the middle pickup is a single coil, so they are by nature more prone to hum. If you are close to your amp (or any magnetic source like a fan, etc) any pickup can potentially hum. Hum can be more pronounced with high gain settings on your amp. It could have a ground issue also. I think most players would agree that the sonic versatility of the third pickup outweigh any introduced noise problems. Experiment with your position in relation to your amplifier, try different angles too by turning your body as you listen, often you can find a position with lower level of hum for between songs, etc. Good luck.

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Electra Guitar Videos ===> http://www.youtube.com/user/mjm33mjm?feature=watch