Greco 921 sunburst guitar

[milliewilcox]

Hey all, I think I have a Greco 921 guitar--but I've had a hell of time trying to figure this out. There is no manufacturer label or serial number anywhere on the guitar as far as I can see. It looks like it was rubbed or peeled off the head of the of guitar. Anyways, my Grandfather picked it up for me at a tag sale for 8 dollars! That's including a Danelectro DM 25 amplifier. They both sound pretty amazing.

I've had a lot of trouble finding much information on the Greco 921--and haven't been able to see even one other in the sunburst such as mine.

I've seen this one in this old ad http://goyaguitars.tripod.com/catalog68_16.htm




help? info? much appreciated!

[BluesHawk]

The photo could have some reflecting light but the neck appears to be bound, and the body is bound. Those are signs of a higher-end model, and three pups is also a major indicator of higher quality. It appears to be in pretty good cosmetic shape, too. If you Google "Greco 921 Guitar", you'll get some interesting links. Check these links, for example:



Here's a vintage Greco website (they just added basses, too):



It appears you have a rare late-1960s Greco, one to get checked out and set up by a well-regarded Luthier who knows vintage guitars. You may know about vintage guitar care, but just in case...Don't let anyone work on your prize unless they are highly recommended by vintage players you trust.

Also it needs to be in a case, or at least wrapped in a heavy blanket for now, and kept away from heat, dampness, or cold. Enjoy it!

[milliewilcox]

Thanks so much for the response--I'll make sure I look around for a highly regarded and knowledgeable person to fix it for me.

It's a shame there isn't too much info online (at least that I can find) about specifically the 1960's Grecos. I'm very interested.

[VintAxe]

I think this is the link you probably intended to post BluesHawk:



Your guitar was built by Fujigen Gakki around 1967 and was most likely imported into the US by the Avnet company who also imported Goya guitars and bought Guild in 1966. You are right about the sunburst, it is an unusual finish on this model.

Fujigen Gakki is generally considered to be among the top Japanese builders of the era although their most collectable guitars are the copy guitars they made in the 1970's/early 1980's. Their "super real" series from 1980 are highly prized Gibson and Fender knockoffs.

You did well, your guitar would probably fetch somewhere between $300-$400 in a retail setting; maybe a little more on a good day.

[milliewilcox]

Thanks for all the info! Is it normal for there to be no serial number or label on the guitar??

[VintAxe]

Yes, it is very normal.

Most Japanese builders didn't use serial numbers in the 60's. When they did adopt serial numbers in the 70's the numbers were usually stamped on the neck plates. The neck plates were then installed at random so there isn't much date of manufacture information that can be gleaned from the serial number. Now the Germans and the Swedes, those are neck plate serial numbers that mean something.

Most likely, your guitar never had a brand badge on it. These guitars were manufactured without brand names and the companies that imported and distributed them put their brand badge on them. Some distributors didn't bother to add brand badges, I suspect your Greco was one of these.

It is also possible the headstock badge was removed. When I was a kid my peers and I all wanted Fenders and Gibsons but most of our parents couldn't afford them so we got knock off Japanese import guitars instead. To hide our shame, we would pry off the Japanese badge since no badge was better than a Japanese badge. One of my friends even took a hack saw to the headstock of his Japanese import to give it more of a Fender shape. No one was fooled but it seemed to boost his self esteem