Help need with this PRS Tremonti? Is it a Fake?

LKV_Jazzmaster

So I've come across this locally but the guy said he can only post it which raised a few alarm bells but its a really good price. 

I know how to spot a Chibson and a Chickenbacker but not a fake prs! 

Help please! 

HE claims he has tags and receipts which ive asked for pics of (currently waiting on that) but I know full well they can be faked too! 

[Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/PShj4pN.jpg)
[Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/Mkbutx8.png)

Thanks in advance

LKV_Jazzmaster

Payment is via a Paypal invoice which I have received. So no gift payment or bank transfer

ICBM

Edit: the picture of the front of the guitar appears to be of a genuine one...


He may be only willing to post either because he's a scammer and he doesn't actually have the guitar (so it being genuine doesn't help), or because he's wary of the Paypal chargeback scam.

If you offer to collect and pay in cash and he still doesn't accept, most likely the former.

Too-good-to-be-true prices usually are - especially for some reason if they're 'odd' numbers instead of round ones... I don't know why scammers seem to do that.

Octafish

Would a fake Chinese PRS be a PRC? .....I'll get me coat......

andy1839

The serial number looks odd.  There doesn't look to be any year designation.

The hollow birds were around 2008 but the D & G tuners share a screw which i thought was only on the older winged tuners, late 80s and early 90s.

The trem looks routed for upbends though so that's correct.

Weird.

I'm quite often wrong though.

Adamski

All the appointments look genuine - Those birds and the phase 2 tuners are from the right period. However - If he won't let you collect it then that's a major alarm bell for me. 

*Edit - Serial looks weird.....

andy1839

http://www.rareelectricguitar.com/mobile/goods.php?id=986

richardhomer

andy1839 said:

The serial number looks odd.  There doesn't look to be any year designation.

The hollow birds were around 2008 but the D & G tuners share a screw which i thought was only on the older winged tuners, late 80s and early 90s.

The trem looks routed for upbends though so that's correct.

Weird.

I'm quite often wrong though.

Serial number looks like no PRS I’ve owned - I think you’re right Andy.

LKV_Jazzmaster

Thanks for all the help gents. 

I've decided to leave this one well alone. 

£1000 for a Tremonti is probably to good to be true anyway! 

I just got excited I might be able to afford my first PRS haha.

andy1839

LKV_Jazzmaster said:

Thanks for all the help gents. 

I've decided to leave this one well alone. 

£1000 for a Tremonti is probably to good to be true anyway! 

I just got excited I might be able to afford my first PRS haha.

An easy was to tell is ask for a photo of the pickup cavity. That should have the serial number sticker, modcat and initials of who at the factory did the build, paint and final checks.

Edit: the more I look at it, the more I think that's two different guitars.
If the back of the neck is black the headstock facing should also be black, not the trans red.

jeztone2

That's dodgy as fuck. Every PRS I've ever seen has smaller writing on the headstock. No year. In this day an age, a cheap phone has a good quality camera.

I suspect its bait and switch. One good photo of a real guitar and some close-ups of a copy. Avoid.

Funkfingers

The machinehead alignment is pretty sloppy for a guitar in that price range. The finish on the back of the headstock lacks the mirror-like sheen of yer average USA model. As has already been mentioned, the serial number legend looks wrong - too big and too close to the machineheads to have been applied whilst the 'heads were fitted.

I wonder whether the guitar could have had a headstock break and sub-standard repair?

guitars4you

richardhomer said:

andy1839 said:

The serial number looks odd.  There doesn't look to be any year designation.

The hollow birds were around 2008 but the D & G tuners share a screw which i thought was only on the older winged tuners, late 80s and early 90s.

The trem looks routed for upbends though so that's correct.

Weird.

I'm quite often wrong though.

Serial number looks like no PRS I’ve owned - I think you’re right Andy.

I have doubts about this as well - serial number is much larger than others and no date prefix - Agree about the D+G tuners sharing the same screw - A feature from much earlier

Looks like it has some tag based on the larger pic - should have modcat code info again in the pick-up cavity to support this

Looks like more investigation required

LKV_Jazzmaster

Pretty sure it was a scam. He wouldn’t let me
collect. Sighted having a nervous disposition so he didn’t like dealing with people which is plausible. But then he said he doesn’t deal In cash. Every guitarist I’ve ever met deals in cash... especially with PayPal charges. 

Also checked his other items for sale and he has a brand new
iphone X for sale for £600 as well. 

One well avoided. 

LKV_Jazzmaster

Thank you all for the information though. I don’t know enough about PRS’s it seems. I’ll have to buy one from someone on here to make sure it’s reliable

ICBM

andy1839 said:

Edit: the more I look at it, the more I think that's two different guitars.
If the back of the neck is black the headstock facing should also be black, not the trans red.

Yes, that makes sense.

Adamski

Yeah actually two guitars. The front on picture is definitely a real Tremonti - you can even see the extra up-routing under the trem. The level of carve is also something fakes don’t usually get right. 

guitars4you

Adamski said:

Yeah actually two guitars. The front on picture is definitely a real Tremonti - you can even see the extra up-routing under the trem. The level of carve is also something fakes don’t usually get right. 

agree - parts of it look okay - It is the rear of the headstock that looks so wrong - Would love to see that modcat code info in the p/up cavity and/or the tag - Also on the case unless fallen off