help with a ElDegas

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charles
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Re: help with a ElDegas

Post by charles »

You read about the "Matsumoku fire" all over the internet. I wonder how the story gained prominence?
I started ElDegas.com many years ago to help celebrate and inform about El Degas instruments. It all started with a used Ric 4000 bass copy I bought in circa 2000.

El Degas stable as of 03/2022: 42 :shock: (13 bass, 26 electric, 3 acoustic)
oldgrinch
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Re: help with a ElDegas

Post by oldgrinch »

maybe is there was someway to get hold of this Kamel Chenaouy guy on this page he may be able to answer some questions about factories n such.

http://www.guitarscanada.com/showthread ... 91df096718
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Re: help with a ElDegas

Post by oldgrinch »

i picked up the univox today im going to clean it up tomorrow n see whats what. im not too worried about it i paid even less for this than i did the elDegas,talk later
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Barry
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Re: help with a ElDegas

Post by Barry »

charles wrote:You read about the "Matsumoku fire" all over the internet. I wonder how the story gained prominence?
Probably speculation initially since not many paid attention to what was coming out of Japan at the time (the self-indulgent '80's you know).

And the Japanese are a proud people, saving "face" is paramount. Simple financial failure may have been an unbearable truth, so a natural calamity would have been a better story to the outside world. There are also lots of reports of the factory being destroyed in an earthquake. Also false of course.

I can tell you emphatically that Matsumoku went bankrupt. We have the head designer for Westone and St. Louis Music as a member on the Westone Forums and you can read the Mats history on the website and in his posts.
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charles
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Re: help with a ElDegas

Post by charles »

oldgrinch wrote:maybe is there was someway to get hold of this Kamel Chenaouy guy on this page he may be able to answer some questions about factories n such.

http://www.guitarscanada.com/showthread ... 91df096718
I personally find that story to be very suspect. "El Degas" created by a guitar shop in France, and then the brand name somehow has the sort of cache that causes it to be kept alive/resurrected and picked up by B&J in NYC for the North American market? I don't buy it.
I started ElDegas.com many years ago to help celebrate and inform about El Degas instruments. It all started with a used Ric 4000 bass copy I bought in circa 2000.

El Degas stable as of 03/2022: 42 :shock: (13 bass, 26 electric, 3 acoustic)
oldgrinch
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Joined: Mon Feb 24, 2014 8:37 am

Re: help with a ElDegas

Post by oldgrinch »

A few pics of the old Univox. It has a bit of fretboard wear (kinda expected for something at least 35 years old) but other wise its not in bad shape. The electrics all work fine.Its the size of a mini strat. Not something ill be playing, ill hang it on the wall for a while.

http://imgur.com/a/1mA7Y
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charles
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Re: help with a ElDegas

Post by charles »

Interesting pickup setup on that one.
I started ElDegas.com many years ago to help celebrate and inform about El Degas instruments. It all started with a used Ric 4000 bass copy I bought in circa 2000.

El Degas stable as of 03/2022: 42 :shock: (13 bass, 26 electric, 3 acoustic)
oldgrinch
Posts: 12
Joined: Mon Feb 24, 2014 8:37 am

Re: help with a ElDegas

Post by oldgrinch »

yeah sounds different than a regular strat more like a tele with the two pickups n 3 position toggle. oh well cute little thing its different lol
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Re: help with a ElDegas

Post by oldgrinch »

i saw a description of a Univox guitar named the Mini Ripper and it matched this one perfectly unfortunately no pics with that description but maybe thats what it is. well i guess ill go see what else i can find.Ill never have as many or the quality of Barrys or Charles collection you have some beautiful guitars but i got the fever lol.
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Barry
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Re: help with a ElDegas

Post by Barry »

I've just been reading that referenced thread.
The brothers created 3 brands : EL DEGAS, D'ANGELICA, MOUNTAIN. all amde (sic) in Japan, intially for the needs of the shop
Are we to seriously believe this that these were developed for a single music shop???

I could not find any reference at all to D'Angelica, but of course there is D'Angelico a very well known brand established 1905 and based in New York. If he's referring to that he's a lunatic!

The Mountain brand does surface on a search and is more correctly called CF Mountain a blatant rip off of CF Martin. They look to be of good quality though.

Again, it makes little financial sense, even back in the 70's, for a manufacturer(s) to produce a few private label brand guitars for a single music shop. No way they could have been sold inexpensively, and I seriously doubt they would have "sold bulks" on that basis. They would have to have been the size of a Walmart!
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