Vintage 1970s Epiphone ET290 Matsumoku Crestwood, Wilshire, Coronet L@@K!!

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Up for auction is a mid-70s Epiphone ET-290 electric guitar in Cherryburst. I'm very familiar with these guitars, as I have owned a few. They are one of my favorite "undiscovered gems" from a great musical era, made at the legendary Matsumoku guitar plant in Japan, famous for building "cheap" guitars with great quality. They have a nice thin, fast neck, and a cool tone similar to an SG. I'm going to describe this as accurately as I can. Please keep in mind that the guitar is almost 40 years old and some of the issues I'm mentioning are very normal for a guitar of this age. If it were like new, I'd want more money. As stated, the color is Cherryburst. The finish is very nice, minus these few flaws: 3" vertical crack in laquer on back of headstock 1" horizontal crack in laquer on back of headstock Binding is seperated a little by the nut on the high E side(common) Common srcapes, light scratches, and dings (old guitar, adds to the vintage vibe. People pay big money to have someone relic their new guitars) The hardware is nice for its age. The worst of it is the tailstop. Bridge is not original. It's a new Gotoh bridge that has been ground down to lower the action. The original sits much lower. Original bridge and posts included. 1 knob has a chip on an edge. New ones are dirt cheap. Pickup covers are better than you'd expect, especially the neck cover. Tuners look pretty nice cosmetically. Functionally....so so. I'm a fan of Wilkinson locking tuners. Frets, Neck, Pickups: Frets are in good shape. Not very much wear. Fretboard is in good shape. Mother of Pearl inlays are nice. Plays pretty decent, but frets out/sounds a little dead past the 12th fret. Could play better with the right set up, fret leveling, and some medium jumbos. These guitars are a hit or miss when it comes to frets. My other ET-290 came stock with medium jubo frets, this one did not. Pickups feedback easily with high gain. They sound good, tone is there. I thought I'd wax pot them to tighten the windings, but I just don't have time. I have the parafin and beeswax to do the job and will include it upon request. Look it up on youtube. Seems like a good fix and pretty simple to do. I own another ET-290, and it gets feedback easily too. Wax is a good solution, or comparable pickups are dirt cheap. I have great luck with Dragonfire PUs. Overall, this is a good looking guitar when you look past the normal wear and tear for a vintage guitar that has been played. With a little TLC, this guitar could be a real player. I took it into Guitar Center looking for another bridge, and I was swamped with customers and employees wanting to buy it as soon as I checked in at the door. It's not a real common guitar, and the style is very appealing. These guitars are becoming more and more collectible every day. I saw it in a local mom and pop music store and couldn't help but to rescue it. I just have too many guitars and not enough time for this one. I'm a professional guitarist of 25 years, and have several guitars that I gravitate to when playing out. If you have time to tinker, or you know how to do a great set up, this will be a killer in a short time. Shipping: USA LOWER 48 BIDDERS ONLY PLEASE Guitar will be shipped in a molded Fender Strat hardshell case. The case has seen better days, and I wouldn't use it day to day, but it's very suitable for protection during shipping. I'd never ship a guitar without a case. Will ship UPS Ground for $35 insured. Feedback: I'll have to cancel bids on users with poor feedback, or ones that come off as being shady. My track record is great with ebay, shipping is fast, packaging is done right. Thank you for looking..... read more

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