Is this a 450S?

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Author Message   Ashbass (Ashbass) Posted on Tuesday, June 10, 2003 - 4:32 pm:    I picked up what looks to be nice early 90s Ibanez S series guitar off of ebay a few days ago. Apparently the seller didn't know what it was at all and I got it for $150 :-) http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2536203804 It has VI and VII humbuckers and a single coil in the middle, a floyd-type trem (edge?), plain neck screw plate (as opposed to ornate Bensalem PA plate), and no "S series" logo on the headstock. Does anyone have a more definite idea about this guitar? thanks ashley   Mr_Roadstar (Mr_Roadstar) Posted on Tuesday, June 10, 2003 - 7:27 pm:    Ashley, Looks like you got a deal! Post the serial number (for build date) and we'll figure out what you have. Cheers Steve   Mr_Roadstar (Mr_Roadstar) Posted on Tuesday, June 10, 2003 - 8:10 pm:    Ashley, A quick trip through the literature turned up only one model that matches the photos from the auction. And yes, it does appear to be a 450S. Looks like the 450S was only available in 1991 and possibly early '92. The serial number will verify it. Cheers Steve   Ashbass (Ashbass) Posted on Tuesday, June 10, 2003 - 8:57 pm:    Thanks Steve Q: Do you know what the differences are between a 450S and a 540S? They seem practially identical. What makes the 450S a 450S rather than a 540S? The guitar will be here tomorrow and I'll post the serial then. A deal? Yes. But what about GAS? You see, I was only looking for a new neck for my '88 540R to replace the wizard neck on it. The wizard neck came about after I broke the headstock off in 89 or 90 and got a new neck ("your thinnest model, please!" Could it be an RG neck with the last two frets cut off?) from Ibanez. Now I'm wanting a thicker neck again. So I'm looking for necks on ebay and hit this gem. Hmmm. This seller is clueless I think. An S series for under $100 with no reserve? And $7 for shipping? He, he, he. So now I'm thinking to score this guitar cheap and sell it not so cheap. But I'm still without a neck for the 540R. Now that the guitar is almost here and I've pretty much determined what it is, damned if I don't think I may want to keep it. I didn't like the looks of the Saber when I bought the Radius in '89. But now I appreciate its sleek efficiency. My wife's going to feak on me. thanks again and see you tomorrow. ashley   Mr_Roadstar (Mr_Roadstar) Posted on Wednesday, June 11, 2003 - 11:38 am:    Ashley, In the days before the letter moved to the front of the model number, there were many variations on the 540S. The standard 540S was a hum/sing/sing pickup arrangement with dot inlays. A 540SHH had 2 humbuckers. A 540SLTD was a hum/sing/hum with shark tooth inlays. The 450S appears to be a 540SLTD with dot inlays! I'll need to do some more research on neck profiles. Your 540R is a 22 fretter, yes? Cheers Steve   Ashbass (Ashbass) Posted on Wednesday, June 11, 2003 - 12:10 pm:    Yes, the 540R is 22 fret. I'm thinking that the wizard neck wasn't offered on anything other than the RGs at the time and that those all had 24 frets. So I figured that my 22 fret wizard might be a custom item from Ibanez. ashley   Ashbass (Ashbass) Posted on Wednesday, June 11, 2003 - 3:54 pm:    I got the guitar and it is in better shape than I'd hoped from the photos. The body has no serious dings that I won't be able to buff out. The neck has the typical stress fracture behind the nut. That's a bummer. The serial is: F050678 so that would dicate a '90 model. I took everything apart to clean it as it was very dirty. The body has 450S written in marker in the neck cavity. The neck has 440S stamped on it's bolt area and is a wizard neck. Well, back to cleaning and buffing. Have you any experience with gluing those neck cracks? My 540R had a very small one between the screws and the tech who fixed it didn't appear to do much more than sand off the one raised edge. I know from Dan Erlewine that I can let some very watery supe glue seep into the cracks and then clamp. I just don't know what all I'll need for the clamping. ashley   Ashbass (Ashbass) Posted on Saturday, June 14, 2003 - 1:23 am:    Well, fourteen years later I still don't like the feel of the Saber/S-series body. So I fixed the neck and put it on my 540R and put the 450S body up for auction at Ebay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=33043&item=2538729930 If the neck fix holds, I'll be putting up my '89 Wizard neck soon as well. ashley   Mr_Roadstar (Mr_Roadstar) Posted on Saturday, June 14, 2003 - 2:36 am:    That's the beauty of Ibanez, eh? Different strokes for different folks! Glad to hear the 540R is back in one piece. If the bid doesn't get out of hand, I might just have to have that 450S... Cheers Steve   Ashbass (Ashbass) Posted on Sunday, June 15, 2003 - 2:01 pm:    Steve, What do you think that body with extras is worth? I have a reserve set but don't really know if it is fair or not. ashley   Mr_Roadstar (Mr_Roadstar) Posted on Sunday, June 15, 2003 - 4:52 pm:    That's a tough call. I'm sure it'll bring over $100, but how much over is anybody's guess. Cheers Steve

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