28v6r Posted November 30, 2008 Share Posted November 30, 2008 Just thinking here chaps, we see many a topic of "FAKE" guitars and we're getting pretty tired of "spot the fake" and how its all down to serial nos. being stamped on the the back of the headstock "that anyone can take and use" to foil guitar data but how about this instead... COULD Epiphone not remove the serial numbers all together and bar code the back of the headstock that way the serial no is unknown, secondly as a supplier of fine quality equipment, should they not keep a log of serial nos that each individual dealer has and has sold, that way they know to whom the guitar has been sold to and better still if it has been repaired i.e it comes back in to a "service centre" that has to log bar code on to find out last "improvements/service etc". I had thought initially that it would be down to the owner to register the guitar in the interest of safety but it could surely be organized in the interest of security.QA that the dealer be rewarded via commission (??) to participate on the logging of guitars sold etc In the Engineering world we use bar coding all the time to identify batch codes, year made, materials etc etc and you don't see many "copies/fakes" floating around out there in the North Sea! Maybe even micro dotting/chipping the guitar? Over to you "Soapers" to debate.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarxBros Posted November 30, 2008 Share Posted November 30, 2008 Just thinking here chaps' date=' we see many a topic of "FAKE" guitars and we're getting pretty tired of "spot the fake" and how its all down to serial nos. being stamped on the the back of the headstock "that anyone can take and use" to foil guitar data but how about this instead... [b']COULD[/b] Epiphone not remove the serial numbers all together and bar code the back of the headstock that way the serial no is unknown, secondly as a supplier of fine quality equipment, should they not keep a log of serial nos that each individual dealer has and has sold, that way they know to whom the guitar has been sold to and better still if it has been repaired i.e it comes back in to a "service centre" that has to log bar code on to find out last "improvements/service etc". I had thought initially that it would be down to the owner to register the guitar in the interest of safety but it could surely be organized in the interest of security.QA that the dealer be rewarded via commission (??) to participate on the logging of guitars sold etc In the Engineering world we use bar coding all the time to identify batch codes, year made, materials etc etc and you don't see many "copies/fakes" floating around out there in the North Sea! Maybe even micro dotting/chipping the guitar? Over to you "Soapers" to debate.... Anyone can buy a barcode reader, that would solve nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JefferySmith Posted November 30, 2008 Share Posted November 30, 2008 I'm afraid that the best way to ensure that you don't get a counterfeit copy is to buy from one of the big dealerships. Ebay is a crapshoot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leicester35 Posted November 30, 2008 Share Posted November 30, 2008 I think that these are all great ideas that 28v6r has suggested... Unfortunately, I think that Epiphone would turn around and say: "there's already a guaranteed way to make sure that you're getting a proper Epiphone - buy it from one of our authorized dealers!" There will always be people who, for whatever reason, decide that the dealer price is too much and want to undercut it. These are the people who would benefit from greater security techniques but ultimately, at the moment, they are also the people who are not buying from Epiphone's sophisticated dealer network...so I imagine the company isn't losing too much sleep about their plight. Ultimately, the person who would really benefit from enhanced security is the genuine used buyer. In my opinion, people who buy a "new" Epiphone on ebay which is "top quality" and "shipped directly from China to your door" (and $300 cheaper than the exact same model in Guitar Center) have opted for a risk, and, like all gamblers, they run the risk of losing out. People looking for a genuine used Epiphone deserve to be protected, however. When I last bought a new Epi, I noticed that the limited lifetime warranty does not even transfer beyond the original buyer if the guitar is sold. This irked me a bit...as the 2nd owner of a Hyundai I inherited the warranty from the guy who bought it new, so if I sell my Epi, why shouldn't its new owner be entitled to the warranty (provided that I have done nothing to void it.) I agree with 28v6r - there should be a combination of security techniques and an an Epi-administered database, which would allow a potential buyer to verify whether or not an individual guitar is the real deal (or not.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LesBonfire Posted November 30, 2008 Share Posted November 30, 2008 no he has a good point...if they were to actually have a database they could track where the guitars were shipped and who they sold it to. so if they shipped a set of zakk wyldes to long n mcquades in toronto they would know which ones went there. that way if somebody say in kentucky calls gibson/epiphone asking bout their serial number and it matches one that was shipped to toronto...then its that easy. however chipping the guitars is also a good idea. they do it for dogs dammit! do it for our guitars already, you think they'd come up with something! they have people working exclusively on this at gibson/epiphone! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWANG Posted November 30, 2008 Share Posted November 30, 2008 carvin uses some deal hidden in them.. so the thief doesn't even see it.. but it can be read, I guess, and traced that way by those, dealers and such, that bother. TWANG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted December 1, 2008 Share Posted December 1, 2008 I guess that RFID, the tags that are hidden in merchandise would be an option, but the average person couldn't read that. It could be in the guitar and the stamped serial number would have to match the RFID tag. Counterfeiters could create the tag themselves, I suppose. That would only work from the time that the factory started using the tags. Vintage guitars and older models would still be counterfeited easily. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitmore Willy Posted December 1, 2008 Share Posted December 1, 2008 All good points, however.... I think it would be a temporary fix at best. "build a better safe and I will find you a smarter thief"......(not being glib here)....just seems to be a fact of history. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notes_Norton Posted December 1, 2008 Share Posted December 1, 2008 <...>"build a better safe and I will find you a smarter thief"<...> Exactly. When it comes down to it, the only way to be sure is to purchase from an honest, authorized dealer. And I don't know how to figure out if the dealer is honest or not. I do most of my shopping at a local Ma and Pa music store. They know me, and they trust me (enough to loan me pieces of equipment to see if I like them or not), so I figure I can trust them. If I were ever to buy a guitar on-line, it would be either from the manufacturer or a respected outlet like Sweetwater - someone who has too much to lose by selling bogus gear and risk losing their franchise. Insights and incites by Notes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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