Anyone know if this is preFMIC or FMIC?
- Thread starter fazeka
- Start date
Uncle Daddy
Friend of Fred
Pre. The 2 piece neck and rear covers are the give away. Still good though.
Sorry, no other pics. Guitar is not mine.
audept
Senior Gretsch-Talker
My pre-FMIC Jet has the same rear covers with the serial number engraved on the control cavity one. With a 2003 date it may be a transitional model. Could be Ceramic Filtertrons or Alnico HS Filtertrons. As Henry says only a closeup look at the polepiece screws will tell.
Highroller
Country Gent
Yeah, call it "Transitional".
That it's sporting a "JT" serial number at all tells you its FMIC era, at least from a "legal" standpoint. But an early one like that is gonna have a lot of pre-FMIC features and specs.
I’d expect to find the ceramic filtertrons in there, and that wouldn’t really be such a bad thing! Despite what you may have read, they’re not junk. They’re pretty good pups, with some serious growl to them when cranked. Granted, a little less twangy than the Alnico ones that replaced them, but we’re talking a matter of degrees there. Imho, they still sound just like a Gretsch should!
That it's sporting a "JT" serial number at all tells you its FMIC era, at least from a "legal" standpoint. But an early one like that is gonna have a lot of pre-FMIC features and specs.
I’d expect to find the ceramic filtertrons in there, and that wouldn’t really be such a bad thing! Despite what you may have read, they’re not junk. They’re pretty good pups, with some serious growl to them when cranked. Granted, a little less twangy than the Alnico ones that replaced them, but we’re talking a matter of degrees there. Imho, they still sound just like a Gretsch should!
DaddyDog
Country Gent
Not a takeover. An agreement regarding marketing, distribution, etc. Fender didn't buy Gretsch. It's not like the Terada factory in Japan suddenly had new management, and they changed all the parts on day one. Besides, Gretsch guitars are constantly in transition. Don't sweat it. Buy it and enjoy!
bluenote23
Country Gent
So as others have said, it is a transition model.
Two piece neck and cavity covers are preFMIC. Grover Sta-tites, serial number format and Space Control are FMIC.
The pickups are in question and it might have preFMC mini pots but you can't tell from the photos.
If weight is a concern, I would ask the seller for the weight of the guitar. My preFMIC Red Sparkle Jet is 9.5 lbs while my 2005 Roundup weighs 6.8 lbs. Big difference.
Two piece neck and cavity covers are preFMIC. Grover Sta-tites, serial number format and Space Control are FMIC.
The pickups are in question and it might have preFMC mini pots but you can't tell from the photos.
If weight is a concern, I would ask the seller for the weight of the guitar. My preFMIC Red Sparkle Jet is 9.5 lbs while my 2005 Roundup weighs 6.8 lbs. Big difference.
My 1997 Pre-FMIC has the same neck, same access covers, neck, zero fret, head stock, and bigsby, they are both built at the Terada plant. I agree with @bluenote23, the easiest way to tell is by looking at pots, the small 250K pots are pre FMIC. To me the fit, finish, playability and guitar are identical. Upgrading the pots is a low cost simple upgrade. For me, if the price is attractive, I would not hesitate to buy the Pre-FMIC version. The weight of my 1997 pre-FMIC is 9.3#, my 2007 weighs in at 7.7#. Neck dive is not an issue for either one.
YourBlueRoom
Gretschie
2003 was a cool and unique year for Gretsch... you might find some helpful info in this thread... https://www.gretsch-talk.com/threads/those-2003-models-year-of-the-gretsch-enigmatics.172331/
Matter of taste. I prefer the ceramic ones.
wabash slim
I Bleed Orange
2003? Must mean the Historic series were transitional guitars.
I don't see that uniting with Fender has hurt Gretsch at all.
I don't see that uniting with Fender has hurt Gretsch at all.
Highroller
Country Gent
Hehe, I'm kinda fond of them too. Does it show?
One thing to realize is that - like DaddyDog says - Fender didn't change everything overnight. It took years to implement a lot of the changes. For example, as I recall it - they didn't "fix" the Nashville 5-ply bodies (changing them to 3-ply) until well into 2005.
People make a big fuss about 'pre" and "post" FMIC, like it was a line drawn in the sand. It wasn't. It was an ongoing process.
I dunno, the OP's Space Control looks pretty "Pre-FMIC" to me, about the same as both my late 90's models. A far cry from the round dome ones from that other "pre-FMIC" era - the 1950's.
I believe the thing with Space Controls is that Yes, they got updated, but it actually happened prior to FMIC's involvement. Started out as a revival era quirk and wound up sticking around.
afire
Friend of Fred
The shape of the control cover says pre-FMIC to me, but as has been pointed out, it's not as though every detail changed on the same day.
Whatever it is, it's a well made Terada guitar. If one has a preference for ceramics over alnico, or vice versa, that's an easy enough mod. And if this was made before they started using more robust full-sized pots and switches, that's also an easy upgrade.
Whatever it is, it's a well made Terada guitar. If one has a preference for ceramics over alnico, or vice versa, that's an easy enough mod. And if this was made before they started using more robust full-sized pots and switches, that's also an easy upgrade.
bluenote23
Country Gent
I may have been wrong there. I thought that all preFMIC Jets came with the awful preFMIC roller bearing bridge (my 1997 Jet has one of these) but maybe some models (like 62s) were exceptions.
Hammerhands
Country Gent
I like this one a lot.
