HELP. FAKE FLYING V...

[ArtWerkOrange]

... at least potentially so. I have searched for any info on FAKE "Amos" Bonamassa Flying Vs. My initial thought was, "why would China fake a made in China product," and then my second thought was... it is a perfect crime. I am only half kidding. The serial number seems legit in terms of numeric sequence, but there is no listing for it when I search. That only means nobody has archived the data, right? Anyway, what do you guys think? Is it worth the gamble? The price is on par with current sales, but the seller has sold one on Reverb and says he has three (well, now only two... allegedly). AS I said, I could not find evidence that this is a problem, but then again, I tend to be a trailblazer in this type of thing. I'm still a bit too green to have instincts on this type of deal. I am skeptical, but I also want the "Amos." Help me, please, mylespaul members. You are my only hope.
Thanks,
Craig

 

[KStopper65]

Link?

 

[ArtWerkOrange]

I am not sure why, but I feel like Reverb used to keep listing and images archived as "Sold" but no more access. The seller sent me this image with a different serial number. He is telling me it is mint, like his others. He will send pics, but I expect them to look like a mint Amos, just like the previous listing.

 

[DrBGood]

Not much can be sais without detailed photos.

 

[CB91710]

These have been sold out for 2 years.
Contact Epiphone/Gibson customer relations with the serial number and they can at least validate that much... but that doesn't mean the one you are looking at does have a copied serial number.

Where is the seller, and how much are they asking? What is the seller's history? Do you have a Reverb link for the sale?
"Too good to be true" on price usually is

I just looked for "Amos" on Reverb and only came up with one hit for $1600, local pickup only in New York.

 

[ArtWerkOrange]

These have been sold out for 2 years.
Contact Epiphone/Gibson customer relations with the serial number and they can at least validate that much... but that doesn't mean the one you are looking at does have a copied serial number.

Where is the seller, and how much are they asking? What is the seller's history? Do you have a Reverb link for the sale?
"Too good to be true" on price usually is

I just looked for "Amos" on Reverb and only came up with one hit for $1600, local pickup only in New York.

The seller just sold one of the three on Reverb last week. The link only shows a single stock image. The new one is not yet posted on Reverb. The seller is in China and he is a fairly new member. The only pic I have so far is the one he sent to me via Reverb message. He was asking $1500, but the one he sold was $1050. He has asked me to make an offer. Do you know if Reverb can hold the disbursement of funds until I can inspect the guitar? I have validated the serial number with Gibson, but as you mention, that does not mean it is the ONLY guitar with that serial number. The seller is quite articulate and seems like a decent fella, but the "Fake" warning signs, like having three of a long sold out guitar that could be sold for much more that he is asking. The price is not too good to be true, but it is very good considering how hard it is to find one. THANKS.

 

[CB91710]

Honestly, I would not deal with a Reverb seller from China unless I were local and could pick it up in person.
Major red flag with him sending you two different serial numbers, and the big price difference.
Stock photo is another red flag.
I still don't see the listing on Reverb... and if you are making a deal with him outside of Reverb, you have no protection.
Reverb can't/won't "hold" funds until you inspect, but they do offer limited levels of buyer protection... but the purchase has to be through the normal reverb channels and not some deal the seller is making with you through email.
Honestly, this whole deal smells of a scam... not a fake guitar, but *no* guitar.

I just ran a fresh search on Reverb and made sure that I selected seller location as "everywhere"
I've got 200 listings (which includes Tori Amos CDs), but only one guitar, $1600 in New York. All of the other listings over $100 are Amos pickups.
Same thing with a search for "Bonamassa"... a bunch of guitars, but only that one flying-V from New York.

Are these pictures the same as your seller's listing?

Epiphone '58 Korina Flying V | Reverb

The Epiphone '58 Korina Flying V is an affordable reissue of one of the rarest, most expensive vintage Gibson guitars ever produced. With a mahogany neck set into a korina body, the '58 Korina Flying V should not be confused with the limited run '58 Flying V that was made of mahogany, alder and m...

reverb.com

 

[ArtWerkOrange]

Epiphone Joe Bonamassa Signature '58 "Amos" Korina Flying V | Reverb

Reverb is a marketplace bringing together a wide-spanning community to buy, sell, and discuss all things music gear.

reverb.com

This was just posted. Same seller, different guitar based on serial number.

 

[ArtWerkOrange]

I just posted the seller and a third guitar. He said he had three and sent a pic of three. The man is no dummy. You said something.... if he sends nothing, Reverb will not pay him, right? So if that is true it lessons the risk and if he sends a fake he has to move on from Reverb and can't scam anyone... just talking about it like this, means I should pass. My only thing is that what if... which is probably the famous last words of everyone about to be scammed ever. What if it is real?

 

[ArtWerkOrange]

Epiphone Joe Bonamassa Signature '58 "Amos" Korina Flying V | Reverb

Reverb is a marketplace bringing together a wide-spanning community to buy, sell, and discuss all things music gear.

reverb.com

This is, allegedly, the third guitar he has posted online. He sold one on Reverb last week for around $1000, maybe a bit more.

 

[Rocco Crocco]

Stay away.

 

[CB91710]

Both of those are coming up as dead links.

No...He gets paid when you pay him.
If he ships nothing, then you have to file a complaint with Reverb.
They will ask him for tracking information.
He will provide tracking information showing SOMETHING was delivered to your town.
It might only be a small box of fishing weights, so the weight might even look correct.
Then you have to document that it was not delivered to your home.

A couple of guys over on Strat Talk are dealing with this very problem right now, over a $70 Firefly that was allegedly sold out of Houston... but the domain was registered out of China.

Stay very far away from this seller.
NOBODY has three.... much less FOUR Epiphone Bonamassa Amos guitars for sale (as he says he recently sold one).
He's using stock photos and just telling you what the serial number is.
These guitars are either fakes, or they don't exist.

 

[fry]

He gets paid when you pay him.

Seller usually gets paid upon Reverb confirming that a shipment has been processed. That doesn’t mean you’re going to receive what you think you’re going to receive. Anybody see the Trogly video where he bought a Gibson Les Paul and received a little plastic toy guitar? He still got it worked out, of course, but who needs the headache? Too many red flags around this thing for me.

 

[ArtWerkOrange]

I agree and thanks for the feedback. I wonder why Reverb does not allow 30-days, as an example, to maintain sold data to provide future and potential buyers additional info to help make an informed decision. In this case, it certainly looks and sounds and quacks like a scam. Funny how logic can go out the window when you really want something!
THANK YOU

 

[CB91710]

I agree and thanks for the feedback. I wonder why Reverb does not allow 30-days, as an example, to maintain sold data to provide future and potential buyers additional info to help make an informed decision. In this case, it certainly looks and sounds and quacks like a scam. Funny how logic can go out the window when you really want something!
THANK YOU

They do. You can view sold listings, but it's tedious and I think you have to view by-seller and not by-item. I looked at a seller's sold listings last week when some "fishy" images were posted on a forum.

But I'm not getting *anything* on the Amos links you shared. It could be they are blocked in the US, but I wouldn't trust it.

Edit: OK, now one of the listings is showing up.
Here's Tao's "sold" listings.
All three at $1500.

Reverb

reverb.com

Very suspicious that the one listed is 17112300815, and a sold listing is 17112300813

 

[BadPenguin]

Avoid like the virus!!

 

[ArtWerkOrange]

I told the guy no thanks when he offered to sell me his third Amos, but now he is just going to sucker someone else. He seems to be getting big money. I guess he will keep going until someone stops him.