PSA (Allegedly) Counterfeit Parker Bass Flipped on Reverb

[mmmguitar]

Quoting pertinent claims from this FB group post:

https://reverb.com/item/69739969-parker ... r-2009-red

-Reverb seller won eBay auction for fake Parker bass with $435 bid, then immediately relisted it on Reverb for $1,110+tax (($995+$115 shipping)
- Terry Atkins seemingly confirms in the FB post comments that Parker neither produced nor authorized such an instrument under his tenure (bass is claimed manufactured in 2009; which seems anachronistic to the MaxxFly bass shape being imitated here)
- Reverb seller was informed of this, and responded with "it would be very odd for someone to fake a lower end Parker guitar", subsequently qualifying authenticity with “serial # looks pretty legit.”

I'm curious to see if any more developments come to light concerning its origin. Given the simplicity of its construction and generic OEM hardware, I doubt it's the only one of its kind available for sale.

[vjmanzo]

Yes, I saw this one a few weeks ago on eBay. It looks to me like an import Parker bass neck on an aftermarket/homemade body. Might not be bad, but certainly doesn’t seem like an official Parker Guitars instrument.

[mmmguitar]

It looks to me like an import Parker bass neck on an aftermarket/homemade body.

Ah. I'm far less acquainted with the bass line iterations. If there was an Indo-produced Hornet with rosewood board circa '09, that would explain most of this.

[vjmanzo]

I'm far less acquainted with the bass line iterations.

Same here, actually—I only really know the FB-4/5.

If we’re analyzing the seller’s claims, I don't think the year or the assertion that it’s a prototype are correct. The geometry of the upper horn is not consistent with the MaxxFly design, but the neck looks legit. This looks, to me, less like a counterfeit and more like it was someone’s project, but what do I know

[mmmguitar]

Seinfeld.

[vjmanzo]

Seinfeld.

[mmmguitar]

Bump. Guy's still at it.

[Mike987]

Ah yeah I was the one who posted that in the Facebook group. I bid on the bass because I wanted the neck..wanted to see if I could find a way to secure it to a p series body and make a fly body styled bass. At the last second, he outbid me. But that’s how I know what the bass sold for, and that the seller knew nothing about the bass, as it was only listed as “Parker bass” if I recall. I understand that’s the name of the game..highest bidder wins..and I was up in the air with the authenticity of the bass anyway. I just posted to expose the blatant price gouging and I do remember a lot of people replying to the post with red flags on the bass itself being a genuine Parker. I understand the business of selling guitars for money but it also gets me frustrated that this same guy gets Parkers for really cheap and then lists them for DOUBLE. Right after this one, he won a p42 for $450ish and immediately listed it for $899 plus $99 shipping or something of the sort. Luke always lists guitars for double of what he pays for them from what Ive seen. I’ve never cared about the resale value of my guitars since I never plan to sell them…but I hate the thought of someone who doesn’t have a high budget and really wants a Parker guitar, even a cheaper model, and price gougers like that guy are out there trying to sell something for double the price for a guitar they don’t really appreciate. To me, it’s just taking advantage of a situation. In the case of this bass, if for some reason it is a prototype, it’s a prototype of a severely base model import. I own some hardtail non piezo p40s that have those regular chrome knobs and base model hardware that every other guitar has, and no special features. Besides the steal of a price I paid for my left handed p42, these p40s were by far the lowest prices I’ve paid for any of my Parker guitars. At least with those, the headstocks match up and the bodies are exact same in spec with my other p series Parkers. The bass doesn’t look like anything I’ve ever seen.

In good news, he still hasn’t found someone to pay $995 for a bass that may or may not be real or some project. For the $435 it might not hurt someone too bad to get a bootleg bass…not as bad as paying over $1000 including tax and shipping for one.

[mmmguitar]

Bump. There appears to be another
on eBay - This time in black.