the Fly Clone Project

Hello everyone,
I am new on this forum. My mame is Lionel and i play a fly mojo for about 10years. I love this guitar but since a long time i am trying to get a maxxfly DF8xx but its impossible to find… maybe some members would say that they are some.

Now i have the possibility to get an “unfinished” one. This looks unusual, but price is acceptable for its condition, and then i plan to refit it with my fly mojo electronics and bridge parts.

I will check the guitar at the vendors place and if ok ill buy it.

But i am doubtful already about this instrument. So here i put some pictures the vendor sent me. Apparently this guitar has been in hands of different owners in the past few years. So if nobody succeded in making this instrument a fine finished one, how could I?

Vendor has poor communication.

Some details i dont like on the pictures:
- paint ship on the neck at the 3rd fret. Seems the fret board could be delaminating.
- spots on the fret board
- 22 fret, where this model, with 2 hunbuckers, was with 24frets on catalog.
- humbucker supports on Top of the guitar,
- additional cavity on the rear for a battery
- at the floating bridge system: no step stop, and tension screw far too long (i guess to compensate the missing step stop part… )

My project is, after making a fine paint job, to refit this guitar with my fly mojo bridge and electronic.

I think its is possible if this instrument is a genuine unfinished parker. But maybe it is just a copy. That i don’t know how to find out.

Any thoughts?

Cheers
Lionel

2 more pictures

Hey @Razoumihine !

Welcome to the forum !

There is a current lisitng on Reverb for this isntrument: https://reverb.com/fr/item/84695629-par ... 2010-brown

When talkking the the guy he told me he got it from this listing: https://reverb.com/item/13600913-parker ... t=13600913

Which seems to be the exact same instrument you're showing so I guess there is a but of weirdness going on...

Anyways if you can go check the instrument in person it's good just maybe protect yourself it might be a scam...

Cheers

Hi ! Yes it is this one. Weirdness indeed. I will be checking it in person in a couple of days.

Sure let us know !

Well, I really doubt it it is need full to waste some time an ckeck it in person. I have serious doubts that this piece is original from the parker factory.
I compared my parker fly to this one. On that DF, The bridge stud location is "high" compared to the fly. So thinking there should be the StepStop part in between, I think it couldn't fit it, or the bridge would be not properely horizontal.
Furthermore, the stud used on that white body look like not the right ones.

Hi @Razoumihine and welcome!

I agree with Kenan’s advice to beware of scams.

As you might imagine, we have seen a few project guitars like this appear on this forum, some claiming to be unfinished from the factory. Taking over someone else’s work, as you likely already know, is a risk.

There are known unknowns and many unknown unknowns. Why was this guitar unfinished in the first place? Why is this guitar currently in the condition it’s in?

Then, of course, there are also investment of time and money and energy things to consider for yourself personally. When all is said and done, would it be less expensive and a better decision to pay more and get something that was quality-checked at the factory? If you are a luthier and feel like this is work you can already handle, then it could be an interesting project. If you are going to pay for someone’s help, then it could be very time consuming and, intimately, you may—hopefully not—discover that the reason this guitar was unfinished is because, for example, the bridge cavity routing is off by a quarter-inch, or the fingerboard contour isn’t gradual.

Just my two cents—please take this as my opinion. I hope this helps.

+1 to every concern expressed in this thread. It appears to be a DF824 with a wood fingerboard, and which could have failed QC for any number of reasons.

Agree with all other responses. And can offer some insight to the unfinished guitars having done some rescue work on several. Usually these have a factory mistake that would have required extensive rework and time.

That still stands today but in general is beyond the expertise and capabilities of the typical player. Very interesting problems but chances are the person selling one of these rejects did not make it easier for the next person.

On top of all that, parts are not easy to get either, and there are some parts variations between generations that make mixing and matching very tricky or even impossible. Often the part descriptions are incomplete or inaccurate so at this point you might end up with a guitar that costs way more than expected and doesn’t work that well either.

Anyway, sent you a pm if you are serious about buying a DF.

A lot of odd things about this guitar.
Where's the composite material on the back of the neck? That looks like some light wood (maple?) on top of the mahogany, on the neck. Did they ever make them like that?
The posts don't look to be installed right.
The spring screw appears to be overextended and the spring extremely compressed.
Do Maxxflys only dive down? There doesn't appear to be room in that cavity for going up or for the 'selector switch'.
Photos from a listing that supposed already sold and got re-painted and is for sale again?
Overseas sellers!

How much are they asking for it, if you don't mind me asking?

Fox wrote: ↑Wed Oct 09, 2024 12:11 am Where's the composite material on the back of the neck? That looks like some light wood (maple?) on top of the mahogany, on the neck. Did they ever make them like that?

Sadly, yes. On their Facebook page, the custom shop used to post guitars they were working on, and among them was at least one Mojo with an ebony fretboard. Why anyone would do that is beyond me.

Personally, I would not buy a Parker that has alignment problems like the bridge posts in this example.

Hi! Well I finally did not waste time to go to the vendor's place and check the guitar. Too many incertainties indeed, and weird overall feeling that this project would be to complicated or even not realy possible to be successfull.
Thank you for all your prompt feedback on that topic.
I don't know if one day i will put my hand on a DF 8xx, so rare!
Lionel

Razoumihine wrote: ↑Thu Oct 10, 2024 4:55 am Hi! Well I finally did not waste time to go to the vendor's place and check the guitar. Too many incertainties indeed, and weird overall feeling that this project would be to complicated or even not realy possible to be successfull.
Thank you for all your prompt feedback on that topic.
I don't know if one day i will put my hand on a DF 8xx, so rare!
Lionel

I think it's a wise decision from you Lionel, we are on the same boat to find a DF8xx especially a df842 concerning me

Don't worry if some pop up on the market people here will let you know

Keep an eye on Reverb, they show up every now and then!