A Mustang Pawnshop

Discussion of newer designs, copies and reissue offset-waist instruments.
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hanskung
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A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by hanskung » Sun Jul 18, 2021 4:18 am

I have a Duosonic that I really like but I want something different, so what does the Fender Mustang Pawnshop Special sound like? Online,
Reverb, they are selling on average $950, is it worth it? I'm willing to pay that if they sound good, thanks.

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Ben17e
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Re: A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by Ben17e » Sun Jul 18, 2021 9:35 am

I had one when they came out. I think they were about $650 new but that is quite some time ago now. They are smaller than a normal Mustang body by a decent amount. I put a Toronado bridge on mine to match the pick guard cutout. I wonder if one of the newer Squier Bullet Mustang HH guards would fit to match the square bridge cutout because the bridge that came with it was of better quality. The pickups that come with it are pretty dark/muddy. Weren't my favorites. I put some Lace Duallys in mine for a Mustang "Plus" look inspired by the old Strat/Tele plus line. I had a black guard w/ white pickups. Anyway, it is a very solid guitar but there is also a lot of great stuff out there.

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Gordon
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Re: A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by Gordon » Sun Jul 18, 2021 5:51 pm

Ben17e wrote:
Sun Jul 18, 2021 9:35 am
They are smaller than a normal Mustang body by a decent amount.
Easier to see that way:

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Graphic designer (comics stuff, Doctor Who, Star Wars...): https://www.instagram.com/monsieurgordon/ \o/

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vistavision
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Re: A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by vistavision » Sun Jul 18, 2021 7:45 pm

Gordon wrote:
Sun Jul 18, 2021 5:51 pm
Ben17e wrote:
Sun Jul 18, 2021 9:35 am
They are smaller than a normal Mustang body by a decent amount.
Easier to see that way:

Image
OMG How did I never notice? And I sold these to people!
I'm sure some Fender dealer in '64 looked at the new Duo-Sonic II and thought, "That's not a Duo-Sonic. That's a Mustang".

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Tweedledee
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Re: A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by Tweedledee » Sun Jul 18, 2021 9:06 pm

I’ve always loved the body shape of these. Most hardtail Mustangs look a little off to me because there’s so much blank space behind the bridge. With these, Fender did a great job of reshaping the end of the body so that it looks more balanced without the bulky trem.

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sal paradise
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Re: A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by sal paradise » Sun Jul 18, 2021 11:06 pm

Holy crap that must feel tiny. I struggle moving to the mustang when I’ve been using the Jag a lot.
I have nothing to offer anybody, except my own confusion?

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hanskung
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Re: A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by hanskung » Mon Jul 19, 2021 4:24 am

Ben17e wrote:
Sun Jul 18, 2021 9:35 am
I had one when they came out. I think they were about $650 new but that is quite some time ago now. They are smaller than a normal Mustang body by a decent amount. I put a Toronado bridge on mine to match the pick guard cutout. I wonder if one of the newer Squier Bullet Mustang HH guards would fit to match the square bridge cutout because the bridge that came with it was of better quality. The pickups that come with it are pretty dark/muddy. Weren't my favorites. I put some Lace Duallys in mine for a Mustang "Plus" look inspired by the old Strat/Tele plus line. I had a black guard w/ white pickups. Anyway, it is a very solid guitar but there is also a lot of great stuff out there.
Thanks, I've done some more reading, I think I'll pass on this one.

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sciuri
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Re: A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by sciuri » Mon Jul 19, 2021 5:19 am

My MIJ pawn shop mustang is one of my favorites, maybe among my top 5 guitars to hold on to for sheer playability. $950 is a little steep but everything is more expensive right now.

The (faded?) LPB is stunning at certain times of day, sometimes with turquoise hues. I love the compact body with belly cut and arm contour, and it's super lightweight (mine is 6 lbs 3.5 oz), which with the short scale makes it perfect for me as a lazy guitar player to pick up randomly. The neck is slim but not too slim, with buttery edges that were either rolled or worn in. The pickups are really hot and not subtle, and I wish they were real WRHBs. But the switching options make up for that, with four different single coil positions (2 neck positions, 2 bridge positions) that I think totals 15 possible settings for all the switches. Each position actually does make an audible difference in tone and attack, and I’d love to see that tried with other models.

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Last edited by sciuri on Mon Jul 19, 2021 9:21 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Jazzmackster
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Re: A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by Jazzmackster » Mon Jul 19, 2021 5:25 am

I think this is worth dropping :?

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From an old thread: viewtopic.php?t=100133

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Wucan
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Re: A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by Wucan » Wed Jul 21, 2021 3:53 pm

I just bought one! Got lucky and only paid 800 CAD.

The pickups are somewhat high output and quite flexible woth the switching but won't hold a candle to real WRs or Gibson PAFs. They take very nicely to pedals though as they're decently articulate and don't get muddy.

I don't like how light the body is because it induces some pretty bad neck diving. Compared to a jag or a heftier Mustang it will feel quite unbalanced and requires some strap magic to make it feel right.

Otherwise, it's a really cool guitar but I think I'll try a neck swap project in the future to get the weight down and maybe do a matching headstock finish.

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Re: A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by noisepunk » Wed Jul 21, 2021 8:52 pm

awesome guitars– i've wanted one since they came out. the pickups aren't great, but they're not awful either... everything else is fantastic though, wish i had been able to afford one when they were going for upper-end squier money.

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Re: A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by BearBoy » Thu Jul 22, 2021 2:33 am

Love mine. Managed to pickup one of the LBP MIJ ones cheap when they were being discounted around the time they moved production of the Pawn Shop range to Mexico. I've found the pickups to be fine tbh and have never felt the need to swap them out. The switching options makes it very versatile tone wise.
Wucan wrote:
Wed Jul 21, 2021 3:53 pm
I don't like how light the body is because it induces some pretty bad neck diving.
Weird. Mine's super comfortable with no neck dive whatsoever.

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Re: A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by mattador » Sat Jul 24, 2021 3:03 pm

They are certainly cool guitars, I will mirror what everyone else has said, very small guitar and I remember thinking the same about the neck. It could be comfortable for some but fretting certain chords was difficult for me with my sausage fingers! Its got style for days though

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Re: A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by robroe » Sun Jul 25, 2021 12:52 pm

For god sake put a toronado bridge on it. Even the rear end of the pickguard was made for it

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Re: A Mustang Pawnshop

Post by robroe » Sun Jul 25, 2021 12:54 pm

Looks like someone already fixed it.

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