Help with a Mosrite Celebrity please :-)

darthur1972
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Help with a Mosrite Celebrity please :-)

Postby darthur1972 » Sun Apr 15, 2018 11:17 am

Hello there,

I am poised the buy a Mosrite Celebrity I which i think are beautiful guitars. There is a chap in the UK that has one for sale and i would like some assistance if it is a genuine one. I know a small bit about Mosrites and the history is both confusing and fascinating! I have photos but i am not sure how to upload them on this forum, so please see some share links below.

The chap bought it from a store in Seattle and he says it dates back to 1968. He hasn't given me the serial number yet, but he has receipts and what he says is the original case. The guitar looks very clean, he says there is only checking, no dings and everything is 100% original.

https://ibb.co/mZfLWn
https://ibb.co/d5B5xS
https://ibb.co/nbzErn
https://ibb.co/d8GG47
https://ibb.co/d92Zrn

I hope you can help.

All the best

AndyB

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Re: Help with a Mosrite Celebrity please :-)

Postby t-bone » Sun Apr 15, 2018 2:55 pm

Hi, Andy. That is a gorgeous celebrity I, right there! My personal preference would be to remove the pickguard, undress it a little. If it is not genuine, then I would be dumbfounded. It looks like the real deal to me imho, nice score.
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darthur1972
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Re: Help with a Mosrite Celebrity please :-)

Postby darthur1972 » Mon Apr 16, 2018 12:27 am

Hey,

Thank you for your reply, it is much appreciated. The pick guard looks quite high up on the pictures, but I get what you mean.

Was the Celebrity I a premium guitar in its time, like the 335? I have read about the Celebrity III which was cheaper option?

Thank you

AndyB

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101Volts
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Re: Help with a Mosrite Celebrity please :-)

Postby 101Volts » Mon Apr 16, 2018 3:01 am

Hi darthur, I'm not the most knowledgeable member about Mosrite Celebrity models (Sarah's the most knowledgeable member) but this looks like a genuine 1965-68 Celebrity I to me. Yes, the Celebrity III was a cheaper guitar and to my knowledge those models came with cheaper pickups without pole pieces, no vibrato tailpiece and sometimes cheaper paint; the red ones often (if not always) faded to orange. This guitar you shared photos of appears to have correct Celebrity features. I don't know of any copies of the Mosrite Celebrity, to be frank; most copies and bootlegs are of the Ventures and Ventures II "Slab" models.

- Austin
1966 Ventures II (German Carved, B670.)
1970s "Not a Blues Bender" Bodies: 2.
1976 Brass Rail Deluxe #10.
2013 Fender Pawn Shop Bass VI.

darthur1972
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Re: Help with a Mosrite Celebrity please :-)

Postby darthur1972 » Mon Apr 16, 2018 4:48 am

Thank you, I have read a lot of Sarah's posts and they are very interesting and very informative. The chap is asking for £1300 which I think is rather expensive, what do you think? I was hoping we could settle nearer 1k!

Thanking you all

AndyB

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Re: Help with a Mosrite Celebrity please :-)

Postby t-bone » Mon Apr 16, 2018 8:02 am

You are very welcome here. You have come to the right place. As to value of the guitar......as with everything, market determines price. You, however, determine the value. Will you play this guitar? Will it bring you joy? No doubts, an instrument like that will never be made again. Mr. Moseley is gone and so is that quality of wood. In short, I can’t answer the price/value question. That’s between you and the seller. A real beauty of a guitar, though. Thanks for posting.
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Re: Help with a Mosrite Celebrity please :-)

Postby 101Volts » Mon Apr 16, 2018 8:12 am

darthur1972 wrote:Thank you, I have read a lot of Sarah's posts and they are very interesting and very informative. The chap is asking for £1300 which I think is rather expensive, what do you think? I was hoping we could settle nearer 1k!

Thanking you all

AndyB


You're welcome. Regarding price, this one's in very good condition or better considering the photos and knowing it comes with a case. Recall your location too, if I'm not mistaken there aren't many Mosrites floating around in the UK and I'm not sure if you could get another comparable one soon if ever (I haven't kept up with import laws.) I can't really say much about price but £1300 ($1862.38) doesn't seem too bad for such a good original Mosrite Celebrity in your location, maybe try going closer to £1050-£1150.

If you want to hear a Celebrity III (with cheaper pickups without pole pieces,) this might be the best demonstration on Youtube for audio quality at the moment:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33BNetdcj-g

Mike (in the video) says it's a semi-hollow model, he probably has that confused with the Combo model. Skip to 3:50 to hear more of the guitar, most of the video's him talking about Mosrite and that individual guitar for sale.

- Austin
1966 Ventures II (German Carved, B670.)
1970s "Not a Blues Bender" Bodies: 2.
1976 Brass Rail Deluxe #10.
2013 Fender Pawn Shop Bass VI.

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Re: Help with a Mosrite Celebrity please :-)

Postby Sarah93003 » Tue Apr 17, 2018 6:44 pm

Hi Andy,

Based on these photos I can offer the following.

1. The pickguard is sitting a little high but that is easily adjusted. There will be little "tubes" acting as spacers. The screws go through these little tubes. Someone likely switched them out to suit their personal preference. There is usually a couple of small squares of foam stuck on the back of the pickguard so it doesn't contact the finish at the far end of the pickguard (away from the screws) since it is suspended over the bout. So to speak.

2. The tuners are not original. This guitar would have come with Kluson Deluxe tuners. Someone has changed them out for Grover Deluxe which are vintage reproductions of the Kluson's.

3. For some reason the strap pin at the bottom of the bout is off center a bit. I wonder if it was relocated due to a stripped out hole.

4. The rest of the hardware is correct and looks to be in exceptional condition.

5. The guitar overall looks to be very clean and that is getting harder to find these days. This is a later model in the Celebrity-I series as evidenced by the four bolt neck attachment. I believe the serial number will be later than A0832. The "Original" Celebrity had a mortise and tenon joint with two bolts. When they broke out into three models, around A0700 or so, the Celebrity-I had three bolts. They made a couple of batches and then went to four bolts. I think it makes the neck more stable, especially with basses. The Celebrity-I would be considered the deluxe version of the three with a thicker bout (should sound nice acoustically) and all of the deluxe hardware. Only the Gospel would be considered to be more of a premium Mosrite Celebrity.

6. I don't think the price is horrible given the condition. In my humble opinion if you can pick it up for 1,000 and eventually pickup up a set of Kluson Deluxe tuners you will be very happy.
____________________
1965 Mosrite Celebrity Prototype with Vibramute
1972 Mosrite Celebrity-III
1977 Gibson MK-53
1982 Fender Bullet
1994 Gretsch Streamliner G3155 Custom
2005 Gibson Les Paul Standard Plus
2006 Jude Les Paul 12 String

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Re: Help with a Mosrite Celebrity please :-)

Postby t-bone » Sun Apr 22, 2018 6:35 pm

Hey, Andyb. Hope all went well with the sale. Love to hear more.
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darthur1972
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Re: Help with a Mosrite Celebrity please :-)

Postby darthur1972 » Tue Apr 24, 2018 6:33 am

Hello,

Thank you all for the replies, you have all been most helpful. I missed out on the Celebrity, but I have my eye on another one!

This one is in the US, has a serial number of A-0767 and dates back to 1965. The chap also says it comes with the original case and is in excellent condition. He has shared pics of the case (not pictured), sound hike sticker and pots and neck which look fine.

https://ibb.co/hVib4H

Could I ask what people think? Love the red...

AndyB


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