Incoming Momose MES1

[bursty]

Just over one year ago I sold an all original Momose MES1-BP/NJ FCR from the first year of production, 2013.
I kinda regretted selling the MES1 so, I had been looking around for another one and I finally took the plunge.
The MES1s are basically 'hand made' in very limited small batches and they have Madagascar fingerboards.
The 'quality to price point ratio' on these is just phenomenal.

I located a basically 'new' version, one owner, from 2023, a MES1-BP/NJ ITB that will hopefully be my last ES335 type purchase.
I'm getting too old for all of this constantly acquiring more gear.

 

[MarcB]

MES1-BP/NJ FCR

I recall seeing this brand briefly when on a 335 binge a few years back.. are they really that good?
Any chance of a small review with photos… ?

 

[bursty]

not a review but the actual listing from which my previous MES1 eventually sold

RARE Momose MES1-BP/NJ Bacchus Deviser etc Hand Made Madagascar Rosewood Custom Shop | Reverb

This rare Momose MES1-BP/NJ was hand made in 2013 at the Deviser Aska workshop in Nagano prefecture, Matsumoto city, Japan. Deviser is the parent company of Bacchus, Headway, Momose, Seventy Seven, etc. 2013 was the first year of cataloged production for the hand made Momose MES1. This particular...

reverb.com

here is what the buyer stated in their feedback for the transaction:
"Fantastic experience! Seller was excellent in description and communication about the guitar. Customer service the way it should be done. Guitar is even better than described. Couldn't be happier. You have a repeat customer here for sure."


The thing about the Deviser brand in general is they came up with the entire "hand made concept" basically three decades ago and that entire mindset is the mantra of the Deviser flagship brand Momose.
The only thing I could possibly fault the MES1 for and Momose examples in general is not having FEB aka fret edge binding but then that isn't really a requirement when the quality level is at such a high bar, particularly for the quality to price point ratio.

 

[MarcB]

Appreciate the reply and info..

 

[mdubya]

I got interested in Momose when they started doing runs of Korina classics. I wanted an Explorer type (MEX) at the time but did not find the deal and weight that I was hoping for.

I got an Epi IBGCS 1958 Korina Explorer and then added a Gibson Original Collection Explorer, too.

Then a Momose Korina Futura! popped up from a very trustworthy seller and I pulled the trigger.

It is the heaviest of the 3 @ 8.7 lbs. Aside from that, the quality is stunning. That may be its only downside; the quality is beyond vintage build quality. A bit of a conundrum.

That said, I like all 3 and the differences are significant.

The only place left to go is to an actual Gibson Custom Shop reissue. Again, right guitar at the right price would be a major factor considering the cost. I would be very curious to compare one to the Momose, though.

 

[MarcB]

quality is beyond vintage build quality

Do you mean better or worse?bas from what I’ve read .. they seem to be built well.. especially the earlier models .. small team etc

 

[mdubya]

Do you mean better or worse?bas from what I’ve read .. they seem to be built well.. especially the earlier models .. small team etc

Higher quality than what a vintage Gibson example would be (if one existed! ).

It is too well made to feel like the real thing (if that can even make sense?).

 

[MarcB]

I get what you mean.. Some guitars are a bit too slick..

 

[bursty]

I got interested in Momose when they started doing runs of Korina classics. I wanted an Explorer type (MEX) at the time but did not find the deal and weight that I was hoping for.

I got an Epi IBGCS 1958 Korina Explorer and then added a Gibson Original Collection Explorer, too.

Then a Momose Korina Futura! popped up from a very trustworthy seller and I pulled the trigger.

It is the heaviest of the 3 @ 8.7 lbs. Aside from that, the quality is stunning. That may be its only downside; the quality is beyond vintage build quality. A bit of a conundrum.

That said, I like all 3 and the differences are significant.

The only place left to go is to an actual Gibson Custom Shop reissue. Again, right guitar at the right price would be a major factor considering the cost. I would be very curious to compare one to the Momose, though.

I have purchased from Greg before and he is a very good seller. Congrats on that one.

About 8 years ago I tried my best to purchase a Momose MFT-BKR PRM/NJ aka Black Korina Futura but another interested party was the lucky buyer; not me.
The Black Korina MFT I tried like Hell to get my hands on had a 1 piece flat sawn body.

It can often be difficult to obtain these examples from Japan, as was the case with this particular Momose, as Japanese buyers have a better potential to be the lucky buyer than folks like myself that are here, in the states.

As far as obtaining any Gibson Futura example for comparison, I would have no interest in that myself.
I purchased my first Deviser build basically ~20 years ago; a circa 1998 Bacchus BST-64V FR.

I knew when I got that very first Deviser produced example in my hands and discovered the build quality, there was very little potential for me to ever again go looking for any USA made guitar.
Are Deviser products perfect? Nope but after ~20 years of having multiple dozens of Deviser examples through my collection I can say that as a producer of multiple brand names what comes out of the Deviser camp is pretty phenomenal.
USA makers couldn't touch the hand made concept quality of Deviser and certainly not at the price points that the Deviser examples go for.

I'm just gonna have to live with 'Mutt' which is my circa 1999 BFT-58M NA ...... 7.7 lb. of 'Hog Heaven."
Hard to believe I have had Mutt now for just shy of 10 years; it's an amazing guitar.

 

[bursty]

The virtually 'new' and 'mint' MES1 arrived yesterday.
Unpacked the guitar today to find a surprise.

the original Beano pickups were uninstalled (I knew about this) but I discovered the original Beano leads were cut to about 3 to 4 inches
This renders the pickup set basically useless, unless someone were to splice in a ton of lead length.
I was aware the original Beano pups came with the guitar; I wasn't aware the leads were butchered.

The Antiquity Retrospec'd pickup set that was installed also had the leads cut fairly short.

It's obvious that whoever did the uninstall and install left the greatest majority of the original Beano leads inside the MES and spliced in the Antiquity set.
I wasn't made aware of the four butchered pickup leads, the spliced in technique used and how the uninstall/install was accomplished, before a purchase.
If anyone wanted to remove the Anquity set to use in another guitar they would also have to splice in a ton of lead wire to make that work.

Whoever did this uninstall and install basically ruined two pickup sets worth a minimum ~$500.

That is some crazy ****!


This was my first and only guitar purchase from a Reverb seller and the seller just happens to be a USA seller.
I should have just purchased a MES1 from Japan and I would have been good to go.
Lesson learned.

 

[MarcB]

Very annoying and frustrating.. and yet no YouTube influencer has done a video about this crap

 

[bursty]

Very annoying and frustrating.. and yet no YouTube influencer has done a video about this crap

The seller never let me know that the removal of the Beano pickups and the installation of the Antiquity pickups was 'done on the cheap' and that the work basically destroyed two pickup sets.

Now, for the MES1 to be properly wired, the Antiquity set would have to be removed and then a third pickup set with full length leads would need to be installed. Crazy crap .......

I expected that such work would have been done professionally but it was not done professionally; I think they call stuff like this chicken**** engineering?

I asked the seller if they knew that the work was done like this, 'on the cheap' and they didn't answer that question.

**The original Beano pickups are now useless unless someone adds additional lead lengths**
**The Antiquity set that is currently in the guitar will never be useable in another guitar unless someone adds additional lead lengths**

If I would have known about this undisclosed item I would have never entertained the idea of a transaction.


Here, both original Beano pickups with the leads cut at about 3 to 4 inch, rendering this pickup set useless




Here, the Antiquity bridge pickup installed with the pickup lead cut down to about 5 inches, then spliced into the original remaining Beano bridge lead



Here, the Antiquity neck pickup installed with the pickup lead missing over half it's entire length, then spliced into the original remaining Beano neck lead

 

[MarcB]

You could attempt to change the braided wire yourself.. I found this thread, if it helps..

'Replacing braided pickup wire on a humbucker'

Replacing braided pickup wire on a humbucker

Hi Dan. I posted this originally in the Les Paul Tech area but I haven't had much response so I'd thought I'd ask you (I do have your book; Gutar Player Repair Guide,by the way but I could not fond the answer there or on the forum) Anyway, I was using a method I saw recommended on the forum for...

www.lespaulforum.com

 

[mdubya]

That is a shame.

If you want to use the Beanos, you could just splice them back in.

I have sent several pickups to James @ ReWind to extend or replace short leads and to make four conductor leads into vintage braided leads.

Everyone seems to think the modifications they make are so clever that everyone will be impressed.

I try to keep that in mind, myself.

 

[bursty]

any online/virtual seller, myself included, has every responsibility to be open and honest concerning all of the attributes, particularly attributes that could potentially be viewed as negative, and to list any such attributes within any listing, period.

Reverb and any other online marketplace exist only because of buyers. If not for buyers platform such as Reverb would cease.

Sellers such as the Reverb member that I purchased the MES1 from are a poison not only to buyers but also to Reverb.

Sellers such as this are exactly why many potential buyers refuse to consider buying on the Reverb platform.

I have sold on Reverb for the better part of 10 years.

The purchase of the MES1 is my only purchase on Reverb of a guitar. It will be my last guitar purchase on Reverb.

Currently waiting on a full 100% refund then I will ship the guitar back to a ******* moron.

 

[mdubya]

That is aggravating, for sure.

I have been lucky with Reverb.

The Buyer Protection is helpful and I am glad it is letting you return this guitar. But nobody wants to have to go to that hassle. The seller gets what he deserves.

 

[bursty]

DO NOT BUY from this Reverb seller = big *** liar, deceptive and a true fraud ........

Kurt's Guitars | Reverb

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Cheers ......

 

[currypowder]

deleted

 

[bursty]

Got tired of the seller being a horses *** offering excuses, making threats to withhold part /all of refund if guitar is damaged upon return so, I escalated the transaction to the Reverb Resolutions team. Reverb states up to 5 days to begin addressing the issue.

This particular seller is a complete ****head and people that perpetrate fraud typically have 'head' issues.

tallying up the destroyed parts
~$250 = Beano pickup set
~$345 = SD Antiquity Retrospec'd pickup set
~$250/$300 = estimate to remove old leads inside the guitar and to solder in a 'new' pickup set
~$845/895 = total estimate from above

After the above still need a 'new' pickup set with unmolested full length leads to install into the MES1
Wonderful .......

I have been selling on Reverb for about 10 years but this MES1 was actually my first guitar purchase on the Reverb platform.
No matter the final result of this transaction it will be my last purchase of any guitar from any Reverb seller.

 

[bursty]

NEWS for the Reverb purchase of the Momose MES1:

Last week, Thursday, March 14, 2024, I was informed by Reverb that they would escalate my purchase transaction to their Resolutions Team.
I was informed then that it would take, "up to five business days" for Reverb to contact me via email and to basically get my side of the story.

This morning I contacted Reverb to let them know I have not heard **** from Reverb on this and that it has been over five business days.

I was then informed that a ticket for my escalation to the Reverb Resolutions team WAS NEVER OPENED.
WTF? ARE YOU ****ING KIDDING ME?

It's bad enuff when any Reverb member is unlucky enuff to make such a purchase from a Reverb seller fraud but to have Reverb drop the ball and to make the buyer, in this case me, think that Reverb also has their respective head up their *** is just adding insult to injury.

Un****ingbelievable .......