the Fly Clone Project

Dear all

I bought a used Parker Fly Deluxe made in 1997 from Reverb. This was something that I had been wanting for quite some time. The guitar arrived today and the cracks over the neck joint (you may see photos attached) got me a bit worried as one of them looks deeper than those shown in the ad.

I would appreciate your comments on whether these cracks are a major problem over the structure because of which I need to get a refund or just cosmetic problems related to the finish. I know that carbon fiber tends to move and the finish (polyurethane?) gets cracked because of it but still I am a little bit concerned. I got the guitar shipped to a friend and therefore unable to play it myself at the moment.

Also, if you think it is not a big deal and purely related to finish, should I do something about it for long term use?

Many thanks for your input.

Kindest,

Hi @Symbolic3001,

The neckjoint is a common place for finish cracks, which is what those look like. If it were mine, I would have a tech look at it to assess if the setup is proper and then I would not be concerned about it one bit.

It is impossible for composite material on the back of that neck to move as it is chemically bonded to the wood of the neck—they are now one structure. You can, however, use the truss rod as you would expect to add/subtract relief. If the finish cracked, it’s likely because the neck moved (potentially due to the tension on the strings not being compensated by the truss, or because someone bent the neck, etc.). At this point, whatever that neck has done in terms of movement or relief, it’s unlikely to do something different, so, again: if you can get it set up and playing well, don’t be concerned about something slipping.

Just look for evidence of, perhaps, the instrument being dropped; it’s hard to tell from there photos. Again, even if the instrument was dropped, Flys, while not indestructible, are resilient with proper care.

Hi @vjmanzo,

Many thanks for your reply, much appreciated.

Most people on forums etc. thought that those were cracks signaling structural damages.

I am hesitant on what to do in terms of requesting refund. The seller did not properly photograph these and I am upset about that. I am not sure if I am being cheated or if the guitar is overpriced. I paid EUR 1,400. Do you think it is overpriced and I should request refund or partial refund?

Thanks in advance for your reply.

Kindest,

Symbolic3001 wrote: ↑Thu Oct 29, 2020 9:31 am Most people on forums etc. thought that those were cracks signaling structural damages.

Yes, @Symbolic3001, that happens all the time and, actually, you can sometimes see sellers apologetically listing their Flys much lower than you’d expect because they too assume that there is neck damage. Now, 20-something years later, we can see what common problems surface for the Fly, and this is just one of them.

Me, personally: it doesn’t bother to have guitars with cracks and dings and other blemishes as long as they hold up. Again, my opinion: I think what you paid is a fair price for the guitar even with those cosmetic blemishes. If it came with a case/bag, a spare spring, a vibrato arm, or any other goodies, that’s added value. If it were me, I’d vent about it to my wife for three minutes, maybe send a “shame on you” email to the seller, but then never think twice about it. If working on Fly Clone has taught me one thing, it’s that making the Fly like @Ken Parker and his team made them was nearly impossible! It should be unheard of for anyone buy that instrument you have for EUR 1,400; you could never pay someone, now, that much money to build you that instrument. So if your tech gave it a clean bill of health and just some minor bumps and bruises (truss works, electronics work, frets good, etc.), I'd be happy with it.

My comments are long after this post obviously, so probably not helpful to the OP, but may be helpful to others if the questions arises again.

I got to spend lots of time on the phone with Axel Rudich before his passing, talking about Flys. When we discussed neck joint cracks, he shared his method for evaluating if it was structural or cosmetic.

He would hold the Fly in one hand at the back of the neck near the nut, cupped in his hand. He would then gently but firmly hit the center of the back of the guitar body, in an area of solid wood (not the plastic cavity/trem cover) to generate a sound. If you got a solid thump type sound the neck joint was likely solid, structurally sound. If you got a ratty, rattling sound, then the neck joint was likely compromised structurally.

I've always used this method and consistency gotten good accurate results. I only ever came across one Fly that rattled, and indeed had a neck joint issue. It didn't have finish cracks, it had a stress fracture.

Testing the neck joint, along with evaluating for loose frets, followed by full electronics evaluation, are the first things I do when evaluating a Fly.

Great comments and insights, @dayn! Thanks!

dayn wrote: ↑Wed Jan 13, 2021 11:54 amIonly ever came across one Fly that rattled, and indeed had a neck joint issue. It didn't have finish cracks, it had a stress fracture.

Do you know what became of this Fly?

My 2 cents worth:

In addition to all the helpful comments posted here already here's one more thing to be aware of when assessing cracks:

As a general rule a structural crack in a guitar will almost always follow the wood grain. If the crack cuts across the grain at an angle and everything functions as it should, it's fairly safe to assume it's a stress crack in the finish.

Polyurethane is tough but quite brittle. Any impact to the guitar can shock the finish and create some impressive looking cracks!

It's hard to be certain by looking at pictures, but you can clearly see places where the path of the crack makes a turn against the grain. That tells me that the guitar has either been subjected to a blow or an extreme humidity environment.