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Thanks, boss!

I drilled new holes in the lid and it fits like a glove...it looks cool but I have yet to take this thing out of the house so not sure how much use the lid will get anyways.

I've been working on escapement and strike line but it's looking more and more like this thing will need another couple hundred bucks to really sound awesome (grommets, dampers....after reading up on the "back check" system, I think that is what is needed most).

I acquired a 1970 Fender Rhodes a few years back and have gone back and forth on what to do with it (as you can easily see from my past posts - I've terrorized the board with selling it/fixing it/selling it/fixing it/trading it....).

As penniless student, I'm constantly torn between putting some time in to restoring this awesome piece and getting rid of it for a reliable/versatile piano. Anyways, I've recently been forced to sell a bunch of equipment for financial reasons. Selling my Les Paul has bought me some time but, in the process, I listed my Rhodes on craigslist.

I received an offer from a guy claiming to have the original legs, sustain pedal, and top that I was missing. He said he'd give them all to me for $200. I ended up going for it but the parts were off of a later model Rhodes. The legs fit but seem to be possibly missing a rubber foot or two (the legs also came in the original black bag). The sustain pedal works well. The top fits, however it is obviously not the correct model - the latches don't line up and there are only 2 back hinges (whereas my Fender Rhodes has 3).

Anyways, I have a few questions:

1) As far as resale/value, will having legs/sustain pedal from a later model be an issue?

2) Do I dare re-drill holes in the Rhodes top (leave the original latches/hinges on the 1970 Fender) to make it lock?

I guess i bought the stuff off this guy figuring it would up the attractiveness/value, though I'm now happy to have almost a full piano and am once again considering a go at restoring it.

thanks again, sean. Back then, you probably saved me from making a really lopsided, regrettable trade. Watching a lot of the youtube restoration videos has given me quite a bit more confidence in what I can do on my own.

Thanks for the advice. I know i'm just being lazy, hoping CL or the forum will fetch me the best price. If I'm serious about selling it for the most I can, you're right, I've gotta get better pictures/some video.

I'm an extremely indecisive person. Right now I'm thinking you guys may soon be seeing a ton of posts from me re: restoring my Rhodes.

finally decided I want to sell my 1970 Mark I Stage. I just don't have the time/money to make it sound awesome and I could really use a new guitar. I'll be done with school and (hopefully) making some money in about a year - I'll look into a nice restored Rhodes/Wurly then.

I'm guessing that if I want to get the most for it, it's ebay. If that's the case, how much does shipping usually cost? Is it as much of a pain as it sounds?

I've put it up on CL once to see what the market was like, but I mostly just got lame trade offers.

Like I said, this thing doesn't sound perfect so I feel like CL is my safest bet (buyer can try it out, won't have to rely on my typing to describe its sound).

I don't want to break forum rules by linking this here, so just let me know if that's an issue. As you can see, I've posted a few times over the last 3 years or so - i'm not just trolling for a sale. My main purpose of putting it up on here was to get tips/input on selling and how much money I should be looking for. I'm getting the sense that the "For Sale" forum isn't the best place to get that advice.

http://ep-forum.com/smf/index.php?topic=6600.0

Thanks for the info, Rob.

Re: holding its value....that's exactly how I felt about this but, obviously, buyers/swappers pretend not to see it that way.

I'm in Vegas, btw. I checked out the service locations listed on the fender rhodes site and didn't see anything for my area. I could always take it down to Cali next time i'm down there but I don't know if it's worth my trouble right now.

I could borrow money from my wife for a new electronic keyboard. Or sell one of the too many guitars I have.

Hey guys,

I posted about my find over 2 years ago:

http://ep-forum.com/smf/index.php?topic=4397.0

With a ton of moving/school, haven't got to play it much. I busted it out recently and realized it's just not sounding great. I get sound from every note but the biggest issue is a real lack in sustain. If i'm playing completely stacatto, it sounds great. Once I start really incorporating the sustain pedal, there is a lot of notes that just won't ring out right. The sound also just seems to fall apart when I'm playing with a lot of dynamics - when I play slowly/softly, I can keep pretty consistent levels/sustain across the board.

I just spent an hour or so checking out a lot of quick fix type stuff I though might work - pretty fun to play around with the escapement and whatnot but i'm thinking this thing really just needs a whole setup. As a tinkerer, I would love to mess around with this and put some money into it but with everything I have going on right now, I barely have time to play it, let alone fix it.

I put it back up on Craigslist recently, really hoping to just trade it straight-up for a digital piano/keyboard with weighted/semi-weighted keys....something that can give me the option of a Rhodes-ish tone but with more versatility. I'm being completely honest with potential buyers and telling them it's fun to play but probably not gig/recording-worthy. I've got one guy offering a trade for a Yamaha DGX500 - i'd hate to let this classic go for something like that but, for me, it seems a lot more practical right now.

So:

- do these issues sound like something that will take a professional to fix?
- if so, how much would i be looking at having to put into it?
- in its current state, how much should i be willing to let this go for?

Thanks in advance for any advice/info!

jammerz,

thanks a lot for the info. I used my phone for those first pictures but here's some high-res ones. Appears the hammer tips are the white felt.

http://s146.photobucket.com/albums/r264/redhotradio1/?action=view&current=IMG_0084.jpg" target="_blank">http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r264/redhotradio1/IMG_0084.jpg" border="0" alt="serial 2">

http://s146.photobucket.com/albums/r264/redhotradio1/?action=view&current=IMG_0083.jpg" target="_blank">http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r264/redhotradio1/IMG_0083.jpg" border="0" alt="serial">

http://s146.photobucket.com/albums/r264/redhotradio1/?action=view&current=IMG_0086.jpg" target="_blank">http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r264/redhotradio1/IMG_0086.jpg" border="0" alt="hammers">

Do these pics give you any more info?

hey there guys,

i've searched pretty extensively for related topics but couldn't find the exact answer so i figured i'd start my own (plus, who we kidding?, I know some of you guys like figuring this stuff out!).

I've wanted a Rhodes for quite some time and jumped on the opportunity today when I saw a craigslist ad just 10 minutes after it was posted. So, I ended up scoring this Fender Rhodes for $250. From what i've gathered on here, it appears to be a 1970 Fender Rhodes Mark I. Here's a couple pictures that might help:

http://s146.photobucket.com/albums/r264/redhotradio1/?action=view&current=0813080008.jpg" target="_blank">http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r264/redhotradio1/0813080008.jpg" border="0" alt="serial">

http://s146.photobucket.com/albums/r264/redhotradio1/?action=view&current=0813080008a-1.jpg" target="_blank">http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r264/redhotradio1/0813080008a-1.jpg" border="0" alt="keys">

I have the top for it but the guy didn't have the actual "suitcase" top. It didn't come with a stand but he included an "after-market" sustain pedal. Everything works great and looks in great shape. I'm psyched on it but was wondering a couple things:

1. Can anyone tell me exactly what model/year this is?

2. Did I get a good deal? What do these usually go for?

I'm not interested in turning this for a profit or anything, just curious. As of now, this thing ranks up there with my regrettably long-gone '65 bassman as far as coolness/vintage-ness.

Thanks a ton in advance for any info.