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Kubicki officianado's please read.......

Rumblestiltskin

Rumblestiltskin

Mar 30, 2012
61
4
Auckland, New Zealand.
#1
I was looking for a fretted bass as a change from my MIJ Fretless Jazz, on New Zealands equivalent of Ebay...Trademe.
I saw a "Licenced" Kubicki, so always looking for the unusual, and never having heard of them, I started researching the guitars and the man.
It turns out that there are several stories out there about licencing deals gone bad etc....basses that should have been destroyed ..that weren't.......really bad Korean copies.....etc, etc.
I bought it anyway (quite a mission as it turned out) and found that it has an awesome range of tones....and not just in the toppy/ slap range. It's immaculate and really well constructed. The hardware looks to be really good quality, the neck is laminated, everything is as it should be except that the marker dots are not the oblong inlays on the side of the neck, it is active only, and it's 9V. The stacked pot is Trebble/Bass, the middle pot is pan between p/ups, and the front one is volume.....It came in an expensive looking real leather custom shaped carry bag with the logo that's on the body of the guitar, repeated on a sown on label.
Having studied a heap of online pics, I've taken some of my own and invite comment and/or war stories :).....as I would
like to know the real story about this axe....as far as I can make out, it's so good a copy that it could be a real
one......... mysterious, given that by all accounts Philip washed his hands of any copies....and not too happy with Fender's envolvement either, was he eccentric? ...totally envolved in his craft?....... Both? .....or more?...........................................................................................Please chip in if you have anything.

I paid about $700 of your US$ for it......
 

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Reactions: Eli_Kyiv, TJH3113 and mb94952
#10
Go to The Kubicki Factor website, they talk about what you have, a Blaster is a knockoff of the Ex factor and not made by Phil. Each Factor guitar has a " made on date " on the back of the neck . Check out the site I'm sure you will see it's not a real Kubicki , sorry but better off knowing now then when you try to sell it .
 
#11
I knew it was a copy when I bought it, and I bought it to play it, not sell it on. The thing is, it states on the guitar that it's licenced by Phil........everything I have read suggests that no licence deal was ever completed, except with Fender.......and they weren't called Blasters. Several people on different forums have stated that they have asked Phil about the licensing issues and he has more or less said that it upset him and he didn't want to talk about it. My copy is so well built and so close on many fronts to the originals that maybe somehow it could be a legit licenced copy......It's a little mystery I'd like to solve is all........surely if it states 'Licenced by' , and it isn't..........there would have been a law suit ?

Anyway, from not having heard of Phil a week ago, I've become a fan, and although mine is a copy, it's awesome and won't be leaving my possession anytime soon. :)
 
#12
Have you been to the site ! Maybe you should email the GUITAR DOCTER , Mike Haney .
He was the one Phil trusted with his guitars , very close they were . If anybody would know he will . Please share your findings .
 
#13
The Kubicki Factor
Liked · November 21, 2013

FAKE FACTORS: The Factor bass was a Japanese clone reproduction marketed as the Blaster Bass. Right below the Blaster logo is "Licensed By Philip Kubicki California", a blatant lie. Many people still think Blaster is a legit version of Phil's design.
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This is directly from a post on The Kubicki Factor site . It talks about FAKE versions of the Factors.
 
#14
I'll check out the site......the part that is interesting is that according to some, the 'licensed by' ones were supposed to have been low in numbers and destroyed when the licensing deal fell through, although others state that some escaped the destruction......... do I have an escapee? or is all of that an urban myth?.....or is there something else?
I can't find any identifying numbers or logo's anywhere ...but I haven't taken it apart ...yet. :)
 
#15
Thanks for posting all the detail pics - I've only seen small pics of the "Blaster" Factor copy. As long as you enjoy it and didn't pay Kubicki prices for it, rock on. Damage was done back then and the residual aspect is that it is now just another bass. (just not a Factor) I'm a Phil-ophite from way back having owned a few Ex-Factors and talking w/him on the phone on a few occasions. Putting yourself out in the world like he did has it's pluses and minuses and that's why he spent the bulk of his later years as an independent. (one of the original "boutique" builders) The man had integrity - long live Phil Kubicki.
 

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