Congrats, man. I was the final assembler for all the Fly models from 1996-1998. I am 95% sure I put that together and wired it up and handed it off to the guys in the Nut Room (real name). Such a great color. Root bear was my fav.
So glad to hear from somebody on the shop floor! You guys were part of a future we're still not ready for. They're engineering and manufacturing marvels, it's shape they stumble into pitfalls a strat can't because of it - hyper specialized parts aren't off the shelf available like a trem spring or fender style saddle, and making them from scratch is a bit out of reach for a small Luther shop.
I worked at Parker in the MD and late 90s. Like the guy at the beginning of the comments I'm fairly sure I would have worked on this very guitar as well. You should be glad to know that the chip on the front did not go through the carbon fiber. The fiber is only on the back of the body and the entire neck. The back of the neck also gets a second strip, but there is no shell on the top and sides. The top and sides were just primer and paint. As far as the side dots on the neck, (INTs) , are concerned, they were just rub on transfers. They were just like Colorforms. They were on wax paper and after the necks were painted they were simply lined up correctly with the fret board and then rubbed on like a decal. Clear coat over the top and all done!
Fascinating info on the side dots! Thanks so much for clarifying. Totally slipped my mind that the fiber and glass was just on the back of the guitar. So nice to meet you. I'm very proud of your work. Well done.
Wow Wow Wow. What an AMAZING video. I learned a ton! It's always fun looking at the Fly under a microscope to catch all of these little details. The amount of care that went into these guitars was frankly insane. Thanks for making the video! I now have to go pick up my 1999 Plum purple Fly.
I'm so jealous! Just yesterday I was telling a friend that since I started building guitars, I haven't felt the need to buy any more guitars, EXCEPT for the Parker Fly. It's my absolute favourite electric guitar design.
Duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuude, this is an EXTREMELY cool video. Thank you for sharing this info in such great detail and getting such clean footage. Like everyone that found this upload, I've always loved these but never got the chance to snag one- aside from a P42. I'm sure folks will use this video as reference for the manual and I hope Mr. Parker gets to see this.
Great score on your Parker Fly - especially with the extra trem plate. The scars are fine - here is a guitar that was enjoyed as it was meant to be. I have always loved the Parker Fly, I've just never been in the position to own one - and they are becoming unobtanium now. Many features on these guitars still seem space age today. And it is not as if Ken has stopped - the science that goes into his archtops is amazing. I think you are the first person to show the manual - and I have watched as many Fly videos as I can find.
That Emerald Green Fly Deluxe was my first "real" guitar purchase and I used it to record my second EP back in 2001. That EP was heard by Dann Huff and he invited me to move to Nashville and start my professional music career. I sold the Fly to help pay for the move and then years later wound up flipping Parker Flys and made some great $$ doing it. My favorite was the Fly Classic in Transparent Red. I had one in MINT condition for a long time and refused to flip it. But eventually someone offered me so much money for it I couldn't turn it down. And now it's the guitar I regret selling more than any other instrument... well, maybe the Prototype DW 7x14 Cast Bronze snare... I've bought and sold a LOT of gear over the years. Anyway, great video man, the Fly (especially that hand illustrated manual) always brings back major nostalgia for a time gone by.
I kept telling people for years that the Flys would appreciate in value. It's simple supply and demand. There only a finite amount of these guitars in the wild.
I find it very interesting that the pickup switching and the secondary switch for the piezo, as well as the stereo jack option were replicated 1 to 1 in the JP line of Music Mans, years later
I was so excited to see you posted a video about a Parker Fly. I've owned one since I bought it brand new in 1994 and there is absolutely noting comparable to a Parker. Mine is a a Mojo Fly and is a little different (push pull pickup pots, round tremolo hole, etc.), but basically the same. Nothing plays like a Parker. I tried the 10s spring for a short while, but 9s felt much more natural for me. The main thing that separates the playability for me is that neck. I just love the feel of the carbon fiber and stainless steel frets. It just flat out sings! The dream sound for me was always the stereo piezo and neck pickup combo. Run the piezo through an acoustic amp and the neck through a clean amp was perfect for me. You can add a chorus to the piezo or a little dirt to the neck, but that sound was great for strumming, finger picking, or even lead. Thanks so much for the in depth look and explanation of this amazing guitar that so few can really appreciate!!
I love the Parker Fly! So innovative and ahead of its time. I have two of them now, but have had 3 others in the past. I love how light they are. Your bridge looks a bit high at the back perhaps. Enjoy your Fly!
Congrats on the acquisition! I too had a silver Fly but I also sold it... I got mine from Mars Music in 98... they had to special order it because I wanted the silver finish. They were gracious enough to lend me an Emerald Fly for the 6 months it took to get my silver one. Although I'm one of those that complained about the upper horn digging into my belly, it played like a dream and nothing can compare to it's playability.
Thank you for this, Mark! I have been craving a Fly since forever, and I will sell a few guitars if needed :) My fav channel when it comes to design thinking/values and guitar combined. I really appreciate your work!
I like that there are so many different styles of guitars around no matter whether I like them or not (ie headless). It's nice to have a big variety, and always respect forward thinking instruments and builders. My favorite guitars out of all are the 80s superstrats, with the flashy colors etc.
@@MarkGutierrez Yeah I watched it, great guitar, loved the video! By the way this Parker Fly here is also great, maybe not my style but it definitely looks awesome.
Cool video mark, very interesting. So many very cool elements. I like the actual shape of the saddles themselves. That spring is crazy! Great thinking and design.
I absolutely love the Fly man. Nice to see someone else in our community that loves the fly like I do. Great video Mark. ✌️&💙 If you ever want to refinish it in the Belew Tangerine orange. I have a paint code and the ability to mix that for you if you're interested!! Just sayin'😁
A mate of mine bought a building to redevelop, the coffee shop within left one of their top of the line Italian coffee machines, he doesn't drink coffee, so he swapped it for a friend's Parker, with the frets falling off, that was more than twenty years ago, he stored it away because it was unplayable. We got talking about Parkers in his studio one day ,"I've got one." he said,"I can't play it." Sure enough the frets were lifting and one sprung off across the room as I grabbed it. So I said I'd fix it. I removed all the frets, not one wanted to sit flush, someone had tried CA glue in a few places, but they've got such tension that would never last. So I rebent them to shape on a drill press, securing one end to a cable tie, if they snap out from under the press I'd have to turn the whole workshop over! If I over bent I'd bend them back, with less pressure necessary in that direction, part of the hardening process made them much stiffer in one direction. The fret ends were a bit rough, so I ball ended them. The treble side of the fretboard to neck 'joint' was crumbling in areas, so it was decided to file and sand it back to roll it a little and paint a new black line. Waaaaay more comfortable, the one criticism for me is that the neck edge is too sharp. So now in the process of putting the frets back on. Tried CA glue alone, left to set then lifted, brittle contact and the glue does not wick underneath, just minimal contact at the edges. But unless you remove your good work you won't know it's lousy! So I'm using a combination of flexible slow drying adhesive that is locked in place with the CA, the combination should work. But this is a job you commit to, there's a reason guitar manufacturers bang some wire into wood! It's been interesting getting a hands on feel for Ken Parker's mindset.
My uncle from Boston knew Ken pretty well Parker's archtop acoustic guitars are an absolute trip also, if you haven't seen them. Give those a google. The neck is floating, and not set into a heel. Same Fly headstock shape. All sorts of flaming and curling and quilting and crazy figuring
Same here. Out of reach is a great way of putting it. For years, I've had a saved search on eBay and Reverb set up with my price threshold. I got notifications every time a Parker was posted within my limits. This one was priced just right due to the play wear. I do consider myself lucky to own one.
Nice video man! Glad someone else talked about the fine details (lost wax casting, etc.). If you end up needing the original threaded posts that are pressed into the body which allows the pickups to screw into. I have some extra stock ones from a trashed fly. But I'm guessing those posts screws just need a washer to bring em up.
I had a Parker guitar about 5-6 yrs ago. I never found a whammy bar for it, so I don't know if thew trem system was any good, or not. The pickups sounded great, and it was the first solid body electric that I owned that had a Fishman system on it. I loved it ! It was one of the lower models as far as I could tell. (I bought it in a pawn shop for $200.00, the pawn shop owner had no f---ing idea what it was, and just wanted rid of it !) It had a REAL quilted maple top, and a green translucid finish, similar to yours. It also had all the bells and whistles yours has, but it had Duncan JB and some Duncan PAF in the neck. I truly loved the guitar until i read several stories online about how Parker was cutting the tongue off of the back of the frets, then GLUING them on !!! What an INSANE idea coming from an otherwise perfect guitar ! What kind of psychological paraplegic cuts the damn tongues off of the frets ?!!! One fret pops off, the whole fretboard must be redone, fret board must be slotted to house new frets, then an entire fret job. I read several stories about this built in nightmare. By the following weekend, I had it listed on craigslist for $500.00. It was, in my opinion, just a financial ticking time bomb waiting to happen. I never played it again. It sold about 3 week later, and the buyer thought he was getting a great deal. (He claimed to know a lot about these guitars, but I knew in a glance those were not Dimarzio pickups in it, just by the pole pieces, I even pointed that out to him, but he didn't care. He was as happy to buy it as I was to sell it. ) I miss the wonderful tones of that guitar, but not the looming risk of an over $500 fret job ! I'm still glad I sold it !
You don’t need a whole fret job, you just glue the fret back on. Shouldn’t need any extra work. The tang was cut off because if you cut slots in the carbon fretboard, it loses its strength (defeating the whole purpose of a carbon fretboard. Makes perfect sense. The later guitars had seymour duncans (jb and jazz) instead of dimarzios.
@@davidtomkins4242 I would have no idea what to glue it on with, and I had read several nightmare stories abit happening. I did not just choose to sell that guitar on a whim, I really loved it, but I could see it becoming a very expensive "disasterpiece" !
@@docf.n.t.2310 that's cool, each to their own. I was just responding to the comment that suggested gluing frets on was insane, when there are perfectly logical and beneficial reasons for doing so, Most of the stories you hear about frets falling off are because the owner has cleaned the fretboard with a solvent based cleaner (lemon oil products etc) at some point and the solvent has weakened the glue. That or oily fingers. Gluing the frets on in the factory also meant that no fretwork/levelling needed to be done on the guitar. As long as the fretboard is flat when you put frets of a known height on, they will be perfect. Saves time, money and work.
You got one! Congrats man! His archtoppery series has been one of my follows for a few years now. Engineering and design at it's absolute finest. Since you've decided to keep it forever, are you considering refinishing it? Could put a nice veneer on the top.
LOL, yeah, I literally took all that footage seconds after taking the guitar out of the case. I didn't even clean the dust off. Don't worry, I'll be setting it up properly in the near future. Ha.
It's absolutely absurd to me how ahead of the time Parker's guitars were. If that came out today, people would probably think it's too high concept. I was lucky enough to handle a few flies at a local music store shortly after I started playing. Being poor and left-handed, I never got the opportunity to really play or own one, but the design always stuck with me.
Those were awesome guitars, sad that they ultimately failed! Hope you can get yours sorted out soon so we can see it in some more videos, and perhaps you can finally do that video on how you dial in your signature sound! \m/
I remember seeing these just sitting in stores in the 90's, they couldn't sell them. I spoke with a employee at one store who told me that no one buys them for some reason. Sad, I always thought they were great.
Yes, I agree. It's a brilliant guitar too. I own the one with the color shift paint. I was an early adopter and picked up the Majesty as soon as they were announced.
I still don't know why anyone hasn't applied more of his features (all together, especially construction) on a production guitar. I know that one of the main issues was the lack of profit margin. But why hasn't someone applied all the lessons of these guitars and priced it accordingly letting those who appreciate it choose to just pay what it costs to have the multitude of those features. Hell even half of all the features together would be amazing.
My buddy had a couple flys back when we were in music school. I always love the play feel but always thought the tone was lacking. I liked the ones with a wood body and the carbon neck though.
4:25 that's funny for a company that doesn't really want to do a core hardtail Custom 24 guitar without a good reason. Hardtails are the perfect thing for non moving parts ;)
Ive never regretted selling or trading any guitar. I was certain of those transactions. Where regret comes into play is all the ones i smashed. I smashed some sort of rare guitars 20 years ago, at least the ones I sold still exist in somebodies collection. My “bury with me” guitar is my first gibson. A 2002 gothic sg
The Parker Fly is a primary example of how guitarists buy guitars - a superior instrument in almost every way, but ugly as hell to most people. Guitars have to appeal to multiple senses - including visual stimulation. Unfortunately, it appealed to most people's visual repulsion. I know, I know...there are those of you out there that just love how this guitar looks. You are the vast minority.
@@samhouston6750 LOL. The reality of making a product successful is not dependent only on that it has superior features or technology. It must appeal to potential buyers on multiple different levels and in multiple different aspects - including aesthetics. The attitude that all those people are just Luddites that "don't get it" is the epitome of ignorance. A guitar has an element of art to it - and if that art is going to be valued, then it needs to appeal to people. It's fine if you want to make something that is the epitome of technical features...but then you cannot whine about how no one wants to acquire it. The Parker Fly failed because a guitar has to appeal to the player enough for them to want to pick it up and play it. It is far too ugly to do that.
I love my 2002 Parker Fly Deluxe, & I still can't believe I got it so cheap & I too will never sell it. The reason you sold your 1st Fly was the same reason the previous owner was selling this one. He needed to purchase a strat for a gig, & he just wasn't getting the use out it as he was getting too much grief & ridicule for it not fitting in with the bands he played in. In a way, it was a win for both of us. It's like a Fabergé egg of guitars. ❤😂 en.wikipedia.org › wiki › F... Fabergé egg
Congrats, man. I was the final assembler for all the Fly models from 1996-1998. I am 95% sure I put that together and wired it up and handed it off to the guys in the Nut Room (real name). Such a great color. Root bear was my fav.
Awesome stories I’m sure. I still think these were some of the coolest instruments ever
So nice to meet you! I hope you are very proud of your work, I know I am.
So glad to hear from somebody on the shop floor! You guys were part of a future we're still not ready for. They're engineering and manufacturing marvels, it's shape they stumble into pitfalls a strat can't because of it - hyper specialized parts aren't off the shelf available like a trem spring or fender style saddle, and making them from scratch is a bit out of reach for a small Luther shop.
I worked at Parker in the MD and late 90s. Like the guy at the beginning of the comments I'm fairly sure I would have worked on this very guitar as well. You should be glad to know that the chip on the front did not go through the carbon fiber. The fiber is only on the back of the body and the entire neck. The back of the neck also gets a second strip, but there is no shell on the top and sides. The top and sides were just primer and paint. As far as the side dots on the neck, (INTs) , are concerned, they were just rub on transfers. They were just like Colorforms. They were on wax paper and after the necks were painted they were simply lined up correctly with the fret board and then rubbed on like a decal. Clear coat over the top and all done!
Fascinating info on the side dots! Thanks so much for clarifying. Totally slipped my mind that the fiber and glass was just on the back of the guitar. So nice to meet you. I'm very proud of your work. Well done.
I have always wanted one of these. Closest I've gotten is a Parker P38. The Fly blew me away when it launched.
Wow Wow Wow. What an AMAZING video. I learned a ton! It's always fun looking at the Fly under a microscope to catch all of these little details. The amount of care that went into these guitars was frankly insane. Thanks for making the video! I now have to go pick up my 1999 Plum purple Fly.
Love your channel. We have the same taste in guitars.
Are you buying another Fly Mr. Fludd?
LOL, are you kidding, I learned most of the stuff about the Fly from YOUR channel!! Ha.
I'm so jealous! Just yesterday I was telling a friend that since I started building guitars, I haven't felt the need to buy any more guitars, EXCEPT for the Parker Fly. It's my absolute favourite electric guitar design.
Duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuude, this is an EXTREMELY cool video. Thank you for sharing this info in such great detail and getting such clean footage. Like everyone that found this upload, I've always loved these but never got the chance to snag one- aside from a P42. I'm sure folks will use this video as reference for the manual and I hope Mr. Parker gets to see this.
Great score on your Parker Fly - especially with the extra trem plate.
The scars are fine - here is a guitar that was enjoyed as it was meant to be.
I have always loved the Parker Fly, I've just never been in the position to own one - and they are becoming unobtanium now.
Many features on these guitars still seem space age today. And it is not as if Ken has stopped - the science that goes into his archtops is amazing.
I think you are the first person to show the manual - and I have watched as many Fly videos as I can find.
I'm so grateful Ken has a UA-cam channel and is documenting his archtop processes.
That Emerald Green Fly Deluxe was my first "real" guitar purchase and I used it to record my second EP back in 2001. That EP was heard by Dann Huff and he invited me to move to Nashville and start my professional music career. I sold the Fly to help pay for the move and then years later wound up flipping Parker Flys and made some great $$ doing it. My favorite was the Fly Classic in Transparent Red. I had one in MINT condition for a long time and refused to flip it. But eventually someone offered me so much money for it I couldn't turn it down. And now it's the guitar I regret selling more than any other instrument... well, maybe the Prototype DW 7x14 Cast Bronze snare... I've bought and sold a LOT of gear over the years. Anyway, great video man, the Fly (especially that hand illustrated manual) always brings back major nostalgia for a time gone by.
I kept telling people for years that the Flys would appreciate in value. It's simple supply and demand. There only a finite amount of these guitars in the wild.
I feel like i always learn something new about the fly and Ken Parker's work. Thanks so much for putting this together!
I'm glad you found it helpful!
my guitar teacher/mentor had 3 of these and I have always loved them and wanted one since.
I find it very interesting that the pickup switching and the secondary switch for the piezo, as well as the stereo jack option were replicated 1 to 1 in the JP line of Music Mans, years later
Yep, I have a Majesty. I totally agree Music Man was inspired by the Fly.
i can only imagine the wear that that horn sees from people picking it up by it for years.
I was so excited to see you posted a video about a Parker Fly. I've owned one since I bought it brand new in 1994 and there is absolutely noting comparable to a Parker. Mine is a a Mojo Fly and is a little different (push pull pickup pots, round tremolo hole, etc.), but basically the same. Nothing plays like a Parker. I tried the 10s spring for a short while, but 9s felt much more natural for me. The main thing that separates the playability for me is that neck. I just love the feel of the carbon fiber and stainless steel frets. It just flat out sings! The dream sound for me was always the stereo piezo and neck pickup combo. Run the piezo through an acoustic amp and the neck through a clean amp was perfect for me. You can add a chorus to the piezo or a little dirt to the neck, but that sound was great for strumming, finger picking, or even lead.
Thanks so much for the in depth look and explanation of this amazing guitar that so few can really appreciate!!
Love meeting so many Fly fans. Thanks for the comment!
I love the Parker Fly! So innovative and ahead of its time. I have two of them now, but have had 3 others in the past. I love how light they are. Your bridge looks a bit high at the back perhaps. Enjoy your Fly!
A guy i went to uni with had one and i saw it and heard it and it permanently altered my brain. I need one.
Congrats on the acquisition! I too had a silver Fly but I also sold it... I got mine from Mars Music in 98... they had to special order it because I wanted the silver finish. They were gracious enough to lend me an Emerald Fly for the 6 months it took to get my silver one. Although I'm one of those that complained about the upper horn digging into my belly, it played like a dream and nothing can compare to it's playability.
What a coincidence! I'm excited to see how many Fly fans there are out there. So cool.
Thank you for this, Mark! I have been craving a Fly since forever, and I will sell a few guitars if needed :)
My fav channel when it comes to design thinking/values and guitar combined. I really appreciate your work!
I totally agree with you. Every guitar or amp I've sold, I still regret it.
I like that there are so many different styles of guitars around no matter whether I like them or not (ie headless). It's nice to have a big variety, and always respect forward thinking instruments and builders. My favorite guitars out of all are the 80s superstrats, with the flashy colors etc.
I love 80's super Strats! Did you watch my vid on my 1987 RG550?
@@MarkGutierrez Yeah I watched it, great guitar, loved the video! By the way this Parker Fly here is also great, maybe not my style but it definitely looks awesome.
Cool video mark, very interesting. So many very cool elements. I like the actual shape of the saddles themselves. That spring is crazy! Great thinking and design.
I absolutely love the Fly man. Nice to see someone else in our community that loves the fly like I do. Great video Mark. ✌️&💙 If you ever want to refinish it in the Belew Tangerine orange. I have a paint code and the ability to mix that for you if you're interested!! Just sayin'😁
Haha. Thanks Todd! Didn't know you were a Fly fan. Adrian Belew is one of my favs. Take it easy!
A mate of mine bought a building to redevelop, the coffee shop within left one of their top of the line Italian coffee machines, he doesn't drink coffee, so he swapped it for a friend's Parker, with the frets falling off, that was more than twenty years ago, he stored it away because it was unplayable. We got talking about Parkers in his studio one day ,"I've got one." he said,"I can't play it." Sure enough the frets were lifting and one sprung off across the room as I grabbed it. So I said I'd fix it. I removed all the frets, not one wanted to sit flush, someone had tried CA glue in a few places, but they've got such tension that would never last. So I rebent them to shape on a drill press, securing one end to a cable tie, if they snap out from under the press I'd have to turn the whole workshop over! If I over bent I'd bend them back, with less pressure necessary in that direction, part of the hardening process made them much stiffer in one direction. The fret ends were a bit rough, so I ball ended them. The treble side of the fretboard to neck 'joint' was crumbling in areas, so it was decided to file and sand it back to roll it a little and paint a new black line. Waaaaay more comfortable, the one criticism for me is that the neck edge is too sharp. So now in the process of putting the frets back on. Tried CA glue alone, left to set then lifted, brittle contact and the glue does not wick underneath, just minimal contact at the edges. But unless you remove your good work you won't know it's lousy! So I'm using a combination of flexible slow drying adhesive that is locked in place with the CA, the combination should work. But this is a job you commit to, there's a reason guitar manufacturers bang some wire into wood! It's been interesting getting a hands on feel for Ken Parker's mindset.
Great video, nice one! Nice to see that others ‘get’ the fly as muchas I do! Amazing guitars
Parkers were amazing guitars. I miss them.
I played an emerald one when they first came out. Regretted not getting it ever since.
Great guitars. I almost bought one in the late 90s and I wish I had because they are killer and too expensive now. Grrat video.
Great video. Thanks for putting this together and sharing it!
I'm glad you enjoyed it!
My uncle from Boston knew Ken pretty well
Parker's archtop acoustic guitars are an absolute trip also, if you haven't seen them. Give those a google. The neck is floating, and not set into a heel. Same Fly headstock shape. All sorts of flaming and curling and quilting and crazy figuring
Yes, Ken's archtops are simply incredible. He’s a genius.
I’m still playing my ‘99 Fly Deluxe as my #1 since January ‘00. It’s a work horse.
Nice. It's rare to see the a Fly out int he wild. I applaud your taste.
Congrats on the acquisition. I am jealous. Always wanted one, but were just out of reach. Great video. Enjoy!
Same here. Out of reach is a great way of putting it. For years, I've had a saved search on eBay and Reverb set up with my price threshold. I got notifications every time a Parker was posted within my limits. This one was priced just right due to the play wear. I do consider myself lucky to own one.
Nice video man! Glad someone else talked about the fine details (lost wax casting, etc.). If you end up needing the original threaded posts that are pressed into the body which allows the pickups to screw into. I have some extra stock ones from a trashed fly. But I'm guessing those posts screws just need a washer to bring em up.
Thanks for the tip. I'm about to adjust those pickups today. Thanks for watching!
I had a Parker guitar about 5-6 yrs ago. I never found a whammy bar for it, so I don't know if thew trem system was any good, or not. The pickups sounded great, and it was the first solid body electric that I owned that had a Fishman system on it. I loved it ! It was one of the lower models as far as I could tell. (I bought it in a pawn shop for $200.00, the pawn shop owner had no f---ing idea what it was, and just wanted rid of it !) It had a REAL quilted maple top, and a green translucid finish, similar to yours. It also had all the bells and whistles yours has, but it had Duncan JB and some Duncan PAF in the neck. I truly loved the guitar until i read several stories online about how Parker was cutting the tongue off of the back of the frets, then GLUING them on !!! What an INSANE idea coming from an otherwise perfect guitar ! What kind of psychological paraplegic cuts the damn tongues off of the frets ?!!! One fret pops off, the whole fretboard must be redone, fret board must be slotted to house new frets, then an entire fret job. I read several stories about this built in nightmare. By the following weekend, I had it listed on craigslist for $500.00. It was, in my opinion, just a financial ticking time bomb waiting to happen. I never played it again. It sold about 3 week later, and the buyer thought he was getting a great deal. (He claimed to know a lot about these guitars, but I knew in a glance those were not Dimarzio pickups in it, just by the pole pieces, I even pointed that out to him, but he didn't care. He was as happy to buy it as I was to sell it. )
I miss the wonderful tones of that guitar, but not the looming risk of an over $500 fret job ! I'm still glad I sold it !
You don’t need a whole fret job, you just glue the fret back on. Shouldn’t need any extra work. The tang was cut off because if you cut slots in the carbon fretboard, it loses its strength (defeating the whole purpose of a carbon fretboard. Makes perfect sense. The later guitars had seymour duncans (jb and jazz) instead of dimarzios.
@@davidtomkins4242 I would have no idea what to glue it on with, and I had read several nightmare stories abit happening. I did not just choose to sell that guitar on a whim, I really loved it, but I could see it becoming a very expensive "disasterpiece" !
@@docf.n.t.2310 that's cool, each to their own. I was just responding to the comment that suggested gluing frets on was insane, when there are perfectly logical and beneficial reasons for doing so, Most of the stories you hear about frets falling off are because the owner has cleaned the fretboard with a solvent based cleaner (lemon oil products etc) at some point and the solvent has weakened the glue. That or oily fingers. Gluing the frets on in the factory also meant that no fretwork/levelling needed to be done on the guitar. As long as the fretboard is flat when you put frets of a known height on, they will be perfect. Saves time, money and work.
I have a deluxe 2008 and a 1998 classic that was featured at Nam. Still my favorite guitars
DAYYUMMM!!!
You got one! Congrats man! His archtoppery series has been one of my follows for a few years now. Engineering and design at it's absolute finest.
Since you've decided to keep it forever, are you considering refinishing it? Could put a nice veneer on the top.
The out of level bridge and the overtightened humbucker body screws are setting off my OCD haha😂
What makes you think that the pickup screws are overtightened?
LOL, yeah, I literally took all that footage seconds after taking the guitar out of the case. I didn't even clean the dust off. Don't worry, I'll be setting it up properly in the near future. Ha.
wow never knew these things about the fly!!! 😊
I've always wanted a Parker fly since I've seen Reeves Gabriel on tour with David Bowie. But in France the rare ones are out of my league!
Yes! Reeves Gabriel's Fly was so iconic! I loved his guitar.
It's absolutely absurd to me how ahead of the time Parker's guitars were. If that came out today, people would probably think it's too high concept. I was lucky enough to handle a few flies at a local music store shortly after I started playing. Being poor and left-handed, I never got the opportunity to really play or own one, but the design always stuck with me.
You can tell they are incredible guitars just by touching them.
Those were awesome guitars, sad that they ultimately failed! Hope you can get yours sorted out soon so we can see it in some more videos, and perhaps you can finally do that video on how you dial in your signature sound! \m/
I've always loved the look and specs of the fly models, but have never had the opportunity to play one. I'm kinda jealous
Got a mint Delux 97 in emeral green for 1500 dollars this summer. Fantastic guitar
What!!! That's a fantastic price!
I think there was a Roland midi pickup on @ some point near the bridge and they probably added the switch for that function?
Love my Nitefly M. I play it daily.
I remember seeing these just sitting in stores in the 90's, they couldn't sell them. I spoke with a employee at one store who told me that no one buys them for some reason. Sad, I always thought they were great.
Love these guitars. That being said it you want something that's very close to the Parker's the music Man Majesty 6 is an amazing guitar too .
Yes, I agree. It's a brilliant guitar too. I own the one with the color shift paint. I was an early adopter and picked up the Majesty as soon as they were announced.
I still don't know why anyone hasn't applied more of his features (all together, especially construction) on a production guitar. I know that one of the main issues was the lack of profit margin. But why hasn't someone applied all the lessons of these guitars and priced it accordingly letting those who appreciate it choose to just pay what it costs to have the multitude of those features. Hell even half of all the features together would be amazing.
My thoughts exactly.
My buddy had a couple flys back when we were in music school. I always love the play feel but always thought the tone was lacking. I liked the ones with a wood body and the carbon neck though.
I'm with you. The early models with the wood body had the best tones.
4:25 that's funny for a company that doesn't really want to do a core hardtail Custom 24 guitar without a good reason. Hardtails are the perfect thing for non moving parts ;)
The Concorde of guitars
My 2001 Fly Classic has been my #1 since I got it new. Nothing comes close to it.
Which color do you have?
that proprietary bridge is a bitch to find replacement parts for especially for decent prices.
You should check out RUF guitars out of Poland, similar design…
Aristedes guitars too
I've seen a couple of videos for RUF. I like them a lot. Definitely on my radar.
Ive never regretted selling or trading any guitar. I was certain of those transactions. Where regret comes into play is all the ones i smashed. I smashed some sort of rare guitars 20 years ago, at least the ones I sold still exist in somebodies collection.
My “bury with me” guitar is my first gibson. A 2002 gothic sg
LOL, I've never smashed a guitar but I feel your pain. What a coincidence, I just saw a gothic sg husk on eBay I was going to pick up and restore.
I love parker fly, and i love your guitars.. you should do a remix of you own version od a parker... at last on the a nice sketch! :D:D:D:D:D
Ha, thanks! I do plan on using some of the manufacturing techniques of the Fly for some future builds.
They were so innovative that Parker Guitars sold them at a loss.
That's what I heard. I heard they were making 10k guitar and selling them for 3k.
Im longing for a parker fly one day
The screws do come out of the cavity door. You can’t get the battery out without removing the plate. Why do you think they don’t?
The carbon fiber skin is only on the back of the guitar. I also don't think your leaf spring is seated right.
You are correct about the carbon fiber. I'll literally started filming as soon as I unboxed it. I haven't set it up yet. Thanks for the heads up!
The Parker Fly is a primary example of how guitarists buy guitars - a superior instrument in almost every way, but ugly as hell to most people. Guitars have to appeal to multiple senses - including visual stimulation. Unfortunately, it appealed to most people's visual repulsion. I know, I know...there are those of you out there that just love how this guitar looks. You are the vast minority.
The life of a designer in a world where the majority of people have terrible taste must be agonizing.
@@samhouston6750 LOL. The reality of making a product successful is not dependent only on that it has superior features or technology. It must appeal to potential buyers on multiple different levels and in multiple different aspects - including aesthetics. The attitude that all those people are just Luddites that "don't get it" is the epitome of ignorance. A guitar has an element of art to it - and if that art is going to be valued, then it needs to appeal to people. It's fine if you want to make something that is the epitome of technical features...but then you cannot whine about how no one wants to acquire it. The Parker Fly failed because a guitar has to appeal to the player enough for them to want to pick it up and play it. It is far too ugly to do that.
I like the part where you played it and showed the different tones 👍
Ha. I plan on demoing the guitar in several Shorts very soon. Believe me, I can't put this down and already have written so many riffs!
why does this dude whispers like a creep?
I love my 2002 Parker Fly Deluxe, & I still can't believe I got it so cheap & I too will never sell it. The reason you sold your 1st Fly was the same reason the previous owner was selling this one. He needed to purchase a strat for a gig, & he just wasn't getting the use out it as he was getting too much grief & ridicule for it not fitting in with the bands he played in. In a way, it was a win for both of us. It's like a Fabergé egg of guitars. ❤😂
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › F...
Fabergé egg
I do feel like anyone who collects guitars should have at least one Fly in their collection.