Marlin Sidweinders?

[Left_Hand_Strat]

Anyone heard of these things?

one has cropped up in a sexy dark metallic red on Ebay cheap looks in great nick good words for it but I aint heard the name marlin and the 1980's is mentioned...

is this one of the many strat copies which time should forget?

 

[stevie_bees]

Re: Marlin Sidweinders?

I had a metallic grey Sidewinder back in 87. My first electric guitar, HSS, trem, locking nut. It was an ok guitar and I'd love to grab one if the price was right just to revisit one. Can't really give you much more than that as it was a while ago

 

[stevie_bees]

Re: Marlin Sidweinders?

If it's good value I say go for it. I think Marlin came under the Hohner family, but I might have got that wrong.

 

[Left_Hand_Strat]

Re: Marlin Sidweinders?

there is one for 64.99 no bids £15 postage so 85 quid ending in the morning.... idk might or might not will think about it

 

[stevie_bees]

Re: Marlin Sidweinders?

My old mate from my school band had one in that colour. the finishes on them were pretty cool.

 

[Funkfingers]

Re: Marlin Sidweinders?

Nice paint. Shame about the plywood.

The first Marlin Sidewinders aped the black with red binding look pioneered by Washburn in the Eighties. They often employed a big ol' ugly vibrato bridge that seemed to blend FR and Kahler flatmount concepts. Twin SD Invader-lookalike humbuckers. Bleh!

Later versions came with nicer paint jobs and budget FR-licensed double locking vibrato systems. Pickups were still terrible.

Towards the end, Marlin Sidewinders became bizarre. One version had three single coils mounted on a scratchplate BUT the bridge and centre pickups were mounted perpendicular to the strings. The neck pickup was angled with the bass side closer to the bridge than the treble side. (I think that Ibanez was doing something similar with the neck and centre pickups of its Roadster models at that time.)

 

[Funkfingers]

Re: Marlin Sidweinders?

I just looked at the auction listing. The guitar is from Marlin's middle period. IMO, the case is worth more than the guitar inside it. File under - interesting project.

Bruce, you are getting as bad as me. The combined price of my last three budget-conscious guitar purchases would have funded the brand new Fender Old Growth Redwood Tele-bration model languishing at my local Fender dealership.

 

[richard parker]

Re: Marlin Sidweinders?

They had a reputation for being the cheapest and shoddiest guitars around. A friend of mine was gigging one, he decided to give the whammy bar a good shake and the guitar fell to pieces.

 

[Varg]

Re: Marlin Sidweinders?

Don't pay that for it, no chance. Here's the one my wife found in some pawn shop. Crappy electronics, the world's ugliest bridge and the neck is horrendous. It's playable, but only just.

I painted it pink, made a "Freya" decal for the neck and it's in my 4 year old's wardrobe for when she gets big enough to try messing about with it.


DSC080223 by stormwatch1977, on Flickr



DSC08043 by stormwatch1977, on Flickr

 

[Empty Pockets]

Re: Marlin Sidweinders?

I love when bad-ass metal dudes post pix of their guitars and its in some super nice looking house.

 

[Varg]

Re: Marlin Sidweinders?

In my defence, there's a beer can in the background of one of those pics and the decor in my house is all down to the wife, I just do as I'm told. :lol:

I'm not in any way "bad ass" either. :dance:

 

[Funkfingers]

Re: Marlin Sidweinders?

Pleased to report - in his absence - that Left_Hand_Bruce saw sense and passed up on the eBay Marlin Sidewinder auction.

 

[Varg]

Re: Marlin Sidweinders?

Sweet. A few years ago a wrote to one of the guitar magazines asking them what pickups I should put in that Marlin to get a certain tone, and the magazine printed my letter/email telling me not to bother as those guitars were crap. :lol: