5 comments about Gruhn's Guide to Vintage Guitars : An Identification Guide for American Fretted Instruments (2nd Ed).

1. I bought this second edition hoping to find more information than I found in the old edition, but beyond expanding the breadth of models, the book is still not extremely helpful. Its basic setup is to use a one-line description of a change that occurs to a guitar model and note the year that this happened in. That's fine of course, but it sure would be helpful if the lines referred to illustrations or pictures. the result is an extremely dry text summary - and it doesn't even really go far enough. for example, the area on Fender Stratocasters lists every model throughout the 20th century, yet the initial list entries of changes seem to stop in the 70s, and while it does make mention of the shoulder on the control cavity routing changing in 1959, it doesn't mention changes in pickup routing in 1970 or so, nor the addition of a ground screw shoulder in the control cavity in 1979-81. it mentions how many patent numbers are on the headstock during which year, but no mention of what they are nor illustration of where they are placed. no mention of logo design changes.
   the list of fender serial numbers is sort of accurate, but the lowest and highest numbers per year listed are just plain wrong. they might look in Duchossoir's book for more information!
   I think it might help people to have more information on Norlin-era Gibsons as well, explaining which were made in Kalamazoo and which in Nashville and how to tell... one thing i noticed was that they say how the reintroduction of Les Paul Standard/Deluxe models had 4 piece pancake bodies, but in my experience I've seen more very early 70s whose bodies were two pieces of mahogany with a maple top and had (3-piece) mahogany necks prior to 1975 when they became maple, and some even had bodies that were one piece of mahogany.
   also since people on ebay seem to be making so much money peddling parts of old guitars, it might be nice for someone to take on the description of how to correctly identify potentiometers, capacitors, even knobs, pickup covers and tuners!
   all of these suggestions would make this a very useful guide! but - especially pictures.... describing how a screw position changes on a pickguard from one year to another is not nearly as comprehensible as an illustration!



2. This is a vast improvement over the older version of Gruhn's Guide to Vintage Guitars. I would like the next version to include vintage Sunn amps, heads and cabinets, as well.



3. You can get all information quick and without doubt !! I had the first edition, but this second edition is a lot more complete and updated !!!



4. This book was very limited as far as various makes of guitars. It didn't have any price guides on any of the things listed.
   I would think that would be the main information anyone owning a vintage guitar or other musical equipment would be most interested in. This book was useless to us. I wish we could return it. Thank goodness we ordered "The Offical Vintage guitar Magazine Price Guide 2003" It included everything any collector would want to know!!!



5. I found this reference to be riddled with ommissions and inaccuracies. The Rickenbacker bass section contains errors in almost every model. A simple check of the Rickenbacker website would have corrected the majority of inaccuracies. Production dates were the most obvious. Now if the book was to be filed under "fiction"...

5 comments about Blue Book of Electric Guitars.

1. Some prices are above what they actually sell for (priced too high) well some prices are below market on EBAY anyway.
   Also they need to expand some area's such as Harmony,Yamaha,Taylor and Blueridge,excellent overall guide to Acoustic Guitars aand there prices.
   Blue book has set the standard for all.
   They do an excellent job on Gibson and Martin both but too little info on small names.
   Maybe i should write a book of Yamaha Acoustic Guitars?
   These are very popular on EBAY and are considered the poor man's Martin,which includes me by the way.
   Good amount on the history of companies that Manufacture Guitars which i find interesting,facts most people do not know or realize.
   Gives buyer's the uphand on what price to pay for what condition,as well as an very good examples shown in pictures.
   I would rate this a 5 but there is too much info missing in there guide which forces me to use several.I wish some day they could make this more complete so i only need to buy one.But otherwise i depend on it.
   If you do not own this you are either a genius with one of the best memories on this planet or you are operating in the dark ages.



2. My Friend has an addiction to guitars so I purchased this book as a birthday gift three days ago and he hasn't put it down. Great book, very informative and apparently addictive too.



3. I use this book along with the Blue Book of Electric Guitars from the same publisher as a reference and starting point to price vintage guitars to purchase for my collection. I have found this book to be an excellent source for model information as well as a price point reference. I am not sure I would wish to venture into this collecting field without a reference such as this. I highly recommend both books to anyone interested in buying or selling a vintage guitar.



4. The book is fairly comprehensive and has an adequate description of the guitars and features. Some guitars are not listed, and some of the models are hard to look up when a company makes a wide variety of models. The book seems to get superseded pretty quickly but is much cheaper than some of the other guides out there. Hopefuly the book is accurate, since it lists an imported Ovation guitar as having a solid top when most of those models are known to have plywood tops. If you buy the book on CD, the user interface is awkward.



5. I DO ALOT OF BUYING/SELLING/TRADING, AND THIS BOOK HAS KEPT ME FROM MAKING MISTAKES AND HAS HELPED ME SCORE SOME PRETTY GOOD DEALS. I RECOMMEND IT HIGHLY.

2 comments about Glock Exotic Weapons System.

1. ....To make a glock full-auto. It is a 58 page book that gives you step by step instructions on how to turn a glock fully automatic including blue prints and schematics, its rather user friendly and easy to do. There is nothing else in this book other than directions to do what I mentioned above.



2. I was VERY disapointed with this book. If all you want to know about is converting the glock to full auto, you might like it, that is all it covers.

3 comments about Blue Book of Acoustic Guitars: 11th Edition (Blue Book of Acoustic Guitars).

1. Just the best book for anyone with G.A.S.(Guitar acquisition syndrome) Has the price for a variety of conditions for most of the acoustic guitars out there. Excellent!



2. When I tried to look up several models of Alvarez Yairi listed on EBay, none of them were in the book.
   When I wanted to determine the value of my Dauphin classical guitar (for which there are plenty of references on the Web), it wasn't there.
   Clearly, while it is good for what it is, its applications are limited



3. This is my first book on guitar prices. I bought it hoping that I would learn more about vintage prices and model availability.
   
   It is a thick and heavy book. Paper quality is average. Also there are little pictures considering the amount of models listed. For some models (which are very special) I would have liked to see a picture.
   I checked a few non-Martin brands and found that a lot is still missing. Gurian is only described very short, one price is given for all models (which is just nuts because they had simple mahogany models up to BRW models or very limited classical guitar models). Hanika (a very good German builder with a similar production size as Lowden) is not included.
   
   I noticed very quickly already that the suggested (Martin) prices are very related to the American market. So it makes it a little harder to use it for the European market. I think that assuming 1 USD = 1 Euro comes closer to European prices for the higher end models. For the lower end models (or models which are less collectable or not so interesting) I would say European prices are twice as high as indicated (so let's say 1 USD = 1.5 Euro). Just my thoughts.
   Back to the book itself: I have looked up numerous Martin models and found it very hard sometimes to find them. The Martin chapter has been divided into the usual series (like Special Edition or Golden Era), but that means for instance that the original OM-28 and the recent OM-28V are listed together but the OM-28 GE is listed under Golden Era section. I can partly understand why they did this, but I found it is typically the point of view from the manufacturer (think in series) opposite to the view of buyer/player (think in a specific model and its variations).
   
   A link to the internet providing updated information is not provided. I assume that if you buy the CD-ROM version there will be the possibility of updates.

4 comments about 60 Great Sci-Fi Movie Posters (Illustrated History of Movies Through Posters, Volume 20).

1. War of the worlds, This Island Earth and Star Wars! Every big name movie or B-movie poster you could think of. And a few I've never heard of. Only one point away because some of the posters look like they were unfolded after being left in somebody's basement for a dozen years. Surly they could have found better copies or used computers to take out the flaws. But still, its cheap and holds a lot of poster images, so I really should not complain. Can't help but love the half naked women. Many of which were not in any of the films. Just there to hook the people.



2. With the exception of the more recent movie posters, I thought it was a fairly good collection of 54 classic science fiction posters.



3. All of Bruce Henderon's books are worth a dozen times what he sells them for; flawless, stunning reproductions of great movie posters. Buy them ALL! this is my favorite, though.



4. This is a TERRIFIC book, at a terrific price, filled with - you guessed it - terrific, clean, sharp, colorful images of some of the best science fiction and fantasy movie posters ever created. In that respect, it meets and exceeds a five-star rating.
   
   Alas... I'm still disappointed by it. Here's why. I already have a lot of the Bruce Hershenson books, as well as a number of other movie poster books. This book is Volume 20 in Hershenson's series, yet to those who have earlier volumes, it's a bit misleading to call it that. For earlier volumes, Hershenson took care to try not to duplicate images that had already appeared in the volumes that preceded it. There were occasional duplications, but even those were sometimes welcome to get the images in various sizes (for earlier volumes, the reproduction size would vary from 1 poster on a page to as many as 9 posters on a page). One of the great advantages of this volume is that ALL the posters are presented at full page size, 1 per page. There's even a wide margin at the spine side of the page so you don't have to force the book open wider to see the inside edge of the poster art. (Two thumbs up for that design feature!) My complaint is that the selection in this book - 60 posters - is almost entirely duplicated from earlier Hershenson volumes, AND are generally the same posters for the same movies that all the other poster books have printed ad nauseum over the years.
   
   In that respect, the "60 Great" movie poster books are really "Best Of" collections, which is why I think they should not have been numbered as part of the continuing series. Like a "Greatest Hits" collection from a band, these are spectacular collections, just don't be expecting anything other than the most familiar titles.
   
   Bottom line - it's unquestionably well worth having, but if you're an old hand at movie poster books, don't expect anything out of the ordinary.

4 comments about Extraordinary Exhibitions: The Wonderful Remains of an Enormous Head, The Whimsiphusicon & Death to the Savage Unitarians (Broadsides from the Collection ... from the Collection of Ricky Jay).

1. This book is a fascinating collection of antique advertisements for entertainment acts ranging from the whimsical to the bizarre. The broadsides themselves are surprisingly readable and Jay's commentary illuminates the subject matter in a way that sheds light on multiple facets of the social context the broadsides existed within. It's an art book, an intriguing work of history, a compendium of the bizarre, a chronicle of advertising techniques, and a unique stage door view on just exactly what humans will define as "entertaining".



2. If you ever have a chance for a collector to show his collection, you run the risk of being terribly bored. Unless you yourself collect stamps, coins, thimbles, Hummel figurines, or Corvettes, you are unlikely to sympathize with the delight the collector takes in his hoard. Ricky Jay is a fascinating man; he is a master magician, a historian of show business (especially of novelty acts), and an actor in David Mamet's movies. He collects something few others do: showbills for the jugglers, magicians, animal acts, ventriloquists, and other eccentric and novelty performances through almost four centuries. Don't worry, it is far from boring. Around eighty of his specimens are on display in a large format book, _Extraordinary Exhibitions: The Wonderful Remains of an Enormous Head, the Whimsiphusicon & Death to the Savage Unitarians_ (Quantuck Lane Press). The broadsides are funny and beautiful, and Jay's learned and enthusiastic commentary about each one is on the page facing each specimen. It is all thoroughly entertaining, and like any show advertising, the posters make you wonder if the acts are really as described. There is so much verbal and graphic hyperbole on display here that a bit of incredulity is only sensible, but still: who, if confronted by an announcement for Signor Cappelli and his Learned Cats, with assurances that after he introduces his cats to the audience, they will "beat a drum, turn a spit, grind knives, strike upon an anvil, roast coffee, ring bells, set a piece of Machinery in motion to grind rice in the Italian manner with many other astonishing exercises", who, I say, would let incredulity overcome a wish to get a peek at the show?
   
   Let me just take the three displays mentioned in the subtitle. "Wonderful Remains of an Enormous Head" were on display in London around 1840, and it was, if the description is to be believed, truly enormous, eighteen by seven feet, and weighing 1,700 pounds. What the head was, we do not know; one observer said it was likely that of a whale, and another said it was an obviously gigantic bird, fish, or lizard. The Whimsiphusicon had one of those fanciful names showmen of the 19th century enjoyed. It is advertised on a playbill for the ventriloquist Christopher Lee Sugg in 1816. Jay says, "Sugg, like a number of early magicians, was a proponent of theatrical neologism used to entice, or more likely confuse, the public." Indeed, Sugg explained on the playbill that the device was also dubbed "The Wandering Melodistical" and was a "Pill to Banish Melancholy," but it is safe to say he didn't give any secrets away until the performance. "Death to the Savage Unitarians" is on an Argentinean bill from 1842, and does not refer to the members of the religious sect, but to the country's Unitarian political group who favored a liberal rule of law and a strong central Argentinean government. They opposed the dictator Juan Manuel Rosas, and probably the phrase was included by the publicist who had drawn up the bill to ensure it would not offend the dictator. It caps an ad for "Robert and His Wife" who did magic and juggling, including "the new trick of the ceramic plates that will very much please the spectators" and "the lovely balancing act of the two dogs dressed as a Marquesa and a Marquis."
   
   There are scores of other playbills for acts in this beautifully produced book that shows some astonishing curiosities, well annotated by the erudite collector himself. It is full of jolly whimsy, for every act depicted is shown at its best, even though it might be promising more than it could actually produce. There is a taint of regret, here, though, on every page. As the playbills frequently remind us, the like of these productions will never be seen again. Oh, how I would love to see Daniel Wildman, for instance, the first and foremost equestrian apiarist of two hundred years ago, who rode his horse standing up while five swarms of bees covered his face, swarms which would thereupon alight on specific locations the performer designated by his command.



3. This is a wonderful book by a truly genius author. Also, make sure you put Ricky Jay's other books on your list. He has a great mind and his books are phenomenal!
   Harry Monti
   Society of American Magicians
   National President 1999-2000



4. Ricky Jay is a national treasure. He's the head curator of a continuing collection of the curious, marginal, sometimes macabre but always compelling congregation of entertainers who have slipped through the trapdoor of time's stage. His newest masterpiece, Extraordinary Exhibitions, is a catalogue of broadsides heralding some of the strangest performers that ever graced an auditorium or a sidewalk. You'll meet Pietro Stadelmann, a seventeenth century armless dulcimer player. As well as the nameless 27 year-old Angolan "Famous African Hermaphrodite". And a South American trio whose huge excrescences extruding from their chins gave them their stage moniker "The Monstrous Craws". You can sit at the feet of Joice Heth, the 161 year-old former nursemaid of Little Georgie Washington, the marvelous showman P. T. Barnum's first client. There's singing mice, educated fleas and a Rabbi whose demonstrations of his prodigious memory were endorsed by the Pope himself. To paraphrase the immortal Charles Fort, you'll see a procession of the damned of showbiz. And thanks to the wonderful Mr. Jay, they'll walk (and bark, tumble, juggle, catch bullets, arm wrestle, rope dance and eat stones) again.

3 comments about Warman's Star Wars Field Guide: Values And Identification.

1. This is perhaps Mr. Wells' best Star Wars book yet. It's cleverly modeled after a the type of field guide used by bird watchers. It's very small (five inches tall, four inches wide, and a little over one inch thick), and contains a great SAMPLE of full-color images on high-quality semi-gloss paper. For example, there is at least one sample images -- and usually even more -- of each card type from the original Star Wars action figure line (Star Wars, Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, Power of the Force, Droids, and Ewoks). There are also sample images of most of the new carded figures from the 1990s all the way up to 2004. And that's not all... There are sample images for dozens of other items, too! Vintage examples include loose figures, 12" figures, Topps trading cards, comic books, vehicles, playsets, lunchboxes, glasses, etc.. Newer items include Lego, Hallmark ornaments, and newer trading cards, comic books, etc..
   
   That said, this book is NOT, nor was it designed to be, even close to 100% comprehensive with regard to images (it just gives you a sample image or two of each type of item so you will be able to identify something when you come across it). But, it DOES include fairly comprehensive lists of most items in most genres (both vintage and new), and a pretty reasonable price guide for each item it lists (I'm not a big fan of price guides, but the prices in this book are at least as good as any other I've seen).
   
   It is not the best or most comprehensive Star Wars collectable book out there (if that's what you want, I recommend John Kellerman's Star Wars Vintage Action Figures: A Guide for Collectors). But, that book costs a lot more and you can't and wouldn't want to carry it around with you. This Star Wars Field Guide contains tons of photos and valuable information in a small, high-quality package.



2. this is a great book i love it and its very interesting! Great information and pricing !



3. This book is not as complete as "Tomart's Price Guide to Worldwide Star Wars Collectibles", but it is far more useful as a pure pricing guide than Beckett's "Official Price Guide to Star Wars Memorabilia". It's small (about 4" x 5") but contains over 500 pages, including 250 color photos.
   
   The items are arranged clearly and logically into 20 categories, with brief but useful introductory paragraphs alerting you to important background about each category. A very handy pocket reference tool to carry with you when attending a trading convention, flea market, or anywhere else you're looking to buy or sell Star Wars memorabilia.

5 comments about Star Wars Super Collector's Wish Book: Identification & Values (Star Wars Super Collector's Wish Book).

1. I bought this book awhile ago and also bought "Tomart's Price Guide to Worldwide Star Wars Collectibles" by Steve Sansweet. I found the super collectors wish book to be the better of the two. Far better. This book is easy to read, up to date and has sections that are in colour. The Sansweet book is none of that. This is the better of the two books to spend your hard earned republic credits on. I hope this reveiw was helpful.



2. I own the other wish books by G. Carlton. I find them to be really helpful, informative and I love the pictures he has for reference too. Great job! Anyone collecting Star Wars should own a copy of this book.



3. Values for both common Star Wars items and rare collectibles are presented under one cover in the weighty 4th updated edition of Star Wars Super Collector's Wish Book, a reference packed with some 900 categories of merchandise from around the world. From guitar straps and gum holders to pins and memorabilia, over 16,000 color photos - many small, but big enough to easily help in identification - pack this reference. Any library catering to Star Wars fans in particular will find it a popular pick.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch



4. This publication just goes from strength to strength.
   A true must for any collector, serious or beginner alike.
   
   Filled with great pictures & loads of information as a resource book you just can't fault this item. Doesn't matter if you collect action figures, cloth badges, books, posters...whatever...this book has the lot.
   
   If you are only going to do yourself one favour this year, make sure you buy yourself a copy of this book.
   
   OUTSTANDING STUFF.



5. This book had a lot of information I was looking for but not all.

5 comments about James Bond: The Secret World of 007.

1. I've been a Bond fan since my Dad used to take me to the public library so I could take out the hardback versions of Fleming's master spy.
   
   I honestly like this book, although it IS for a younger audience. The cutaway views of the "Bondmobiles" and "Little Nellie" are well rendered and make for a detailed insight behind the sheetmetal.
   
   I would have liked to have seen a newer edition, featuring Brosnan's last film as 007...DIE ANOTHER DAY. I think the VANQUISH and the Jaguar would have only added to the fun aspect of this book.
   
   It's definitely NOT a wordy book, but does offer the missions (films) in a nice concise chronological order, complete with places in these movies of note such as Dr. No's island base, Blofeld's oil rig, Stromberg's "Atlantis", etc.
   
   All in all, a nice addition for ANY Bondian library...or even a good starter book for the "next generation" of 007 fans!
   
   ((that's SHAKEN...not stirred))



2. This book was a load of crap. It was nothing but a bunch of boring common knowledge. They name a subject then give you 1/4 of the info on it. And there was only a couple pics of the bond actors except for Pierce who there was a lot of pics of. I think the author is gay for Pierce. The book was written like someone watched the movies once and wrote down a few facts here and there. I love the bond films but I wouldn't pay a dollar for this book.



3. This book is done in typical DK style, a fabulous pictorial representation of the people and items associated with the James Bond series of films. If you want to know more about some of what you see on the screen, this is a good choice.
   
   But I have a bone to pick with a couple of the reviewers on this page. First of all, Ray Walker (2/14/03) doesn't seem to realize that "Never Say Never Again" was NOT one of the "official" Bond films; the reason it resembles "Thunderball" is that that was the only Bond script in the public domain, and thus the only one available to another producer. Although not a bad film (thanks in part to Sean Connery), most Bond purists do not include it when discussing the Bond series, and neither the author nor publisher should be blamed for excluding it from this book.
   
   And the reviewer on 5/7/03 needs to realize that this book is not intended to be an in-depth study along the lines of "The Essential Bond", which is another excellent book. The reviewer should have taken into account that this is essentially a picture book, and should be purchased in addition to, and not in place of, the type of book he claims to prefer.



4. This turned out to be a truly wonderful book!!!! Very detailed, very accurate(besides for a few mistakes in fight sequences). Great thing to read to become even more acquainted with James Bond.



5. This book was really amazing. It has almost every little detail of every Bond movie from Dr. No to The World Is Not Enough. Book also contains some spectacular large photos from the movies. For each section of the movies, it describes basically what it was about, and it gives some of the information about charcters, villains, settings, and the "gadgets" used in the movie. It also contains hand-drawn pictues of scenes and places from the movie. Labels are also on the pictures (pointing out what is what). Really amazing, and you might learn a thing or two as well which is nice. At the end of the book after it has discussed all of Bond's missions, it has info on the movies themselves like the cast and crew. Then there is the index. This is a MUST BUY for any true James Bond fanatic. It is a fun book to look at, and to this day, I look through it as well and it sparks many memories. If you are not too familar with Mr. Bond, then do not bother with this item. A tremendous book, definitly worth your hard earned money.

5 comments about Inside the Worlds of Star Wars, Episode I - The Phantom Menace: The Complete Guide to the Incredible Locations.

1. This is a great visual aid if you wonder how everything is made and works in the world of Star Wars.



2. An excellent book! I have all of the titles in this series and plan to purchase Inside the Worlds of the Classic Star Wars as soon as it comes out. I think that they could have gone a little bit more in depth with this book, but you're talking to a Star Wars freak who could never get enough. I also think that The Attack of the Clones edition could have been longer, but overall, a wonderfull book of detailed maps and explanitory paragraphs.



3. An indepth review of the Episode 1 locations which are quite impressive, such as the Mos Espa arena and the Theed royal palace. An extention of the Pictorial Directory and Cross Sections, this book really explains alot of how why and where things happened in this first chapter of this tail.



4. Finally, a cross-sections that gives the audience a look inside the buildings of Star Wars! Why they waited so long to release it is anyone guess, but the wait is over. If you've read my reviews for the other cross-sections books then you know how much I love cross-sections. That said, Inside The Worlds Of Episode 1 breathes new life into The Phantom Menace. Particular favorites of mine include Otoh Gunga, Watto's junkshop, the Galactic Senate building, and the Jedi Temple. Not only does the book talk about particular locations in the movie, but also the very planets that the movie is set on: Naboo, Tatooine, and Coruscant. Inside The Worlds Of Episode 1 is full of wonderful illustrations and is packed with amazing information. Indeed, it's the chosen one...of cross-sections books, that is.



5. I just saw this book yesterday. I don't think it was marketed as much as the other books. That's a shame because it's magnificient.

   I am truly blown away by the content and pictures of the locations from Episode I. The art is unbelievable. The detail level is extreme and it must have taken an enormous amount of time for these two artists to complete this work. Every detail you could possibly want is here.

   This is a lot like the Star Wars Cross-Section books of the ships only it is not as technical. Imagine those books but for the locations and you have a pretty good idea of what this is.

   What's really great is how you get to look at things from angles that the film doesn't show you. The long shots really put everything into scope. You also get to see areas that you can't in the movie such as this place Watto can fly up to above his countertop in the junk shop. I can't wait to study this book some more and then rewatch The Phantom Menace again. I believe I'll look at it in a whole new way.

   My fingers are crossed for an Episode II version. I'd buy it in a heartbeat.