The Steel Guitar Forum

I'm thinking about letting it go and was wondering what it might be worth. I think Fender called the double 6 string something else.
blonde, 1966 (dated in cavity), case w/key, good condition, signed by Jody Carver (visited him a few times, he played it)

thanks, Ron

It's in a lot better condition than mine. I would think they should bring $800 to $1000 in that shape with a good case and legs. Let me know if you decide to sell it, I might be interested.

Dual post

If this beauty has the tone blend switches it is a Dual six string Stringmaster and this is rare

Few if any are around.

Hope this helps

Dan

It does have the Stringmaster blend knobs and everything works. Wouldn't the signature add to the value?

Yes, if Jody Carver signed it will be worth more to someone as he is a member of the Steel Guitar Hall of fame and a former Fender salesman...that is for the prospective buyer if he or she is interested see here

www.jodycarver.com

So if it has a blend control it's a Stringmaster, and without it's a Dual 6 Professional?

I'm glad someone has made a definite distinction.

It's not a Stringmaster, it's a Dual 6 (with Stringmaster features). It's exactly like a Stringmaster in every way, except it's a D-6, not a D-8. This has been a source of confusion in recent years. In the Fender catalogs of the day this was listed as a Dual Six. Stringmasters had 8 strings (and either 2,3, or 4 necks). There was no such thing as a 6-string Stringmaster... BUT... history has been rewritten in recent years by owners and sellers. A lot of players now refer to the Dual 6 as a D-6 Stringmaster. It makes perfect sense, actually. We need some way to describe the later (mid 50s and on) D-6 from the earlier (trapezoid PU) D-6. Same thing with the Fender Deluxe - single 8. There was an early version and a later one (with Stringmaster features). Saying "Deluxe 8" is not specific enough. So players who have the later version of the Deluxe 8 now say they have a single neck Stringmaster.

Dual Pro with Traps

I think "Dual Pro" is another misused name sometimes. The very early D8s said "Dual Professional" on the FENDER logo plate. Hence the shortened name Dual Pro. But most of the trapazoid PU D-8s say FENDER, Fullerton Cal. on the logo plate. They don't say Dual Professional. Nowadays we call ALL the Fender D-8s of this era Dual Pros. I'd be interested to know what the Fender catalogs from this era called that D-8 after they no longer said "Dual Professional" on them.

Doug Beaumier wrote:I think "Dual Pro" is another misused name sometimes. The very early D8s said "Dual Professional" on the FENDER logo plate. Hence the shortened name Dual Pro. But most of the trapazoid PU D-8s say FENDER, Fullerton Cal. on the logo plate. They don't say Dual Professional. Nowadays we call ALL the Fender D-8s of this era Dual Pros. I'd be interested to know what the Fender catalogs from this era called that D-8 after they no longer said "Dual Professional" on them.

In the 1954 catalogue which introduces the Stringmaster, it also includes the earlier style which they call the Dual 6 and Dual 8 Professional.

Interestingly, the illustrations show a guitar with Roman numerals on the neck and trapezoid pickups (which as far as I can tell never existed and was certainly not an option in 1954) as well as one with the more common style with Stringmaster style fretboard markings.

Dual Pro with Box Car pups

The Vintage Guitar Price guide specifically says Stringmaster (6 string option available on double neck version). So confusing,

Dual post

I beg to differ with you

Forumite John Hanusch has a dual pro with Roman Numerals do a search for John

William Hoff wrote:The Vintage Guitar Price guide specifically says Stringmaster (6 string option available on double neck version). So confusing,

Yet the ACTUAL FENDER CATALOG (i.e. the folks that INVENTED it) calls it a DUAL SIX.

Dan Carey wrote:I beg to differ with you

Forumite John Hanusch has a dual pro with Roman Numerals do a search for John

I wasn't saying the Dual Pro didn't have Roman numerals - the early ones with the box pickups (like the one pictured a few posts back) did.

I was talking about the one in the catalog that shows Roman numerals with the trapezoid shape pickups which I have never seen and did not think existed.

As I understood it, the timeline was:
Roman numerals box pickup -> "Stringmaster style" markings with box pickup -> "Stringmaster style" markings with trapezoid pickup.

The catalogue shows Roman numerals with trapezoid which is not part of that timeline.

If you are saying that the pickup shape changed before the fretboard markings I stand corrected but maintain that the combination shown in the 1954 catalogue was definitely not available at that time.

Seeing how the market is slow, I will just put it back in the closet for a while now.
Ron

Like we've discussed in other threads, Fender used up all parts on hand. There was a lot of crossover of parts and transitional years. I'm not surprised that a Roman numeral fretboard ended up on a D-8 with trapazoid pickups. Evidently Leo didn't worry about things like that. This is why it's so hard to pinpoint an exact year by a guitar's features. The pencil date and the pot codes are the most accurate way.

It's interesting to find out that the 1954 catalog called the old style D-8 a Dual 8 Professional, even after the logo plate no longer said "Dual Professional" on it. I never thought of my 1952 D-8 as a Dual Pro because it does not say Dual Professional on it. I've owned three of the early ones, late 1940s, no legs (legs were optional at that time), Dual Professional logo, boxcar PUs, Roman numeral fret markers.

Regarding the value of the Dual 6... they usually sell for slightly less than a Stringmaster. I have seen a couple sell high in the past though because they are rare and there are a few players out there who prefer a double 6 console. You just need the right buyer to come along. It's a rare guitar, but not in high demand IMO.

What model would you call my double neck 6 with blend control? Purchased new in '56 or '57.
Wally Pfeifer

Doug Beaumier wrote:Like we've discussed in other threads, Fender used up all parts on hand...

...and they didn't just stop with steel guitars. Their solid guitar line was also hybridized from time to time, and sometimes they would create an entire new line just to use up parts from guitar models that wouldn't sell.

Wally Pfeifer wrote:
What model would you call my double neck 6 with blend control? Purchased new in '56 or '57.
Wally Pfeifer

Wally,
Yours looks identical to the one in the Fender Catalog page pictured a few posts up, so I'm guessing yours would be called a Dual Six.

Not trying to be an idiot, I would like to use the posted ad Steve has posted on here. Read the very first line of copy. If that doesn't mean that it is a 6 string Stringmaster, then I am befuddled. I think it should be called a Dual Six Stringmaster.

Doug Beaumier wrote:...they usually sell for slightly less than a Stringmaster ...there are a few players out there who prefer a double 6 console. ...It's ... not in high demand IMO.

I have to wonder why Fender built them at all. Six strings are so restrictive.