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Joined:
August 2013
Posts: 4
| I have a 1991 Garris Elite Prototype Ovation. The only serial number I can find is on a thin metal strip on the inside of the guitar. The label under the leaf only announces it as Custom made by Ovation with the information about being a Garris Elite Prototype. I looked up the serial number at Ovation and confirmed only that it was made in 1991, but I can find little else about my guitar in terms of history, pricing, etc. Also, the label, while it has no number, confirms it was made in New Hampshire.
It was a birthday gift to me in the early 90s, bought from a little store in Nashville in the Village. (I don't know if any of you are familiar with Nashville, but there used to be a very good music shop there. I'm not sure if it still is.)
Does anyone here own one of these guitars and have information on them? The reason I ask is that I've let the guitar sort of languish in its case, without playing it, for some time. I think I'm going to sell it. But, I have no idea what to ask for it or how to make sure it gets an owner that buys it and appreciates it. It's in mint condition. No scratches, etc. I no longer have an amp, so I haven't plugged it in for years. (Frankly, I'm feeling fairly guilty about it.) I'm going to try to insert a photo so you can get an idea about its looks. Anyway, any information at all would be appreciated. Thanks.
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August 2013
Posts: 4
| Adding that, for some reason, inserting a photo is not always working correctly. I hope this works! 
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December 2006
Posts: 6994
Location: Jet City | Hi JL,
Welcome.
Not a lot can be told from the picture and I've personally never heard of a Garris model. Maybe someone else has.
More pics would help too, preamp, the labels etc | |
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Joined:
December 2003
Posts: 13988
Location: Upper Left USA | From across the room it looks to be a 1718:
1718 Elite 1986-1996 USA Steel 6 NO DEEP Elite PegHead A/E
The saddle is a thin line vs. the wider version but everything else says Elite 1718 to me.
For a running price you can check Ebay Sales and I'm sure you'd see everything from $400 to $800 depending on the quality of the photos and the condition of the instrument.
Having good photos is your number one tool to get the best price and the most comments from us!
Likely a custom order.
If you do get some more photos (put away the cell phone and step outside) you want to catch the side of the Peg Head, the Bridge, the Preamp and the top.
And welcome! | |
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December 2006
Posts: 6994
Location: Jet City | JL, this 'newbie' section is restricted for the rest of the club to post in. Our resident PI, Mr Moody, just sent me a note, and I believe he's right on the money...
Can't post on the Welcome thread, but regarding that special prototype
Elite, I'd bet (and I'm guessing) that it was built specifically for a
particular music store at the music store's request. We've seen those at
times, surface over the years.
It's an interesting guitar. It has a 1537 neck, it's acoustic only, and the
epi's are from (I think) an Elite Special (I'd have to look on Jerome's site
to know for certain, but it's early 90's (?). In that confirguration, it
was not a guitar that was ever in production.
Does that help or just muddy up the water?
I think it helped a lot. I took it a step further and searched for music stores with "Garris" and found a place in Alabama... but that couldn't be right. So searched for Garris and Nashville and found "Corner Music" in what looks to be the Village area of Nashville. Larry Garris is the founder of this place, and I'd bet dollars to donuts he's the guy who ordered the custom run.
We've done the same thing here at the OFC through Lost Art Vintage (maybe we should call them "Pepiak Protos". There have been 2 special limited runs of OFC Adamas guitars, but those are a completely different animal at a whole other level.
So... You have a cool guitar, but unless you luck out and find someone who knows Larry and JUST HAS TO HAVE one of his custom order jobs, well... It's probably worth what any other well-kept Elite of it's day was worth. I'd say it's closest to the 1768, so look at what good examples of those are going for and add a bit more for it's uniqueness. It's hard to tell with the photo you have, but some of those unique characters may be the eppis or the woods used for the fingerboard, headstock overlays, what the binding is, etc.
So in Paul's words, does that help or muddy up the waters? | |
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December 2006
Posts: 6994
Location: Jet City | Also to Moody and Woody, JL said it was electric, so I'm assuming it's close to the 1768, but with a thinline. Might even have a special break in it too like the '93 Collector's since they were from the same timeframe.
Just more speculation JL. That's about all you'll get here. Maybe see if Larry Garris is still around. Bet he'd be able to confirm/deny and give you any other info if he is indeed the dude. | |
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August 2013
Posts: 4
| That's it! It was something Ovation did for Larry Garris as a thank you for his patronage. They built a custom prototype for him, using features from different guitars that he liked. He has one. The man at the store felt I might have one of only one or two other ones. So, now it makes sense about why I couldn't find any information on the guitar.
I'll take some photos that are less grainy and in the sunlight so you can all see it and tell me what you think about its features. The guitar is in terrific condition. Frankly, now that I know this history, I'm kind of even sadder that I might have to sell it. Bah. Thank you, everyone, for helping me figure it out. You have all been so thoughtful and nice.  | |
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December 2006
Posts: 6994
Location: Jet City | Glad the mystery is solved. BTW, Michael... I dunno what I was thinking. you're right abut the 1718. For some reason I thought it was acoustic. My model number was way off with the cutaway | |
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December 2003
Posts: 13988
Location: Upper Left USA | They are all unique, one of a kind and prototypes... just like all the rest! | |
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August 2005
Posts: 3736
Location: Sunshine State, Australia | My 1768 had a cutaway... | |
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A Mild Mystery and a Question