Fender decals = illegal?

[ArKay]

[GAS Man]

It's illegal to resurrect old AtomHeartMother threads.

[ArKay]

It's illegal to resurrect old AtomHeartMother threads.

 

Especially for a first post

[Bowe]

Its perfectly legal as long as;

 

*IF you go on to sell it, you inform the buyer that it is a warmoth neck with a fender decal on

*you DON'T list it as a Fender guitar when selling

*you DON'T start making lots of them to sell

 

Trademark only comes into effect if you're going to making gains on someone elses reputation, so as long as all parties involved know its a fake, and you don't make a business out of it, theres nothing anyone can do

[KLeeneX]

Even Jesus would be proud of this threads resurrection.

[jerry_picker]

Even Jesus would be proud of this threads resurrection.

 

[Johnny Z]

Just be careful. I did that once and ah well... I'm now posting from jail.

 

Man, it must be really tough typing with handcuffs

[aenemated]

just design your own logo that's sorta inspired by the fender one. that's what i'm doing for my tele build. you can get inkjet waterslide paper (model builders use it - pretty easily available) to print it out on and voila! done.

[V-8]

 

Its perfectly legal as long as; *IF you go on to sell it, you inform the buyer that it is a warmoth neck with a fender decal on *you DON'T list it as a Fender guitar when selling *you DON'T start making lots of them to sell Trademark only comes into effect if you're going to making gains on someone elses reputation, so as long as all parties involved know its a fake, and you don't make a business out of it, theres nothing anyone can do

 

 

You basically have it right except for #3. Fender can certainly file a lawsuit or cease and desist against you for even trying to sell just one of these decals.

 

If you print a replica Fender decal up for yourself, there's nothing that Fender can do about it.

[V-8]

Man, it must be really tough typing with handcuffs

 

Since he hasn't posted in an HC forum since May, he's probably loves it there in jail.

[alfsboy]

just a quick word .Copyright has to be actively protected .its not enough to say they know there are illegal logos out there but they ignore it ,They have to protect it and chase miscreants using their logos ,headstock designs ,etc,or by default they could loose the rights to it as someone could say they had been using and selling them for years without any complaint by Fender .This is why you often see a trade mark in an ad and a note at the bottom the page explaining that the logo is the trademark of whatever company that owns it .

.Not sure they would bother for one measly decal but they may well chase someone printing them ,however they are used . A non Fender guitar using a fake Fender logo is just a forgery unless stated other wise ,hence illegal under civil law .It s not the use of the logo ,but the misrepresentation ,that is illegal.

As for Squier its a bit murkier as they already have Fender printed on the headstock in small letters and on advertising and manuals etc as well as the Squier logo.Fender should come clean and just call all their fender style guitars Fenders .Thats really what they are .

[SteinbergerHack]

 

Would putting a replacement decal / logo on a FENDER neck - even if I exactly duplicate the existing plaement - violate any trademark or laws?

 

 

 

No, that would just be a repair. The issue is using the trademark or logo for something other than the owner of the logo intends.

[Wulver]

http://www.decaljoe.com/Index.htm

 

The guy does the best job I've seen so far. quite good stuff, these.

[jsegel]

sadly i think he's gone. the server claims error. i was just looking on ebay also, nothing! maybe fender wiped out all the decal sellers. sad cuz i need one for a mid-65 strat. anybody got one?

[jimwratt]

Does the fact that its on a licensed fender neck make a difference.

[doppelbanger]

why would you want to put a fender logo on a warmoth? if i see a warmoth with a fender logo i just think thats lame.

[stormin1155]

[sk8centilli]

 

Although it really is a Fender, but I bought that for the refin.

[almightycrunch]

I have a Fender logo on my Warmoth strat, but its mine, and its not for sale, and Fenders wish they sounded this good. See, notice the shit eatin grin on my face as I glance at the Fender logo?????? either that or my ass is getting tickled by the thunder that is Splawn??? LOL as you can probably tell, we are a black metal band!

 

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[dogfish]

Someone made up a "Fedner" decal in the appropriate script, looked great at a distance, then you see it close and crack up.

[Ratae Corieltauvorum]

 

 

[Force Majeure]

 

Hmm, isn't that the Katikaster??

[chrisebrooks06]

Yes, the headstock police will kick down the door and rape you with a rubber hose

 

omg jesus i almost fell off the chair when i read that

[ganjaseed]

Its perfectly legal as long as; *IF you go on to sell it, you inform the buyer that it is a warmoth neck with a fender decal on *you DON'T list it as a Fender guitar when selling

[gtrjones]

Technically, it's trademark infringement to apply a logo to any instrument that is not a factory-built Fender. That includes a replacement (licensed) neck on an otherwise all Fender guitar.

 

Will Fender hunt you down if you put a fake decal on your guitar? Probably not.

 

But - even if you have all kinds of disclaimers, if you ever sell the guitar with a fake decal, you're violating trademark laws and could be subject to hassling.

 

There was a story a couple years ago on the tele page - a guy was retrofitting telecasters with 12-string bridges and warmoth 12-string necks. He was putting Fender decals on, and selling the guitars on ebay. Probably on the order of one or two a year. His auctions indicated fully what parts were used, and that the guitars were not stock fenders. One of his buyers complained to Paypal after the auction that the guitar was not a Fender. Paypal asked to inspect the guitar, and six weeks later, refunded all of the buyer's money, and told the seller the instrument was a trademark violation and was 'destroyed'.

 

There is very little difference between a parts-guitar with a fake decal and those chinese-built Gibsons. Because the trademark law doesn't say ANYTHING about intent. If there's a fake logo, it's a violation, regardless of notice, disclaimers, or intent.