Hallmark 60 custom or Fillmore ranger? Need input!

[Jazm]

Hi,

I got the Mosrite fever real bad, and need a fix!
But the price for the Fillmore Mosrites seems too inflated, i just can't justifie the asking price of 3000+ dollar for a Japanese clone. I know that they have a budget guitar called ranger, but still it's expensive for a "budget" type thing! Also i wonder what makes the ranger guitar cost less, is it not as accurate a clone, is it made in China instead of Japan, is it to Fillmore as Epiphone is to Gibson, and is it really worth that much money for a budget guitar?

I have read only good reviews on the Hallmark 60 custom, and it strikes me as a very good instrument at a very decent price. However, when i first got to try a real 66 Mosrite, the thing that got me sold was the slim fast action neck. I have fairly big hands (size 11" gloves, if that can work as a reference), but the neck was just perfect for me. One of the things that Hallmark have changed on their 60 custom form the original Mosrite is the neck profile and frets, and i'm a bit worried that if i were to buy one i might be a bit disappointed that the neck is not like the one's on the original Mosrite, and that is the main attraction of the Mosrite guitar for me. That is the only reason i haven't ordered a Hallmark 60 custom yet.

There are pros and cons to both the guitars for me, the ranger has a bit of a steep price for a budget guitar and also it has a bolted neck as far as i have seen, opposed to the set neck of the original Mosrite that i have played. But it also seems to be the closest clone in most respects, in the "medium" price range. The Hallmark seems like a great guitar from all the reviews on here and other places, but it's the uncertainty of how the neck will feel for me that makes me a bit hesitant, many say it's an improvement but i didn't have a problem with the original neck at all, it's what made me fall in love with the guitar.

Any input will help me greatly in choosing the right option, so if you have any thoughts on the matter, please do share them.

[GattonFan]

Jazm,

I own both a Hallmark 60 C and a Ranger, both very nice guitars (Don't know why the Ranger is called a "budget" guitar - I don't think it's a "cheap" guuitar, in quality or price). At any rate, both I have are quality pieces. The necks are totally different, the Ranger being much slimmer/flatter ... the Hallmark a little more conventional, yet a comfortable and great sounding player. I have never heard anyone speak of being dissatisfied with one. Just depends on what you want - both available from members here on the forum.

Dennis

[Jazm]

Thanks for your reply Dennis!

When i say "budget" it's all relative to the cost of the other Fillmore guitars, and i have read that the ranger is their "entry" Mosrite. I have never questioned their quality, but i'm a bit wary as to why the cost less.
Also, aside from the neck profile, how is the difference in the tone? I really liked the tone of the original Mosrite i played, it had a sort of bouncy twang and singing sustain. Does these guitar have the same tone?

I should also mention that when i got to play the original Mosrite, i also tried a Eastwood clone they had in the shop for comparison, and the only thing they had in common was a slight resemblance in the body shape.

Thanks again!

[Veenture]

Funny thing; with me it's the other way round, but that could be because I'm so used to playing Fender Strats all these years.
My Hallmark's neck width is [4.1 cm] at the zero fret and [5.4 cm] at the highest fret. The thickness of the neck at the zero fret is about [1.8 cm].

STRING measurements: (from low E string to high E string) [3.3 cm] at the zero fret and [4.6 cm] at the highest fret.
Always narrower than my Strats...

Hope this helps

[edit] The H60C's tone is very close to a Mo'

[Jazm]

Thanks for your reply Veenture, your measurements really is a great reference!

I ran over to my Casino Elitist, which is the easiest playing guitar i have played except for the Mosrite, with a ruler just now. And the measurements are almost identical!
This bodes well for the Hallmark!:)

I understand what you mean by getting used to other guitars, after i got my Casino everything else feels like strung telephone poles, even my Rickenbacker that had up to that point been the fastest rhythm guitar i had played! And that's one of the reasons i have to get a Mosrite type guitar now, it's hard for me to play anything with a fatter neck. Guess i'm spoiled:P
Also, i enjoyed reading about your first original Mosrite experience, it's a special moment for sure, especially for us in Europe!

Thanks again!

[dubtrub]

Hallmarks are nice for the price and for being very close in appearance to a Mosrite . However, If you want a guitar that looks, sounds and feels exactly like an original 60s model, and assembled right here in the Bakersfield California by non other than Dana Moseley, Semie's daughter, step up from the Fillmore Ranger to the Fillmore 66 reissue. It has a the slim neck and and small frets (not quite speed frets) but feels like it. I have played both the Ranger and the reissue 66 at Front Porch Music, and the Ranger has a little chunkier neck and bigger frets (more like a Hallmark)than the '66. I have two originals a '64 and a '66. Those '66 reissues are absolutely the best reproductions commercially made to this date bar none. Here's a link to Artie's classified ad. This is the forum members price and he ships to Europe. viewtopic.php?f=11&t=1427

[Veenture]

Absolutely agree with dubtrub. The Hallmark has certainly saved me when Mosrite fever was running really high with me last year but in all honesty, I'm still lusting for one of Dana's '66 reissues at Artie's...

[LOSTVENTURE]

Just to put in my two cents. I am very happy with every aspect of the Hallmark. I had the original frets filed just a little to get closer to the "speed" fret feel and now it's perfect. The neck on mine is small, but comfortable, both in depth and radius. IF, however you really want the exact feel of the authentic neck/fret action of the original, you need to keep shopping. From what I hear on this forum, even the "overseas" copies are all over the place. You probably need to get into the car and head over to Bakersfield and try the models there personally.

[Jazm]

Thanks for the replies guys!

Dubtrub, i had a look at the link you gave me, and i have to say that 1500 dollars for a Fillmore '66 reissue Mosrite with a guitar case isn't that bad at all! I thought that the going prices for the Fillmore's were the Ed Roman prices, and thought that it was going to be closer to the 3000 dollar range! But this is great news! And when i take into consideration the US dollar to Norwegian krone currency ratio, i get a price that i'm content with, even after the import taxes. Also, it's a plus that these are being assembled by Dana Moseley, sort of a legacy guarantee.

And i feel that what you, Veenture and Lostventure say about getting what i really want is very true, even though the Hallmark seems to be the best deal going in terms of "bang for your buck", i feel that i might still want a guitar that's the absolute closest i can get to an original Mosrite even after i buy a Hallmark, it surely would keep my Mosrite fever away for a while. But knowing myself, it would probably come back full force when i think of the fact that there are guitars out there thats even closer to the originals, and not an awful lot more expensive at that.
Also getting a Fillmore Mosrite would give me more of a resale value if i where to find myself in a financial pinch (god forbid!) by the simple fact that the head stock reads Mosrite.

So the (newly discovered) fact that the price for a new Fillmore '66 reissue is about the same as i would pay for a used Gibson SG '61 reissue (here in Norway at least), changes everything. Especially if they, indeed, are the best reproduction thus far.

Btw, are these '66 reissues bolted or set necks? I seem to remember that the original Mosrite i played had a set neck.

Thanks again!

[thunderhead]

Depends on your budget. The Hallmark is hard to beat for under a grand. But I would strongly consider dubtrubs advice for a Mosrite from Artie's. There is nothing like the real thing!!!!