Mosrite Brass Rail Models Serial Numbers List (1976 - 1978, Les Paul-ish Shape) (Brass Rail Registry?)

[sumlin]

Bumping this in light of recent serial registry posts on the Stereo and Bluesbenders...

[101Volts]

My Deluxe #10 also has a set neck.

- Austin

BTW, although Deluxe #10 has a set neck it looks as though it may have been drilled to be a bolt-on at first; either that or they inserted dowels into the neck to help keep it in place, I don't know. I think the former idea's more likely.

- Austin

[olrocknroller]

There is a photo on the 'net of Nokie playing one...whether it was his or not isn't given in the comments...

[101Volts]

I re discovered my post about what's probably the same Celebrity Brass Rail..

viewtopic.php?f=27&t=1731

Not updating the whole list now.

- Austin

[sumlin]

No serial numbers to add but it's weird to see Jim Diamond mentioned - back in about 2000 or 2001, Jim stayed at my house on tour with The Dirtbombs and Bantam Rooster. He was playing a Bluesbender in Bantam Rooster as a sort of 'guit-bass' and he we chatted about it into the small hours and I had a play on it so it definitely started my own obsession with weird Mosrites that led to me owning a few.

[101Volts]

No serial numbers to add but it's weird to see Jim Diamond mentioned - back in about 2000 or 2001, Jim stayed at my house on tour with The Dirtbombs and Bantam Rooster. He was playing a Bluesbender in Bantam Rooster as a sort of 'guit-bass' and he we chatted about it into the small hours and I had a play on it so it definitely started my own obsession with weird Mosrites that led to me owning a few.

Jim posted in Mosrite groups on Facebook more recently, that's how I learned about the Brass Rail he had.

He also replied to me about his Blues Bender, which is now also recorded. I'm surprised he played it as a "Guit-Bass." How's that, exactly? Were they covering songs by "The Presidents of the Untied States of America," or was it something else?

- Austin

[101Volts]

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Recent Updates:
===============

17 November, 2023:

1976 model 55 (Black) surfaced on Reverb. The ad says that this was once owned by
Tom Brumley.
https://reverb.com/item/76006922-mosrit ... 1976-black

27 September, 2023:

22 is indeed a Gene Moles build. It was later worked on by Bob Shade.
A link to the Reverb ad for 22 is here: https://reverb.com/item/73424012-mosrit ... tallic-red

13 September, 2023:

Update to 22: it's Red, and it has a Moseley Vibrato Tailpiece.
6 July 2023:
Found A1 again on Facebook, with more photos. I don't have a direct link to the exact
post, but it was on the 4th of May, 2023, and it's at this page:
https://www.facebook.com/roadmanguitars

28 April, 2024:

Condensed this thread (deleted a lot of my replies) to make this thread a 2 page thread, instead of 5.

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Mosrite Section:
===============

Acoustics - 1

D1 - Dolly Parton Acoustic - Thread here: viewtopic.php?f=6&t=2387

Brass Rail Bass Guitars - 1

? - Either a Green or slightly Yellow (fading to black) burst. Its body's shaped like a
Mosrite take on a Rickenbacker 4001. I saved a photo of it. It's mentioned in these
threads:

Thread 1:
viewtopic.php?f=27&t=6521

Thread 2:
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=6524

Thread 3, Adam (Dorkrockrecords') Topic after he bought it:
http://www.mosriteforum.com/forum/viewt ... f=6&t=6543

Brass Rail Deluxe Models - 7:

1 - ? - Sold on eBay some time from 2005 - 2009. Mentioned here: viewtopic.php?p=21187#p21187
3 - Black - sold by a mosriteforum member
5 - Black, commemorative plaque on back of body - for sale by Expat Guitars
7 - Black, commemorative plaque - for sale on eBay in Michigan 2014. Also for sale on
Reverb in 2018 also from Michigan, and it sold for $5,500 + shipping then: https://reverb.com/item/17598148-mosrit ... -made-rare
10 - Black - owned by Austin (101Volts)
11 - Black - Owned by forum member Eric L. viewtopic.php?f=20&t=7210
17 - Black - Showed up for sale on Reverb from Guitar Emporium of Louisville,
Louisville, KY on 2021 - December - 6. Guitar has Schaller Tuners (seems strange to
me, I was used to seeing Grovers on these,) is missing the bicentennial plate on the
back, and has some paint damage to the back. Reverb ad: https://reverb.com/item/47714278-mosrit ... ect-guitar

According to Ed Elliott (who worked with Mosrite in the 70s,) early Brass Rail Deluxe
models were made from Blues Bender bodies.

May or may not have been a Deluxe - 1:

43 - Standard, Black - owned by Sumlin. Doesn't have Deluxe electronics, and it had a
1 vol. 1 tone setup when he bought it. It also had much crude routing done to it from
the front of the guitar, and there was a non original pickguard over the routing.

May or may not be a Deluxe - 1 Guitar:

76 - Formerly owned by Jim Diamond (who also owns a Blues Bender.) According to
him on Facebook, "One of my regrets is selling my Brass Rail. It had a stop tailpiece
but had stereo outputs and built in distortion. It was #76." This is in contrast to the
Gospel Celebrity 76, though. Then again, Adam (Dorkrockrecords, Expat Guitars) has
said here (early on, in this thread) that you can't just list Brass Rails by numbers.
Perhaps this list will need re-organized at a later date.

Unknown Deluxe - 1 Guitar:

? - Black. Owned by Forum Member HifiHellcat, who hasn't posted beyond his
introduction post:
viewtopic.php?p=66715

Mosrite and (Mosrite) Gospel, Electric 6 String Models - 18

2 - Red, No Zero Fret (has a Brass Nut.) Has Mosrite Humbuckers, and a Set Neck. Has
something like a Black Widow-type pad on the back, but it's not exact; a bunch of
other Mosrites that showed for sale in the same auction also had this type of pad. The
guitar also has 2 output jacks, but it doesn't appear to have Deluxe electronics. Maybe
it's wired like a Stereo 350? This guitar may or may not be a partsrite, so I may move it
from this section. It showed up for auction from Tony Hunt's Collection. https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/97 ... -with-case
6 - Greenburst - owned by Expat Guitars.
8 - Cherryburst w/white binding - owned by Expat Guitars.
20 - Black. Has Gibson type Humbuckers on it.
22 - Red (Refin?) with Moseley Vibrato Tailpiece, and a tortoiseshell pickguard that
looks like it may be newer than the guitar's year. Gene Moles custom that was later
worked on by Bob Shade. For sale in 2023, and was also for sale in 2010. https://reverb.com/item/73424012-mosrit ... tallic-red
24 - Black - commemorative plaque, owned by forum member dtribby. Update, 24 Feb
2022: Put up for sale on Reverb. Pics and page saved. https://reverb.com/item/51222054-mosrit ... 1976-black
38 - Black - owned by forum member coanda, who's in Germany - viewtopic.php?f=6&t=5747&p=59331#p59331
55 - Black. Ad says that this was once owned by Tom Brumley. Surfaced on Reverb on
17 November, 2023. https://reverb.com/item/76006922-mosrit ... 1976-black
56 - Black. Has Mosrite Humbuckers. Owned by Alan Blair Jr. - Pics saved. - https://www.facebook.com/groups/mosrite ... 555123538/
65 - Burgundy. Joey Buoni's. Brass Pickguard. Has a Moseley Vibrato on it. According to
Joey, this was bought by his great grandfather in the 1970s, and as far as he's aware,
the Vibrato is original to the guitar. Pic saved.
69 - White. Formerly owned by Steve Young.
74 - Red - sold on eBay in 2008 - https://guitarz.blogspot.com/2008/04/19 ... ustom.html
76 - Gospel (Celebrity shape), Honeyburst - built for Rev Beatty, owned by Expat Gtrs.
82 - Off-white - sold by Expat Guitars in 2009.
84 - Off-white - owned by Expat Guitars.
102 - Off-white (Refinish) - for sale on eBay 2014. Currently owned by Scott Gammon.
125 - Sunburst - owned by Expat Guitars.
Odd Numbers:
A1 - Red Burst. Has a mistake plate by the tailpiece. Missing knobs. Showed up on
eBay in early April 2023. Pics and page saved. --- Update, 6 July 2023: Found more
pics at F.B. page "James Roadman - Musical Instrument Repair and Restoration" here: https://www.facebook.com/roadmanguitars ... xuuZbsN8pl

Note: Ed Elliott worked on the last 20 Brass Rails in 1978.

Guitars Without Serial Numbers - 2:

No serial - Wenge, 3 pickup - made for Mark Moseley, owned by Expat Guitars.
No serial - Wenge, 2 pickup - owned by Expat Guitars.

Guitars with Partly Known Numbers - 1:

8? - Standard, dark red - owned by forum member Beatnikbandit

Guitars with Unknown Numbers - 7:

? - Standard, Black - owned by Efrim Menuck.
? - Standard, Black - shown as for sale in Michael Mark's Mosrite website in unfinished
(and unfretted?) state.
? - Gene Moles Custom - Celebrity body and BR neck. Was for sale on eBay in 2009. Is
this #22?
? - Standard, Black, white pickguard - pictured online but looks like it may not be a
Brass Rail, possibly a Bluesbender or SM with changed hardware. Full Moseley trem.
Owned by M. Ayukawa.
? - Finish was stripped. Has a brass control knobs guard. Once owned by (maybe still
owned by) Michael Marks. http://home.insightbb.com/~marksma/wsb/ ... 63769.html
? - Brown - Wenge Body, apparently Maple Neck. viewtopic.php?f=6&t=4916
? - Brown. Mark Moseley's. Has 3 pickups now. viewtopic.php?p=52598#p52598

Partsrites Guitars, some with Unknown Numbers - 12:

Assembled by Ed F Elliott - 11:

49 - Standard, Black - with Moseley vibrato, and 2 vol and 2 tone knobs; one for each
pup. Was owned by forum member The Jester. He had it for sale on eBay UK in late
2009 and/or March 2010. I saved the listing and photos.

? - Black - Fretted Americana had this one. Has a large scratchplate, an angled neck
pickup, a Moseley Vibrato, and one volume and one tone knob. Was in the 2012 Phil X
Fretted Americana Mosrite Special Part II. It was advertised as a prototype, but it's a
Partsrite that Ed put together in 1978.
? - Black - Ed Elliott assembled Partsrite, with Moseley Vibrato.
? - ? - Ed Elliott assembled Partsrite.
? - ? - Ed Elliott assembled Partsrite.
? - ? - Ed Elliott assembled Partsrite.
? - ? - Ed Elliott assembled Partsrite.
? - ? - Ed Elliott assembled Partsrite.
? - ? - Ed Elliott assembled Partsrite.
? - ? - Ed Elliott assembled Partsrite.
? - ? - Ed Elliott assembled Partsrite.

Quote from Ed: "Me and my dad in 1978 bought from Semie 11 Brassrail partsrites,
there was at least 3 black ones, about 20 SM bodies and necks, boxes of parts and all
the equipment out of the paint room. At the time I was restoring a double cutaway
Les Paul special for Artie Niesen, I really liked those guitars, I used it for a pattern to
reshape most of the SM bodies, so if anyone has a Mosrite shaped like a Les Paul
Special, its one of mine."

Source for Ed's Quote: Ed Elliott's "We Love Mosrite Guitars" Facebook Group,
comments section of a question where he asked who owns Brass Rail models.

Assembled by Gene Moles - 1:

? - Celebrity Partsrite assembled by Gene Moles in the 1980s with a 1978 Brass Rail
Neck. eBay Post by me, and Explanation in Reply by Adam (Dorkrockrecords.)
viewtopic.php?f=27&t=1731

=================================================
Instruments Built by Luthiers Close to Mosrite Section:
=================================================

E. F. Elliott (Ed Elliott) Instruments - 1:

? - Built for Michael Gnapp in the 1970s. Ed posted about this on Facebook on March 9,
2020.

Gruggett (Bill Gruggett) Instruments - 8:

1: Owned by dorkrockrecords.
2: Owned by dorkrockrecords.
26 - Gruggett Custom, sunburst with white binding - owned by Expat Gtrs
35? - Gruggett Custom - constructed with unique body shape for Expat Gtrs in 2010.
Update, December 2021 - This guitar showed up for sale in early December, in Japan,
from seller "oisii-japan." I also must say, I've seen this guitar mentioned here on the
forum before. I just never updated the info about it. It appears to be an original neck
with a custom double cutaway body. It also has a Moseley Vibrato Tailpiece on it and
wooden pickup covers.
48 - Gruggett Custom, black with chequered binding - owned by Elisha Weisner
No serial - Gruggett Custom, surfburst - built 2012 (from old BR neck?), owned by
Expat Gtrs
No serial - Gruggett Doubleneck, natural ash - built in 1976 for Lonnie Hyde
No serial - Gruggett Doubleneck, black with white binding - built in 1983 for Waco
Shan

===============

In total, we have:

1 E. F. Elliott Guitar,
8 Gruggett Guitars.
9 Non Mosrite Guitars Total.

12 Mosrite Partsrites (11 assembled by Ed Elliott)
(most without confirmed numbers.)

Mosrite and Mosrite Gospel models:

1 Mosrite Acoustic,
1 Mosrite Bass,
18 Mosrite Brass Rails with known numbers,
1 Mosrite Brass Rail with a partly known number,
7 Mosrite Brass Rail Deluxe Models With Known Numbers,
1 Mosrite Brass Rail Deluxe with an unknown number,
1 Mosrite Brass Rail that may have been a Deluxe,
1 Mosrite which may have been a Deluxe, but isn't one now,
2 Mosrite Brass Rails with no numbers,
7 Mosrites with unknown numbers.

41 Mosrites, in Total.

We're up to 60 or 61 instruments, 23 with unknown numbers (1 being partly known.)

- Austin