Cletus Blackwater Posted October 30, 2005 Report Share Posted October 30, 2005 Howdy, New around here and thinking about buying a Saga kit for a first project. So I'm looking around to get a feel for prices and shipping and see a kit that looks just like the Sagas but all it says is AXL. Is this the same kit? Different? I tried a search here but apparently 3 letter words like AXL aren't allowed to be searched on. -CB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stiggz Posted October 30, 2005 Report Share Posted October 30, 2005 try brian at Universal Jems, brian is admin here, and he checks out all the kits and cleans em up a bit, u pay a lil bit extra for his services tho. i dunno bout the quality of the kits though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marksound Posted October 30, 2005 Report Share Posted October 30, 2005 Doing business with Universal Jems gets you good stuff at a fair price and helps support Project Guitar and this forum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted October 30, 2005 Report Share Posted October 30, 2005 Try searching for AXL and Johnson together --I'm pretty certain they're the same company, just different brand names for different markets. And yes, chances are highly likely it's the same kit as the Saga, or at least very similar. But you know that you can buy an entire Johnson for about $100, right? No point in buying a kit--you can strip off the parts, refinish it, put it back together--you won't have to worry about the notorious fit issues with some of these kits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gripper Posted October 30, 2005 Report Share Posted October 30, 2005 I totally agree with idtch. I built one of Brian's SAGA kits and it was kind of scary because I wasn't sure what was going to work and what was not going to work. Came out well, though. At the same time I was stripping and modding a cheap used beater and I did a lot of things to it I would not have done if I was not even sure it was going to work when I put it back together. As a mechanic, I am a lot more comfortable tricking-out a '76 Impala than building a car from scratch. Happy Halloween! Carbondale was NUTS last night! (SIU) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cletus Blackwater Posted October 31, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 31, 2005 (edited) Try searching for AXL and Johnson together --I'm pretty certain they're the same company, just different brand names for different markets. And yes, chances are highly likely it's the same kit as the Saga, or at least very similar. But you know that you can buy an entire Johnson for about $100, right? No point in buying a kit--you can strip off the parts, refinish it, put it back together--you won't have to worry about the notorious fit issues with some of these kits. ← Thanks idch, that was the kind of info I was looking for. As for the rest, I appreciate the loyalty y'all have for Brian, but I was just trying to get educated about the various kits. When I get ready to buy I will probably be sending Brian an order, but right now I'm just trying to understand what's out there. Thanks all for the responses. -CB Edited October 31, 2005 by Cletus Blackwater Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tonerider Posted October 31, 2005 Report Share Posted October 31, 2005 They are definitely different kits from different factories, but the hardware items both come from the same factory. The AXL kit comes from the same factory that makes CIC Squier Bullets, though some of the specs are different. As for the quality, why not buy both and send us a report! You can fleabuy the guitar you like least and keep the winner! AXL is a brand of Shanghai Super Music, and they do a lot of OEM work for Johnson, starting from Johnson's initial moves into China manufacturing from Eastern Europe in the 1990's. Johnson's actual ownership is a mystery to me still. One thing for sure, its not owned by someone called Johnson. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted October 31, 2005 Report Share Posted October 31, 2005 AXL is a brand of Shanghai Super Music, and they do a lot of OEM work for Johnson, starting from Johnson's initial moves into China manufacturing from Eastern Europe in the 1990's. Johnson's actual ownership is a mystery to me still. One thing for sure, its not owned by someone called Johnson. ← There's a company called The Music Link in California that seems to own the Johnson brand....although it's not all that clear (go figure). HEre's a Link. Can't find any mention of Shanghai Super Music (although it'd help to know its Chinese name)...there is indeed an Axl factory in Shanghai --they make the 'designed by' EMG pickups, including for Johnson... Here's the link to Axl's US site Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tonerider Posted January 19, 2006 Report Share Posted January 19, 2006 Shanghai Super Music is called "ChaoYin" in Chinese. If your browser has Chinese characters its “上海超音“。 if you browser doesn't have asian languages support, them you will have squiggles on your computer! There local website is here... http://www.cn-supermusic.com/ Music Link is indeed their US brand and sales office - Music Link and Shanghai Super Music are the same company. The have amazing purchasing power and quantities and the poor little Tonerider stand was dwarfed by their multistory construction at the Shanghai Music Messe last year! It was enormous! I didn't see daylight for four days. They represent Martin, Squier, Hughes & Kettner, Cort, Johnson and a myriad of other brands in the Chinese market. Most industry watchers predict that they will import some serious expertise for higher level instruments and create the first Chinese made and owned premium brand a la Ibanez....could be a few years, but it will be sooner rather than later! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted January 19, 2006 Report Share Posted January 19, 2006 'Nuff said? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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