Being in to 80s Ibanez guitars, I've also seen my share of fakes on ebay. Buyer beware I guess, and always if a deal seems to good to be true it probably is. We all know what the gear we lust after costs, and with very few exceptions that's what we will have to pay.

The only time I ever got a bargain was buying a JS1000 for next to nothing - it was in a pawn shop with a bunch of $100 no-name copy guitars and they didn't know what it was. I still spent a very anxious 20 mins checking the serial number and hoping nobody else would see it there...:)

I live near the Aston Martin factory, and they've recently started having trouble with a Chinese company copying their cars.... !

I do however love the ads - 'We are pleased to present this outstanding piece of traditional craftsmanship, lovingly made to exacting Standards... the 1959 Gribstein Los Pail Standard in Emerald sparkle metallic'.... mmmmm.... I can feel the paint coming away in my hand and the tuners slipping already.

Hopefully if you're going to spend a pile of money on a guitar you know enough to know whhat you're looking at. And if not, perhaps it's worth putting off the purchase until you do.