Did Fender shut down Lentz guitars?

[wodka]

I noticed this post on the Lentz board:

I have been contacted, as to the making of the 2 pup and 3 pup model of my guitars. I will no longer advertise,take orders, or make these guitars immediatly!It is not my intent to blame or talk poorly of this action, It is my wish that my friends not go on forums and speak ill of this action! I will not address this matter on my forum or disscuss this matter further on the phone. Any dialogue with me will only be addressed by phone, as I will not reply to emails.( 760 743 1598)
I will as always accept refinishing and some repair, until the new designs have been checked out by an Attorney!
I ask for your patience and understanding through this difficult time,
Scott Lentz
Lentz Electric Guitar

[pcbb]

:(

[Joel]

That sucks. I bet Callaham got it too since both of them use the Fender headstock shape.

[killerburst]

I feel bad for any small business getting squashed by big business, but if you're making direct knock-offs of another company's trademark-protected product and selling them for a profit, you're asking for trouble. Right, wrong or indifferent, Fender has an established trademark on their headstock design, and anybody choosing to copy it exactly is going to be faced with a legal battle.

And it's not like Fender has a choice: They MUST defend their trademarks against ANY infringement or they risk setting a precedent that could be used against them in the future.

FWIW, I think this is a completely different issue than Fender applying for trademark protection on their body shapes. That issue is a bunch of crap. Fender is choosing to protect trade dress that is, for all intents and puposes, public domain. The guitar industry has been using that shape in some form or another for 40+ years without so much as a peep from Fender, yet now they wish to assert that the those shapes should only be associated with FMIC products (although I imagine they may set up a licensing program for other manufacturers).

FMIC is now under it's third ownership, with the current owners being in control for 19 years. I'm betting that this is a move to increase the perceived value of the company, in preparation for an IPO. Why else would they bother after all this time?

I-M-H-O

[wodka]

I forgot Lentz did not use their own headstock design. The action makes sense. The same thing just happened to GMW.

[tunacaster]

This guy got it also

http://www.nashguitars.com/

http://www.nashguitars.com/Fender.htm

[Scott Peterson]

Originally posted by killerburst
I feel bad for any small business getting squashed by big business, but if you're making direct knock-offs of another company's trademark-protected product and selling them for a profit, you're asking for trouble. Right, wrong or indifferent, Fender has an established trademark on their headstock design, and anybody choosing to copy it exactly is going to be faced with a legal battle.

And it's not like Fender has a choice: They MUST defend their trademarks against ANY infringement or they risk setting a precedent that could be used against them in the future.

FWIW, I think this is a completely different issue than Fender applying for trademark protection on their body shapes. That issue is a bunch of crap. Fender is choosing to protect trade dress that is, for all intents and puposes, public domain. The guitar industry has been using that shape in some form or another for 40+ years without so much as a peep from Fender, yet now they wish to assert that the those shapes should only be associated with FMIC products (although I imagine they may set up a licensing program for other manufacturers).

FMIC is now under it's third ownership, with the current owners being in control for 19 years. I'm betting that this is a move to increase the perceived value of the company, in preparation for an IPO. Why else would they bother after all this time?

I-M-H-O

+1

Well said.