LTD experts - help me out here

[Zeegler]

A guy has offered me this guitar in trade. He says it's a M-200FM, but on the ESP/LTD website, the M-200FM has dot inlays, and is a bolt on neck. The truss rod cover also says M-200FM.

Anyone know what it actually is, and approximate value?

[Zeegler]

M-300FM?

It's not on the website so I assume discontinued?

[RaceU4her]

never saw an ltd with those inlays, must be older?

[RaceU4her]

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail ... ack-cherry

[Zeegler]

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail ... ack-cherry

Looks just like that except it doesn't have the battery box.

[iff]

Get him to send you a photo of the 12th fret inlay, it should say the model on it. I think you're right that it's an M-300FM though.

[ninjaraf]

Yeah these inlays were on older ones from the early 2000s.

[Zeegler]

Okay weird. The 12th fret inlay does indeed say M-200FM, but if I Google LTD M-200FM, the results shown are bolt-on guitars with dot inlays. Weird.

So now I find another identical one for sale on Kijiji. LTD M-200FM with neck-thru and the same inlays, and even the same finish.

Anyway NIGD!

[iff]

Ah okay, looks like the model was M-200FM until 2009 and M-300FM after 2010 with some slight spec changes. ESP has their old catalogues here https://www.espguitars.com/pages/product-archive

[Zeegler]

Ah okay, looks like the model was M-200FM until 2009 and M-300FM after 2010 with some slight spec changes. ESP has their old catalogues here https://www.espguitars.com/pages/product-archive

That's it. Mystery solved.

I got the guitar. It's in great shape, but the set up was hilariously bad. The Floyd saddles were installed in the wrong places. The string heights were all over the damn place. As it was, it was pretty much unplayable. Not to mention the truss rod needed a tweak, and the intonation was way out. The bridge pickup is some kind of Fishman Fluence Modern. No neck pickup at all. I'm going to put in a Dimarzio X2N and PAF Pro. Overall I really like the guitar. It looks good and has a great neck.