There is a very interesting Alembic guitar on E-bay.  It is being listed as a Distillate with some electronic mods, but the old stuff is included.  I've e-mailed the seller for a serial number and more info on the mods.  I'll ask Mica or Val for the build records when I get the number.  Anyone know anything about these single pick up axes?  I've never seen one like it before.
 
link:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=47064&item=3751042579&rd=1
 
Bill, the guitar one

I just checked out the seller's feedback, his previous history and the history of a couple of the people he dealt with and his other items for sale (1890 Martin w/ original case starting at $1600!).    Also he appears to have bought four items using buy it now from the same seller all within minutes of being posted, including a $6200 motorcycle without any pictures!. A couple of the people he previously dealt with are no longer registered user  Big red flag on this one.  (Boy, I feel like Monk with all this detecting.  BTW, if you haven't seen Tony Shaloub as Monk, check it out.  Great show).
 
Bill, the guitar one

As to the authenticity of the pictured instrument, funny though it may be to consider a single pick-up Alembic with a brass pickguard, those are exactly the specs for a series of Distillate basses and guitars built for the Japanese market in the 1980s.

Yep. Adriaan's right, this was made for the Japanese market, most likely in 1981. I have a bass like it.
 
Valentino

Well ...it IS a nice guitar. In a weird kinda way. I really wonder how they sound?!
 
PTBO

I just noticed another booger about this ad.  The E-bay item location says London, but the body of the ad claims:
 
This may be the only Alembic 6 string guitar in NZ
 
I remember when England sold the London Bridge to Arizona, but it completely slipped by me that London was sold to New Zealand!  I don't think I'll be sending this guy any $.
 
Bill, the guitar one

BEWARE - THIS LISTING IS A FRAUD.  I e-mailed the one guy who had left negative feedback for the seller.   He had bought a 24 track board from the same guy now selling the Alembic and got a run around about how the board was in San Francisco while the seller was in England and that the buyer should send a Western Union transfer to Italy, etc. etc. etc.  The buyer offered to drive to S.F. pick up the board and hand over the $ there.  Seller said no.  Also refused paypal, insisted on money to Italy in a friend's name.  This sounds familiar to me.  A couple of months back I was the winning bider for a listing on e-bay that was lifted from the October 2002 custom on this site and the guy wanted me to wire the $ by Western Union to Italy.  
You have to be careful on e-bay.
 
 
Bill, the guitar one

Where's Poor Nigel when you need him?

You have to be careful on e-bay.
 
Amen, Brother Bill.  I am currently avoiding eBay and PayPal until they get better control over these con artists and hackers.  Well, unless there is a five-string Series II with spiffy woods, some nice options, and an omega cut (We all have our little glitches) for next to nothing listed.  I might (I would!) crawl out of my self-built Internet bunker for that.  However, I would definitely use Escrow or pick it up in person these days.
 
BTW - Great work Bill!  You might have saved a fellow Alembitian from getting burned.  Shame it is against the law to hunt these people down and hang them. Just kidding, hopefully . . .

Now that I think about it, I believe this guitar was offered on auction a few months ago and I exchanged e-mails with the gentleman who won the auction when he contacted Alembic to find out the guitar's history. He was in New Zealand as a matter of fact, like the original legit seller.
 
Valentino

Hey Valentino.  Your words carry a lot of weight to validate the auction.  However, it is pretty much the American way to hang em first and ask questions later.  Considering the e-mail Bill got from one of his previous 'customers,' I would still be very suspicious and wait for a safer transaction to come along.  

Hello Nigel,
 
I'm not exactly sure what you meant in your above post, I was not validating the auction, if that's what you were thinking; to make sure my previous post was not misunderstood, let me clarify that I also think it's likely to be a scam. The man I exchanged e-mails with was ecstatic about the guitar, so I doubt he sold it so soon.
Sorry if my post was not clear.
 
 
Valentino

Valentino.  Not a problem.  Glad I said something, so you added the next post.  I am a bit thick at times, so I need things spelled out for me once in a while.  Thanks.

I just checked e-bay and noticed that the goniff selling this guitar is no longer registered as an e-bay user.  I had notified e-bay and warned a guy bidding on the seller's 1890 Martin.  Maybe the world is now a little safer??
 
Bill, the guitar one

Good for you, Bill! Screw the scumbag(s) I say, LOL! Maybe the Alembic Police can help make EBAY a safe place for Alembicians everywhere, LOL!
 
There's no need to fear, Alembic-dog is here!
 
Excuse my sillines: Seriously, it's appreciated that there are people on the site, as well as Mica, who are looking out for the best interests of the Alembic collective.