Baretta Details

Here are some differences in the parts used on Barettas. Please be aware that Kramer never really settled on a "standard" design for the body, neck headstock, and neck plate, although they did stay standard on the Floyd Rose, the one pickup design, and the Schaller tuners.
.
The Banana Headstock Debate
Many newbie Kramer fans are duped into thinking they have a real, non-angled Banana headstock Baretta, when in fact, they sometimes have overseas Focus or Striker models. The best way to tell if yours is a real Baretta neck is if the truss rod adjustment is at the heel of the neck, not on the headstock. However, this rule only applies to non-angled headstocks, angled headstocks have the adjustment on the headstock.

Do these headstocks look the same to you? If they do, you're not looking close enough. The first picture (going left to right) is the standard 1984 non-angled hockey-stick neck. The "point" of the headstock is a little larger on the end. This one is found on most 1984 Barettas "non-tilts" that wind up being for sale. The second picture is the headstock from the Kramer "no bozos" ad. Notce how this headstock is more rounded, and resembles more of the angled, banana headstock. I have yet to see this headstock on any other non-angled headstock Baretta. The third is a rare and what I think to be a prototype shape. This is my neck, I bought this one through ebay in 2001. This neck resembles Eddie's Red "cloud" Ripley and I have seen a few others with this shape. One other thing to note, I've noticed this neck show up on later "C" serials after the angled headstocks began. As far as logos are concerned, Barettas had a variety of different logos on the banana headstock line. The 84' non-tilts had the older Kramer style logo with the big K. The more common angled banana headstocks typically had the block logo. Occasionally, you'll see an block logo with a "Baretta" written after the Kramer text. Necks with "Baretta series" under the Block logo were made by Lasido, a Canadian company.

Body Differences
There are loads of Barettas on ebay claiming to be "authentic". I've found that about 70% of all posted Barettas on Ebay to be truly authentic. Most of the time, I can tell by looking at the body as to whether or not its a true Baretta.

	The Baretta Input Jack A true Baretta does not have a metal plate input jack. Focus 1000 bodies do have this jack, and this is a definite way to tell if the guitar is truly authentic, or a Baretta "parts" guitar. This is an example of an authentic Baretta body.
	1984 Baretta Body 84 Bodies can always be spotted by two distinguishing characteristics. The upper horn on the left hand side differs from the 86 body below. Additionally, 84 bodies have a cut out at the butt-end of the neck to access the truss rod. These bodies favor more of the Pacer shape. If you see a non-angled Baretta neck on anything different than this body type, it is not an original parts, 84' Baretta.
	1986 Baretta Body 86' bodies are just a tad bit bigger in the lower region. Also, the left side upper horn is more "pointy" than the 84's. The tremelo cavity is also a bit larger, although this really does not make the Floyd float like a recessed route typically does.
	Striker or F-100 Body - NOT A BARETTA BODY Beware ebayers, many people will try to pawn these bodies off on unsuspecting bidders. This is not a Baretta body, and you can tell by the right horn, it "kicks-out" more to the right than real Baretta bodies (compare to the other bodies above). Also, the bottom of the body is more rounded than a Baretta. Beware of these, these are also made out of PLYWOOD. Even though they look similiar, they're not worth the time or money given that they will sound horrible.

Serial Numbers for Barettas
Here's a breakdown of serial numbers. If you're Baretta doesn't have a letter before the serial number that starts with D, E, or F, its either an overseas Focus or Striker, or its a prototype 1984 Baretta.

C = 1983-1984 - Banana hockey stick headstock - Non-angled hockeys are C3000-C5000, angled after that.
D = 1984 - Banana, hockey-stick
E = 1985 - Banana, hockey-stick or Pointy Shark headstock
F = 1986 - Pointy Shark headstock

Other Details as submitted by Carl Rose, Baretta addict
* Body - trem route on US models for Floyd smaller than overseas. Floyd Rose models may have all been screw-in trem arm at this point. Pickup surround rings unique: angled in a trapezoidal-fashion. Early models had Schaller HB
pickups (two holes for pickup mounting) while later had SD JBs (single hole). Volume knob with small "VOLUME" printing. Not sure of pot #s. Electronics cavity cover screw pattern & neckplate screw pattern not interchangeable with overseas. Input jacks did not use mounting plate. (interestingly, my maple-neck model has a black input jack while the red one uses chrome?). Also think the earliest models (with body-end neck adjustment) had a smal routing in the neck joint area.

* Neck - both of mine had R-2 Floyd nuts; Schaller inline tuners with small attachment to hold allen wrenches. The back of the area where the neck joins the headstock is smooth on my rosewood and more contoured on my maple neck. Headstocks *sometimes* painted to match body; if so, a small line of black visible around edge of headstock. Neck has "satin"-like finish and is not bare maple.