I was in a music store today and was kinda window shopping for a guitar to replace the Ibanez (see my sig) my wife gave me for Xmas. I have a bunch of Fenders, so I asked the manager for a reasonably priced guitar. He pointed me to a Brian Moore that I never heard of (been out of the music scene the last 15 yrs.) I think this is the model I looked at: http://www.brianmooreguitars.com/i1000/i1000Models.asp?guitar=i81&Color=TQ

except it had a Strat-like Wilkenson Trem. I LOVE the neck on the Ibanez', but hate the Floyd bridge and string locks- too much trouble just to change the strings. The Brian Moore felt pretty much like an Ibanez, but I was kinda taken aback when the guy told me it was made in China. No offense to any Chinese here, as I'm Chinese myself, but when I think of a China made guitar, all I can think is :eek: ! So I'm asking for input from anyone familiar with Brian Moore's.

2nd question: I'm still looking at Ibanez' 'cept with a hard tail, no string locks. I'm not really a shredder, but want a guitar that sounds a little "crunchier" than a Fender. As I said, I'm just getting back into playing after a 15 yr. layoff, and just want a fairly decent guitar. How's this Ibanez- it's 1/2 the price of the Ibanez I had, but to tell ya the truth, I tried about 20 different models from Ibananez and they all felt and sounded the same. From nearly bottom to top of the line- around the $1,000 US models: http://www.samedaymusic.com/product--IBARG321 Yeah, I know it's super cheap, but Ibanez has a good rep. Or this Ibanez: http://www.samedaymusic.com/product--IBASZ320

Sorry for such a long post. After not playing for over 15 yrs. I'm really jacked and want to just wail. I know the pickups on most Ibanez' are really weak, but the prices aren't bad for the above 2. Thanks in advance for any replies. Help an old (47 this thurs.) guy out!

PS: what the heck are Gibralter III and LoTr7(?)- the kind on the Steve Vai model bridges? Not floating ones I hope.