Top of the line model for 1996, and in MINT condition!

Serial: F614281
Built: April 1996
Finish: Butterscotch Transparent (BT)
Made in Japan (Fujigen)
Total Weight: 7 lb 7.5 oz

I call this guitar "sweet 16", because there's a dark spot in the maple around the 16th fret... and because this guitar is freaking sweet! I personally prefer this color over the transparent green TC830.
This one will hurt to let go, I'm sure I will regret it.

100% original, unmodified. Minimal to no fret wear! No major dents or imperfections in the body! The flame top on this guitar is gorgeous. I've seen other TC830 models with vertical streaks in the flame that break up the horizontal pattern (that has it's own charm too) but in my opinion they pale in comparison to this one.

This is the later production TC830 variant! Body route is HSH! Pots are A250k (volume and tone), tone cap is 473k. The 5-way switch is more "clicky".

Includes original tremolo arm!
Comes with period correct vintage Ibanez hard case (T1000C model made by TKL in Canada)! Case condition is good to very good.
Case variant: Dark grey tolex, maroon plush interior, Ibanez logo screen print (white), black piping, 3 latch, TKL pull tab in tan leather, has velcro backed spacer block. I wiped down/cleaned the exterior and vacuumed the interior.

Setup:

• polish frets (and all chrome hardware)
  
• clean fretboard
  
• deoxidize all electronics
  
• bridge pins set to 8mm (top to body)
  
• Nomad TUNE-IT lubricant on nut and saddles
  
• Ernie Ball 9-42 strings
  
• original (graphite) nut, slot depths are OK (just barely, larger strings were on this at some point in the past)
  
• remove truss rod nut and lubricate threads with tri-flow
  
• adjusted truss rod, neck relief to .010" (.254mm)
  
• bridge setup to float, rear ~4mm off body
  
• string height and pickup heights adjusted
  
• intonation adjusted
  
• carnuba wax on body
  

String heights @12th (hold 1st):

• E 1.75mm
  
• A 2mm
  
• D 2mm
  
• G 2mm
  
• B 1.75mm
  
• e 1.5mm
  

Pickup heights:

• Neck: low side 2.5mm, high side 2mm
  
• Middle: low side 2.5mm, high side 2mm 
  
• Bridge: low side 2mm, high side 1.6mm

Blemishes:

• light surface wear on upper half of pickguard (pick scratching wear)
  
• small surface scratch on chrome jackplate (right side of tone knob)
  
• small indention on top (between jackplate and bridge). Note, this is invisible even in person. I had to get light reflecting on it in an exact way to even photograph it
• lipstick pickups show very light wear (compared to most Talmans)
• maybe some misc tiny surface scratches (only visible in reflected light)
  
• rear plastic cover (Ivory) has yellowed
  
• some light tarnishing on screws
  
• back of neck has turned slightly glossy from play wear

This guitar for sure falls into the mint category. It's not unplayed perfect, but it's one of the cleanest I've ever seen. The amount of wear would be equal to a normal person owning a guitar for a few weeks or months, not 25 years!

Original list price (in 1996): $849.95
Adjusted for inflation (in 2021): $1,481.95 
I based the price on other recent mint condition Talman sales, but it's kind of neat that it happened to land near the original (adjusted) price. You're still paying less than you would have in 1996!