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Vintage Electric guitars, Guitar sales fender guitars guitar consignments,vintage amps bass guitars,Ibanez guitars,gibson guitars ,steel guitars,vintage guitar news, guitars for sale vintage guitars.acoustic guitars ,Gregs guitars .http://blog.gregsguitars.net
The vintage guitars news, Vintage guitar News and Views to inform and entertain.
November edition of Vintage Guitar News and Views.
"Giving thanks for groovy guitars"
This article explores Vintage Ibanez guitars,Well one in particular anyway and what she boasts as far as appointments and playability ,plus a little interesting vintage guitar history. Ibanez got her humble starts by a company going by the name of " Hoshino" ,in the early 40's producing a spanish styled acoustic guitar that was named Ibanez. By the 1970's Ibanez ( which Hoshino had purchased the rights to)was known (good or bad) as the lawsuit guitars, for their blatant copies of more renowned guitars being produced ,Although most were cheaper imitations and copies ,the fact does remain that many Ibanez "lawsuit" era guitars were of comparable if not superior quality to the guitars the were produced to mimic. I will let you be the judge of that point. Now what we have here is a wonderful example of what Ibanez was creating in the early to mid 1960's. I have found an older picture of this very guitar on a German Ibanez website , and also a picture of the one and only Jimi Hendrix playing a very similar model ( upside down of course) in a sunburst color scheme as opposed to the white beauty we see pictured here.Knowing that every guitarist must start somewhere on the guitar food chain , and by no way implying that this guitar was ever owned or played by Jimi, the body shape and era that it was built is reasonable enough to inject that this was the type or at least close enough to the type that Sir Jimi cranked many a tune to the amazement of both audience and fellow band members alike. After playing her for quite a while now and coming to the conclusion that even though she is never going to be worth what the same era ,Fender or Martin, or Gibson guitar is worth ,I have decided that she is unique enough,plays good enough and has many nicely though out features that she is a keeper, and I can fully understand why Jimi played one similar to this mode. She just has such wonderful dynamic harmonic explosions tucked away in her, the neck is to die for and well since she is a little on the small body size , she is light enough to play for days. Her is the run down on some of her features..1 piece ash body with the pickups mounted directly on top of the body ( directly coupling for superior resonance) , the pickups themselves are unique in the fact that under the metal covers are 5,yes 5 huge round alnico I magnets that are so large as to only 1/3 of each magnet couples between each individual adjustable pole screw,that alone accounts for ( in my book anyway) for her tremendous tonal qualities. She is routed for the pots and wiring only beneath her 1 piece plastic pick guard located below the pickups. Another interesting and in my opinion superior design is the way her controls are laid out, no 3 or 5 way selector switch to bump and fiddle with while playing ,no sir ,this girl boasts one master volume control for both the front (neck) and rear (bridge ) pickup, this enables the player to dial in an indefinite array of tonal possibilities. As for a tone /treble control she has just the one master control for this ,which I like as it certainly adds to ease in playability and control of my sound.I do not see as to why the electric guitar manufacturers today don't do this as a standard feature.,The neck as I have stated is to die for, 1 solid piece of Mahogany ,perfectly sculpted for a fir like a glove to your fretting hand, and smooth as oriental silk, non bound (thank goodness) with a zero fret ( lord does she stay in tune) and a beautiful 3/8 of an inch thick slab of Brazilian Rosewood for a fretboard with a 10 radius, I love it and am seriously considering making an exact copy to place on a Tele.The only weakness and the only thing I have ever considered changing ( i wrestle with ) is the bridge setup. Now I am no fan of the cheap thumbscrew rosewood adjustable bridge on ANY guitar . let alone an electric, but, this one does stay where it is supposed to and does have compensation for proper intonation, but I would like to try a bigsy or Gibson style bridge and tailpiece but shudder at changing her from her original state, ah decisions decisions...She is one of the most in tune guitars I have and many friends alike agree all the way up and down the fretboard ,which makes my even happier that I acquired her.The headstock has an arrowhead shape with a single all encompassing string tree bar, metal Ibanez logo and ,(ugh) open back tuners, another point I have considered replacing, but hey like they say,"if it ain't broke ,don't fix it" Dynamically harmonic,sweetly sustaining,and extremely light in weight,yes this old girl ia as unique as it gets in the world of guitars. Who knows ,maybe the exact features that Jimi liked about his own 60 era Ibanez, before his change to an easier accessible American guitar? I hope you enjoy looking and remember to take the time to enjoy the obscure guitar for what they are and you as I may be delightfully surprised in what we find. As always this is just my News and Views. So may all your days be memorable, all your friends stay true and all your riffs be killer.Greg's guitars.
"Giving thanks for groovy guitars"
This article explores Vintage Ibanez guitars,Well one in particular anyway and what she boasts as far as appointments and playability ,plus a little interesting vintage guitar history. Ibanez got her humble starts by a company going by the name of " Hoshino" ,in the early 40's producing a spanish styled acoustic guitar that was named Ibanez. By the 1970's Ibanez ( which Hoshino had purchased the rights to)was known (good or bad) as the lawsuit guitars, for their blatant copies of more renowned guitars being produced ,Although most were cheaper imitations and copies ,the fact does remain that many Ibanez "lawsuit" era guitars were of comparable if not superior quality to the guitars the were produced to mimic. I will let you be the judge of that point. Now what we have here is a wonderful example of what Ibanez was creating in the early to mid 1960's. I have found an older picture of this very guitar on a German Ibanez website , and also a picture of the one and only Jimi Hendrix playing a very similar model ( upside down of course) in a sunburst color scheme as opposed to the white beauty we see pictured here.Knowing that every guitarist must start somewhere on the guitar food chain , and by no way implying that this guitar was ever owned or played by Jimi, the body shape and era that it was built is reasonable enough to inject that this was the type or at least close enough to the type that Sir Jimi cranked many a tune to the amazement of both audience and fellow band members alike. After playing her for quite a while now and coming to the conclusion that even though she is never going to be worth what the same era ,Fender or Martin, or Gibson guitar is worth ,I have decided that she is unique enough,plays good enough and has many nicely though out features that she is a keeper, and I can fully understand why Jimi played one similar to this mode. She just has such wonderful dynamic harmonic explosions tucked away in her, the neck is to die for and well since she is a little on the small body size , she is light enough to play for days. Her is the run down on some of her features..1 piece ash body with the pickups mounted directly on top of the body ( directly coupling for superior resonance) , the pickups themselves are unique in the fact that under the metal covers are 5,yes 5 huge round alnico I magnets that are so large as to only 1/3 of each magnet couples between each individual adjustable pole screw,that alone accounts for ( in my book anyway) for her tremendous tonal qualities. She is routed for the pots and wiring only beneath her 1 piece plastic pick guard located below the pickups. Another interesting and in my opinion superior design is the way her controls are laid out, no 3 or 5 way selector switch to bump and fiddle with while playing ,no sir ,this girl boasts one master volume control for both the front (neck) and rear (bridge ) pickup, this enables the player to dial in an indefinite array of tonal possibilities. As for a tone /treble control she has just the one master control for this ,which I like as it certainly adds to ease in playability and control of my sound.I do not see as to why the electric guitar manufacturers today don't do this as a standard feature.,The neck as I have stated is to die for, 1 solid piece of Mahogany ,perfectly sculpted for a fir like a glove to your fretting hand, and smooth as oriental silk, non bound (thank goodness) with a zero fret ( lord does she stay in tune) and a beautiful 3/8 of an inch thick slab of Brazilian Rosewood for a fretboard with a 10 radius, I love it and am seriously considering making an exact copy to place on a Tele.The only weakness and the only thing I have ever considered changing ( i wrestle with ) is the bridge setup. Now I am no fan of the cheap thumbscrew rosewood adjustable bridge on ANY guitar . let alone an electric, but, this one does stay where it is supposed to and does have compensation for proper intonation, but I would like to try a bigsy or Gibson style bridge and tailpiece but shudder at changing her from her original state, ah decisions decisions...She is one of the most in tune guitars I have and many friends alike agree all the way up and down the fretboard ,which makes my even happier that I acquired her.The headstock has an arrowhead shape with a single all encompassing string tree bar, metal Ibanez logo and ,(ugh) open back tuners, another point I have considered replacing, but hey like they say,"if it ain't broke ,don't fix it" Dynamically harmonic,sweetly sustaining,and extremely light in weight,yes this old girl ia as unique as it gets in the world of guitars. Who knows ,maybe the exact features that Jimi liked about his own 60 era Ibanez, before his change to an easier accessible American guitar? I hope you enjoy looking and remember to take the time to enjoy the obscure guitar for what they are and you as I may be delightfully surprised in what we find. As always this is just my News and Views. So may all your days be memorable, all your friends stay true and all your riffs be killer.Greg's guitars.
October Edition of
Vintage Guitar News and Views.
The September Edition of Vintage Guitar News and Views Going Back Forwards
Well, with the cost of everything going up, just how far up is the high going to be ? No one knows this answer, but I feel that everything is just hideously expensive. I mean 18 K for a car? 250 K for a home? Shoes, shirts, 30 to 50 bucks a pop, This is ludicrous, and vintage guitars ?sheeze, gimme a break, I mean the average you and I can’t afford sweet old vintage gear ,that’s just a fact, So ,is all this out of kilter ? All askew? There will always be people willing to pay more and more for collectibles and that forces the average guy or girl out of the price game, other than a lucky break here and there stumbling on a sweet guitar at a reasonable price. I mean I do understand that 1962 (picked at random) is gone and will never come again and even though a guitar can be made today exactly like that sweet old girl, the same weight, color, feel, tone, It could be vastly inferior or vastly superior to the original or the original itself could be crap, but, there lies the crux. “The original 1962.” Original 1962 guitars are only made in 1962, never before, never again!
So if everyone wants a 1962 era guitar and only so many were originally made, we then enter the world of supply and demand, which in turn factors the pricing index’s, which fuels the ever increasing in prices for a limited supply of goods with over market saturation of demand regardless of whether ¾ of the consumers wanting the item can even afford it. The desire is there and that in turn adds more fuel to the fire. So Greg, what’s you’re point? I don’t really know, except that price fluctuations will always occur within a market and that prices will always rise on the long run as long as there is a limited supply of goods , especially one that is sought after , often duplicated, can even be replicated , but never fully actually authenticated as a time period correct piece. Even if every detail is correct, but the actual manufacturing date is in the past, never to be revisited again, and I guess that is where the mystique of it all lies, today is gone, never to return and somehow tomorrow just isn’t the same. Well that is until the day after tomorrow. So today’s bargains may just very well be tomorrows collectibles that we can afford to buy. Just some food for thought and something for you to digest. As always this is just my news and views, so may all your days be memorable, all your friends be true and all your riffs be killer, Till next month, Greg at Greg’s guitars .
Next is my 1972 Vintage Olympic white Stratocaster for
the Fender in me. The 3 bolt neck and remarkable mellow
tone and large headstock with bullet trussrod has keeper
written all over her. As for my acoustic guitars,well I am off
the beaten path for sure, with my Vintage 1969/70 era
Grammer guitars,the one I personally favor as my keeper is a worn, well played Mahogany bodied,Alpine spruce topped
model G-10 that is just wonderful in tone and playability.
As for a spanky sparkle tone I go for my solid flamed maple
Grammer guitar ,for a touch of class this girl has an original
blue label from R.G. and G. guitars inside her body cavity
and a gorgeous Brazilian rosewood fretboard. To round out
my collection is my 1959 reissue Bassman with rectifier
tube and Jenson alnico speakers,Boss ch-1,delay and of
course the Boss compression pedal. Now my collection is
far from complete as I still search for my 335ish styled
guitar and of course my Tele keeper and to finish rounding
my collection out a vintage Baritone guitar would fit the bill
nicely. Now, as you can tell my collection is all mine ,rather
than as some do,find a multitude of one particular guitar(
Stratocasters) or a certain color within several styles ( all
Dakota Red) or even all same period guitars (1960 or
preCBS), or just various guitars based on price and
originality.
What I am alluding to is this,There is every reason under the
sun for collections as their are guitars made(duh Greg ).
That's the tricky,quirky,fun and personnel part of collecting
guitars. Each collection is a direct reflection of the
likes,tastes,and favorites of you as a collector. That is
where the fun is, figuring out where and what you want to
pursue,style,playability,color,year,make,or just bargains
made in the U.S.A. or made elsewhere?Original?,Reissue?,
Custom shop?,or run of the mill? All the above great guitars
in their own rights and each having more desirable
guitars within each sub category. So sometimes you need to
have a plan to make things cohesive and sometimes
you can just price shop at a set dollar amount to spend and
get the most bang for your hard earned buck. Always
remember do your homework,take your time,and take pride
in your collection,above all have fun and enjoy your
girls and never ever forget to play them,after all they were
made to be played! So until next month,may all your
days be memorable,all your friends stay true and all your
riffs be killer , Thanks for stopping by Greg's guitars.
Well, with the cost of everything going up, just how far up is the high going to be ? No one knows this answer, but I feel that everything is just hideously expensive. I mean 18 K for a car? 250 K for a home? Shoes, shirts, 30 to 50 bucks a pop, This is ludicrous, and vintage guitars ?sheeze, gimme a break, I mean the average you and I can’t afford sweet old vintage gear ,that’s just a fact, So ,is all this out of kilter ? All askew? There will always be people willing to pay more and more for collectibles and that forces the average guy or girl out of the price game, other than a lucky break here and there stumbling on a sweet guitar at a reasonable price. I mean I do understand that 1962 (picked at random) is gone and will never come again and even though a guitar can be made today exactly like that sweet old girl, the same weight, color, feel, tone, It could be vastly inferior or vastly superior to the original or the original itself could be crap, but, there lies the crux. “The original 1962.” Original 1962 guitars are only made in 1962, never before, never again!
So if everyone wants a 1962 era guitar and only so many were originally made, we then enter the world of supply and demand, which in turn factors the pricing index’s, which fuels the ever increasing in prices for a limited supply of goods with over market saturation of demand regardless of whether ¾ of the consumers wanting the item can even afford it. The desire is there and that in turn adds more fuel to the fire. So Greg, what’s you’re point? I don’t really know, except that price fluctuations will always occur within a market and that prices will always rise on the long run as long as there is a limited supply of goods , especially one that is sought after , often duplicated, can even be replicated , but never fully actually authenticated as a time period correct piece. Even if every detail is correct, but the actual manufacturing date is in the past, never to be revisited again, and I guess that is where the mystique of it all lies, today is gone, never to return and somehow tomorrow just isn’t the same. Well that is until the day after tomorrow. So today’s bargains may just very well be tomorrows collectibles that we can afford to buy. Just some food for thought and something for you to digest. As always this is just my news and views, so may all your days be memorable, all your friends be true and all your riffs be killer, Till next month, Greg at Greg’s guitars .
The July edition of Greg's Guitars" Vintage guitar news and views."
Starting your collection
This is is an extremely personnel and diversified subject to say the least. As an example, my collection of "keeper" guitars consist of my vintage 1962 Ibanez solid body,2 single coil pickup guitar,not only for her extreme rarity but also because it boasts a unique 1 master tone knob and 1 volume knob for each of her 2 pickups,she is super light (5.8 lbs.) and has the sweetest mahogany neck boasting a 3/8 inch thick solid slab of beautiful Brazilian rosewood for a fretboard. She is also one of the most harmonically dynamic playing guitars I have ever owned.Next is my 1972 Vintage Olympic white Stratocaster for
the Fender in me. The 3 bolt neck and remarkable mellow
tone and large headstock with bullet trussrod has keeper
written all over her. As for my acoustic guitars,well I am off
the beaten path for sure, with my Vintage 1969/70 era
Grammer guitars,the one I personally favor as my keeper is a worn, well played Mahogany bodied,Alpine spruce topped
model G-10 that is just wonderful in tone and playability.
As for a spanky sparkle tone I go for my solid flamed maple
Grammer guitar ,for a touch of class this girl has an original
blue label from R.G. and G. guitars inside her body cavity
and a gorgeous Brazilian rosewood fretboard. To round out
my collection is my 1959 reissue Bassman with rectifier
tube and Jenson alnico speakers,Boss ch-1,delay and of
course the Boss compression pedal. Now my collection is
far from complete as I still search for my 335ish styled
guitar and of course my Tele keeper and to finish rounding
my collection out a vintage Baritone guitar would fit the bill
nicely. Now, as you can tell my collection is all mine ,rather
than as some do,find a multitude of one particular guitar(
Stratocasters) or a certain color within several styles ( all
Dakota Red) or even all same period guitars (1960 or
preCBS), or just various guitars based on price and
originality.
What I am alluding to is this,There is every reason under the
sun for collections as their are guitars made(duh Greg ).
That's the tricky,quirky,fun and personnel part of collecting
guitars. Each collection is a direct reflection of the
likes,tastes,and favorites of you as a collector. That is
where the fun is, figuring out where and what you want to
pursue,style,playability,color,year,make,or just bargains
made in the U.S.A. or made elsewhere?Original?,Reissue?,
Custom shop?,or run of the mill? All the above great guitars
in their own rights and each having more desirable
guitars within each sub category. So sometimes you need to
have a plan to make things cohesive and sometimes
you can just price shop at a set dollar amount to spend and
get the most bang for your hard earned buck. Always
remember do your homework,take your time,and take pride
in your collection,above all have fun and enjoy your
girls and never ever forget to play them,after all they were
made to be played! So until next month,may all your
days be memorable,all your friends stay true and all your
riffs be killer , Thanks for stopping by Greg's guitars.
The 1960’s – An Era of Change
Ah, the 1960’s…the rise of surf music, the loss of 1950’s rock icons and across the Big Pond an interest in and resurgence of American blues music will soon give rise to the British Invasion and some of our future guitar legends.
So what were some
of the changes? Well, first to come to
mind was the fretboard – Fender went from a maple fretboard to a rosewood fretboard
,with the maple as an option, the Rosewood which throughout the 1960’s got progressively
thinner, and in late 1962 even had a bottom radius to match the arch of the neck’s top
radius. The black fret position markers
were also changed to clay dot markers on the fretboard face. Also, the trussrod which was placed through
the backside of the neck, and gave us the skunk stripe inlay was placed via under
of the rosewood fretboard, thus eliminating the skunk stripe itself and doing
away with the pegheads plug inlay. As a
result, I am probably correct to assume that it also facilitated speed in
production and less articulation on the builder’s part – remember, Leo was a
“bottom line” kind of guy. But being
cost conscious why go from an 8 screw to an 11 screw pickguard cover that was now
introduced ? ( obviously for better
coupling) and Fender replaced the thinner one-ply pickguard with a
triple-laminated (the mint green coloration, according to Fender, was a
mistake) and often a shielded one. Yes Leo was known to shave a dollar here and
spend a dime there all the while listening to his field of test players in the
trenches, the raves and the complaints were all a grand part in Leo’s quest for
perfecting his “girl” the Stratocaster.
The 3 color “bursts” were phased in over the standard 2 color s( although some 3 color one do appear as early as the later half of 1958) Some of the production models in the earlier 60’s had a strange combo of older and newer parts (again Leo saving a dime) until all the old inventory was used up and production was ramping up. Also we see on dealers charts of the day an array of colors appearing and disappearing, choices such as Lake Placid Blue , Sonic Blue, Sherwood Green , Foam Green, Shoreline Gold Metalic , Olympic White , Surf Green , Burgandy mist , Black,Blonde , and The Sunburst were some of the custom color choices as a customer you would have had. Interestingly enough Shell Pink was one that was discontinued and Candy Apple Red was introduced.
Because of undercoat “primer” changes from silver to gold in 1965 / 1965 we can also see a wide array of coloration discrepancies all within the same known colors of a particular guitar.(especially within the reds) At times due to a lack of guitar for a customers color order, a desert sand or sunburst that didn’t quite take well was over sprayed the custom color , again to save inventory and probably speed thing up a notch ,we will never really know. So by 1964 Leo and the gang was kicking out some mighty fine guitars, progress was being made, expansion was constant and changes were taking place. Then another turn in the house of cards was to take place. In 1965 the sale of Fender to CBS, making what some argue the most highly desirable (PRE CBS) and prized guitars in the market as we know it today. But , That is just another piece to the puzzle and another story for another day and as always this is just my opinion here at "Vintage Guitar News and Views", all brought to you courtesy of Greg at www.Gregsguitars.net. So may all your days be fair all your friends stay true and all your riffs be killer, Thanks and I will see ya next month .Greg.
The May edition of "Vintage guitar News and Views" by gregsguitars.net
Well, I get a lot of questions from new collectors as well as avid collectors lookin to add new pieces to their stable regarding "what is a desired piece?" That can be a tough one ,especially since it is imperative to address each collector on an individual basis. I can say the "vintage" market is pretty stable is the solid buys , pre CBS Fenders and McCarty era Gibsons,(expensive to say the least though) But what about guitars that have in the last few years hit the market? Lets address just a few guitars in my opinion that would qualify as decent aqusitions. First the "Johnson" released Strats were not as big a movers as some would have liked , but I still think one in white would be desirable . The "relic" market in my opinion has hit its apex with the best of the best being the "Cunetto relics" and in my opinion these are the ones I would aquire. I wasn't impressed with "art guitars" so I wouldn't pay the price these guitars commanded. The "new" 1966 Strat reissue? Hmmm, it does have the correct peghead and transitional logo, as well as proper "nitro " finish, If you can find one in "Firemist Gold" with a maple fretboard I personally would get one( Maple fretboards just do it for me). A lot of guitars suddenly were "Mary Kays" wrong, The "Mary Kay" tribute was a limited release with thin translucent finish and all gold hardware, and not every "Blonde " was a "Mary Kay" . I like the "tribute Limited released ones ". Now on to the underrated or overlooked released guitars. The "Trower" artist release is a good bet in my book, I mean "Long Misty Days", "Bridge of Sighs" , come on, this man keeps on rockin and is probably one of the most overlooked guitarist of our generation. I prefer the "Midnight Wine" colored one . This is just a few of the recent releases from one manufacturer and this list could go on and on, But these are the ones I like and as always " It's just my opinion" so may all your days be fair and all your riffs be killer" until next month ,Thanks for stopping by. Greg @ Gregsguitars.netThe April Edition of Vintage Guitar News and Views
Well the old adage that "everything old is new again "can certainly be said regarding the guitar market. How this relates to popular trends is evident in the resurrection of N.O.S and reissue guitars that have flooded the market. Not that reissue guitars are anything new mind you,Fender reissued 60's styled guitars as early as the mid 80's with reasonable success. But the surge has hit an all time high mainly due (I believe anyway) to the fact that a lot of working,gigging and weekend warriors are afraid to take their prized vintage gear out on the road. Even though the guitarist arsenal hasn't changed ,the way one perceives his or her equipment certainly has. So,many musicians (working ones anyways)are turning to "reissues" or "relic" guitars as a viable alternative to risking damage or loss to their vintage gear while on the road or performing. So what constitutes a good deal on one of these types of guitars ? Well like everything ,you have to shop around and be willing to invest some time visiting dealer web sites such as www.gregsguitars.net or others and looking over the attributes of certain models within your defined budget. Forum rooms are another good source to gather insight to other players' ratings, likes and dislikes on certain models. Then you have to decide, "How much do I want to pay?" Is the certificate ,case candy and other non players attributes worth the extra cash that some dealers charge for such items? Is it something you want to increase the guitars resale value? Well... The certificate and case candy do add some value for you at resale some point down the line,but as a player first ,they really do not make the guitar sound better or play better now do they? But they should be considered if your sole purpose is to collect guitars and not play them.The extra cost(s) should be factored into your final evaluation of any deal regardless ,but as a player whether they (the certificates)are there or not should not be a deal breaker by any means. So my best advice that I can give you? Look for guitars that are early custom shop,or custom shop built before the paper rage took hold and the cookie cutters came out. A custom run of a particular guitar ,custom colors,or a reissue that had only a certain number of guitars built and are numbered to reflect that (like a Cunetto diamond dealer relic Stratocaster that was limited in it's run)or even better ,if your lucky enough to run down that old guitar that still retains all the original parts but has at some point been "refinned" (shudder, shudder) these guitars are still somewhat affordable and have that "old tone wood" that we all desire.But hey, like always this is just my opinion. Greg at Greg's guitars.
Gregs guitars on "Making that guitar purchase"
this article will help explain what you can do
and what you should not do to your vintage guitar in order to keep it
at its maximum value.Never drill any hole for any reason in any part of
the guitar,or create an extra routing to facilitate the replacement or
addition to any piece on the guitar,period! You have a vintage guitar
or any guitar for that matter,this article will cover Stratocaster
style or type guitars,others will be addressed in future articles.So
you got a guitar ,you want to change a few things huh,hmmmm well first
of all lets start at the top,the peghead or headstock, if you will.You
can change cheap or vintage tuning keys with ease as long as you
remember rule # 1 drill no holes.chose the replacement keys that match
exactly in mounting and size,easy if you take your time.You can change
necks if your vintage piece has substantial wear or you want to
preserve it,or it is not comfortable as you would like.Remember mount
the new neck exactly as old one came off,no new or enlarged holes,if
its a 3 bolt neck ,get a 3 bolt replacement neck .Same goes for a 4
bolt,no new holes! Easy enough huh?Now on to the body.do not spot paint
refinish,restore in any way shape or form the original paint or nitros
finish no matter what.Now if you need to replace a faulty or under
performing switch,or channel selector or even a pickup or 2 or 3, My
advice is replace the entire scratchplate assembly with all the
components already in place .Why you ask? Well any broken or replaced
solder or solder joint is always suspect as to non original to the
guitar in question ,especially vintage guitars and will effect the
value tremendously at a time of resale.Doing this only calls into
question the solder joint at the input jack ,which is easier to
understand and explain to a future buyer of your guitar.Now as for
brides or bridge saddles these are easy fixes to replace,First remember
no new holes! All mounting should either be exact period correct pieces
or n.o.s. pieces,If you prefer the newer style(s) as long as the
mounting is exactly as the old one(s) that's o.k. .Take the old off and
replace with the new.For bridge saddles just do the same.A word of
caution and to help you here, always place the old pieces in a baggie
or draw string pouch along with a card stating ,when,why and what you
did to the guitar for your ease in undoing any modifications is always
a good idea,always leave this in the case pocket of the guitar case so
you always know where it is .It would also be a great idea to add a
card with the guitars known history(who knows you may become famous
)The date purchased ,original owner(s),and to whom and when you ever
sell the guitar to,and encourage the next owner to keep the card up to
date as time goes by and the guitar changes ownership(s).This is a
great way to establish a history with the guitar and in some ways will
actually make the piece more desirable and maybe more valuable,Who
wouldn't want to know a complete history of a vintage guitar?.I hope
this is helpful to you and remember rule number 1 above all else ,no
mods that can not be returned to original specs as easily as possible
is the best thing you can ever do for your vintage guitar.Included is a
link to my web site for further enjoyment,Thanks from Greg Guitars.
Well the old adage that "everything old is new again "can certainly be said regarding the guitar market. How this relates to popular trends is evident in the resurrection of N.O.S and reissue guitars that have flooded the market. Not that reissue guitars are anything new mind you,Fender reissued 60's styled guitars as early as the mid 80's with reasonable success. But the surge has hit an all time high mainly due (I believe anyway) to the fact that a lot of working,gigging and weekend warriors are afraid to take their prized vintage gear out on the road. Even though the guitarist arsenal hasn't changed ,the way one perceives his or her equipment certainly has. So,many musicians (working ones anyways)are turning to "reissues" or "relic" guitars as a viable alternative to risking damage or loss to their vintage gear while on the road or performing. So what constitutes a good deal on one of these types of guitars ? Well like everything ,you have to shop around and be willing to invest some time visiting dealer web sites such as www.gregsguitars.net or others and looking over the attributes of certain models within your defined budget. Forum rooms are another good source to gather insight to other players' ratings, likes and dislikes on certain models. Then you have to decide, "How much do I want to pay?" Is the certificate ,case candy and other non players attributes worth the extra cash that some dealers charge for such items? Is it something you want to increase the guitars resale value? Well... The certificate and case candy do add some value for you at resale some point down the line,but as a player first ,they really do not make the guitar sound better or play better now do they? But they should be considered if your sole purpose is to collect guitars and not play them.The extra cost(s) should be factored into your final evaluation of any deal regardless ,but as a player whether they (the certificates)are there or not should not be a deal breaker by any means. So my best advice that I can give you? Look for guitars that are early custom shop,or custom shop built before the paper rage took hold and the cookie cutters came out. A custom run of a particular guitar ,custom colors,or a reissue that had only a certain number of guitars built and are numbered to reflect that (like a Cunetto diamond dealer relic Stratocaster that was limited in it's run)or even better ,if your lucky enough to run down that old guitar that still retains all the original parts but has at some point been "refinned" (shudder, shudder) these guitars are still somewhat affordable and have that "old tone wood" that we all desire.But hey, like always this is just my opinion. Greg at Greg's guitars.
http://blog.gregsguitars.net
Vintage guitar news and views
Gregs guitars on "Making that guitar purchase"
Well lets
see,grim economic forecasts,auto plants cut shifts,interest rates on
t-bills plunge,the housing sector is in trouble,and the executives at 3
large corporations get between 12 an 21.7 million dollar bonus packages.Man
talk about skewed news,and all we want is that sweet little tele we saw
last week.Where's the justice? So how can you make your guitar purchase
pay off (hopefully) in the future?Well as stated in my other articles
,the price for vintage gear has also dropped ,So if you happen to have
some obscene amount of extra cash laying around ,go out and pick up
that 62 Strat you have always wanted.As for the rest of us poor working
stiffs unless I hit the lottery that is just a pipe dream for now.So I
have to do a little homework when it comes to selecting my next (yes
next) guitar to purchase and you can do the same.Question; I want a
guitar that sounds good,plays well,is as original as possible,suits my
playing style and doesn't cost a fortune,hmmm.Well I am narrowing down
my options a little here and at the same time widening my choices.This
is where the homework starts. I usually go to books about specific
companies and brands of guitars ,then narrow my field from there.I look
for when certain manufactures made changes to their lines,It could be
something as easy as a tuner change,knobs,or something more factory
involved ,such as changing body styles or new neck design,or just a new
type of pickup or tail piece.It could be a new release of a new line or
the last year of a specific design.It's not quick or easy but it is in
my opinion fun and interesting none the least.This homework will slowly
narrow your search as daunting as it may seem.So for this articles sake
I have made my choice,I'll take that tele in the window...Tele's were
slab bodied for the first years they were produced and at some point a
little contour was given,This is the one I am after ,the year the
contouring showed up,and of course I want a "custom" color ,so I pick
Dakota red,yea and with a maple capped neck..mmmmmm Whether she is out
there or not,well thats a whole 'nother article.Till next time Keep
your days close and your riffs killer. Greg at www.gregsguitars.net
