The July edition of Greg's Guitars" Vintage guitar news and views."
Starting your collection
This 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.
The guitar manufacturers were also undergoing some changes themselves and as research and development plodded forward, These changes were reflected in the guitars themselves. Over at Fender, Leo and the gang brought us the Telecaster, and although not its replacement, but by Leo’s standards an improvement in design, he then brought us the Stratocaster in the early 1960’s. The pre-CBS Stratocasters (1959 to 1964)underwent some significant changes within its own design. Essentially, the Stratocaster was still the same guitar as always, with some (as enthusiasts contend) cosmetic changes, some of which were esthetically pleasing, minute at the time, but all eventually changed the 50’s ‘Strat. Some say it changed for the better, some argue it changed for the worse, but we will let that dog chase its tail on its own.
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.net
April edition of Vintage guitar news and views by gregsguitars.net
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" March edition.
The do's and don'ts of guitar modifications. Febuary edition.
Written by greg1 on Jan-5-08 12:07pm
To cut right to the chase,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 at www. Gregsguitars.net.
