advertisement


Guitar talk: acoustic, bass, classical, twelve string? You name it! Pt III

* Needs a fret job ..

nXiSZ9Rl.png


I'm out :(
 
Yank said:
And if you do it, you'll torpedo the value of the instrument.
Click to expand...

On a slightly more serious note, is that actually the case with such guitars: - you buy a vintage one which needs a bit of work like that, and face a stark choice between (i) leave as is warts and all, or (ii) get it fixed (even sympathetically) and suffer an immediate and possibly long-lasting large hit on the value of the thing ?
 
A good professional like for like re-fret will not harm the value of a vintage guitar. If anything it will increase it. The only exceptions are the real botch jobs, e.g. sticking huge jumbo frets on a guitar which would have had thin low ones, botching Gibson’s fret ‘nibs’ on the binding etc. This is what separates the pros from the rest; if done properly you’d not even know it had been done!
 
Tony L said:
A good professional like for like re-fret will not harm the value of a vintage guitar. If anything it will increase it. The only exceptions are the real botch jobs, e.g. sticking huge jumbo frets on a guitar which would have had thin low ones, botching Gibson’s fret ‘nibs’ on the binding etc. This is what separates the pros from the rest; if done properly you’d not even know it had been done!
Click to expand...

But you would know. 68 year old guitar with shiny new frets. And if someone thought that they could get away with not declaring it, what else might not be original?

I doubt anyone would replace the frets or neck and risk wiping $100k or whatever off its perceived value. Fret wear is as much representative of its history as the ageing wood.

At this money this is a just a chattel for a dentist/attorney to bung in a glass case to be displayed in the office.

[in my even less than expert opinion. ;)]

John
 
palindrome said:
I doubt anyone would replace the frets or neck and risk wiping $100k or whatever off its perceived value. Fret wear is as much representative of its history as the ageing wood.
Click to expand...

Two totally different things IMO. Replacing the neck is obviously a total non-starter, do that and it’s just another partscaster of very little value. Frets are however a consumable and a vintage guitar in fully playable condition has to be worth more than a useless buzzing wall-hanger. A good guitarist who favours a high-action and heavy strings, as many blues players do, can munch through a set of frets in a decade with ease. I really don’t view a fret job as anything destructive, it is a very different thing to say a refinish, replacing pickups etc. It is closer to replacing strings really. If I had a valuable vintage Strat or whatever I’d have no issue getting it refretted if it was no fun to play, but I’d research my luthiers very carefully indeed and be prepared to pay for the best. A bad refret that damages the fingerboard will definitely devalue a guitar.
 
Fair points Tony.

But I do think the significance some people place on these things is more a matter of perception than real world value. There is nothing about this particular example that is significant other than it is old; No.0225 in a production run so not one of the first to come off the line. According to the blurb it wasn't played by a major or known artist, wasn't used on any hit recordings, etc'. It's not even all original. So yes, a refret should not matter.

But who is the intended purchaser - a gigging musician who wants a back-up Strat, or a collector who wants an instrument that displays all the genuine wear and tear of its era? What a gigging musician would be willing to pay to actually use it is not what a 'collector' will pay as an investment. As such, my perception is that a refret would seriously compromise the value of the instrument. To what degree? Dunno.

John
 
AudioAl said:
Depends if you want it for the provenance or playability
Click to expand...

For high-dollar collectors (i.e. the people who will pay $120K for a Strat), originality trumps functionality every day.

Same goes for amps - the really high-dollar tweed Bassmans with all original leaky electrolytics and 2-pin AC plugs. Start changing that stuff and the amp goes from collector grade to player grade. "Untouched" solder joints add value in the collector market.

But I do think the significance some people place on these things is more a matter of perception than real world value.
Click to expand...

Perception is value in the collector market
 
You could have a new neck made and sell it with the old neck included.
This is now what tends to happen with fine bows, where having a reproduction frog installed for playing, and retaining the original unworn is often the strategy.
In case guitar types are unaware of this particular market, try googling prices for Pecatte, Sartory, Pajeot, Tourte...
 
Still really enjoying the Steen guitar. Super comfortable, sounds good with pedals, even the looks are growing on me.

I've just ordered a Duesenberg Les Trem to put on it:


It's a drop-in replacement for a standard Gibson stop tailpiece, which the Steen has. Apparently they work best on guitars with a roller bridge and graphite nut, which the Steen also has. Simple to install, with no modifications required.

Took me awhile to find one in stock, in a guitar shop in Hanover, Germany. Hoping for some twangle jangle in the near future.

Edit: The Les Trem was offered as an option on Steen guitars; here's a pic of a solidbody with one in situ. Looks ok to me.
Steen-WWhiteweb.jpg
 
I have bought a new pedal (my first in a ages), the TC Electronic Infinite Compressor / Sustainer, which is really a slightly complicated way of creating ambient pads if you don't have a synth. My intended use for this is for practice as a, say, sustained c-major chord is great for practicising scales and triads and I am hoping if helps develop my ear.

Although it's very easy to veer into Brian Eno makes ambient backing for tantric yoga with Sting and Trudi type nonsense.
 
Psionic Audio -- another amp tech channel. Here he is with a deep dive on the differences between the reissue Fenders and the originals.

 
You must log in or register to reply here.


advertisement


Back
Top