Relic Guitars? What’s The Appeal?
OK… this post is bound to bend the E-Strings of a few guitarists, but for the life of me, I don’t understand the attraction to “relic” guitars.
To me, buying a relic guitar is like buying a beat-up car… or an old house with cracked walls and paint peeling from the ceiling… or a pair of blue jeans with holes in the knees. I know, I know… jeans with holes in the knees have been a hot-selling item for years… but I am talking about a guitar!
I’m a lot like Ed Roman. I like SHINY GUITARS! (No flames, please.)
I don’t gig (yet) thus most of my guitars are in the “excellent to mint condition” category. I can’t imagine taking my Les Paul and etching, staining, dinging, bumping and cracking it – all in the name of creating a “Vintage Guitar” look.
There are dozens of books you can buy and videos you can watch that will give you step-by-step instructions on how to make your brand new Fender look like it has traveled with the Rolling Stones since 1962. A simple Google search for “Relic Guitars” returned a few hundred web sites — all designed to transform your brand new Gibson into something my parents would toss in the trash if I wasn’t watching.
One of the most popular relic guitar sites starts out with this quote: “In our opinion, nothing is more beautiful than a vintage guitar that has been heavily played and has that “dragged behind a truck and through a fire” appearance.”
HUH?
To each his own. Some like blues; some like jazz. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
I actually take pride in wiping down my guitars after I play them. I rub out the fingerprints. I polish the finish. I buff the humbucker covers when I change the strings. I almost cried when I bumped the headstock of my strat against a music stand (and it didn’t even leave a mark).
Just call me the “anti-relic” GuitarDaddy!
That’s my opinion, what’s yours??
Like you say, each to his own. I do like a guitar to look lived in, not to the extent of the one in your picture, but a little road rash does add authenticity in my mind.
Then again, I would never have the courage to relic one of my own, I prefer it to grow organically!
You nailed the point flyssy… at least for me!
Couldn’t agree w/ you more!
Thanks for stopping by! Love your blog!
First of all, you ARE quite a bit like Ed Roman LOL. Like most people, I like guitars that sound good, play well and look cool. Shiny, new guitars with their too thick, bright white binding and “alleged” lacquer finisheds, too-tall frets and generic sounds just dont appeal to me. Seventies stuff was crap when it was new, and it’s just old crap now. Martins with black pickguards and thick rosewood bridge plates, thick finished strats and teles, and Gibsons with cheapened designs and skinny necks…crap, all! The relic stuff provides and easy-to-find and afford, cool-looking and generally good-playing and sounding affordable alternative to the still-too-expensive-for-the average player vintage stuff. Think about jeans: You could spend 500 bucks on an original pair of vintage jeans, or like 50 biucls on vintage wash pre-washed jeans, and get several pair.
I think prewashed jeans are a perfect analogy to new vs old guitars. I’m old enough to remember when yiou used to have to buy cardboard-stiff Levis and hope you didnt screw them up or tear them apart before they got soft like you like them. Now you can buy them that way. Everyone does that now. For some, guitars ARE fashion, in additon to being good, functional instruments. If you’re used to an old one, a new one seems cold to the touch, and that affects how you approach it musically. Also, you can lean your guitar on your amp when the phone rings at home or during a break at a gig and not worry about scratching a relic…it’ll always be “mint” with no worries.
Hey Joseph… I hear you loud and clear. “Seventies stuff was crap when it was new, and it’s just old crap now” LOL!! I just spent $80 on my “relic” Levis…oh well.
Thanks for sharing and welcome to the BUZZ! -GuitarDaddy
Its a “finish” option, that’s all it is. You option to have that finish. I will never ever pay 45,000 USD for an old guitar! Simply unheard of. You can not justify that price regardless of what make or model a guitar is. I rather have a modern day relic with modern features for gigs so i never worry about dinging or scratching the guitar. I keep my other guitars home and try to make them last as nice as possible. It’s just like the jean analogy. I wear in jeans to make them conformable because when they are new they feel horrible and stiff. And it is true with the car analogy. Some people like their hot rods with primer finish to give it a rough look…it just a matter of taste; either you like it or you don’t, but I do not think it is wrong. I do wipe my special guitars with a diaper after I practice at home and I hate to get scratches or dings on them…I would look like a dork if I did that on stage..so I always use guitars that have already have seen some wear so I don’t have to worry guitars falling over or getting scratched..
Omar – right on. It is an option, and a preference. I just think some of them have gone a bit too far with the “aging” process… that’s all. Rock on! -GuitarDaddy
Yes. The aging process has gotten way out of hand. It’s funny..people will pay for the relic guitars..but will they get their brand new Victoria or Clark amp relic’d??? Hell no!
I to take very good care of my guitars as one should when you pay over a thousand bucks for them.
One of my cherished guitars is a 30 year old Kramer Pacer with a Snow(Canadian) neck.
It has 28 years of my sweat embedded in it and every time I look at it, I think of the experiences I’ve had playing it.
That’s not relic, that’s experience and hard work so no matter how shitty your relic guitar looks, it will still be a new guitar.
Does anyone know how to get the paint off like in this picture. in the area above the pickgaurd? it almost looks chipped at the edges.