Just curious as I am considering getting one soon and it's always nice to know that if times get hard that you can at least sell it and not lose chunks of cash and maybe even make some. Are there any particular models to look out for?

Brian,
If I may be as bold as to give my opinion on this. Don't go into this looking at it as an investment. A CS guitar IMO is for having a top of the line guitar to play. If you wan an investment I would say go for a classic 50's all original if possible. A CS Strat is meant to be played and played and played. I hope that this does not come off as flippant it is just my opinion.
ABS

Knowing what I now know, I'd have to say I agree with ABS.

Well Brian I could never see you losing money on a CS ax but there is a lot more to it than that. The collecting side of guitars is a whole different game and would take to long to go into. No one can tell if anything is a sure bet to go up in value but the odds of something that came from the CS are greater than something that did not.

The other thing I will say is that Fender along with Gibson make up the heart of the vintage market. With the earliest Fenders or what are called pre CBS models being worth the most, besides other aspects like condition and color playing a huge role. Right now the vintage market it as the lowest point it has ever been at because of economic times. So it is considered a total buyers market and if you wanted to get into it a bit the time is right.

There are many sites and books that deal with collecting so google the words and see what you find. I will point out one model for you, the earliest US reissues of the 57 and 62 Strats and Tele from 82 to 85 are a very hot guitar.So knowing things like this is part of how the collecting side of things work.

What he said. Guitars, while some vintage ones from the 50s-70s do fetch high price tags, do not get into guitars for investments. In a few decades, I think guitars will be similar to what has become of the vintage comic book or sports card markets...Once the 80s came around, and people starting seeing comic books and sports cards as investments, everyone started taking care of things more. So while in the 80s, there may not have been as many guitars from the 50s around, 30 years from now, since more people know about the possibility of high vintage intrument prices, there will be more 30 year guitars available than there were 30 years ago.

However, now what people are finding about comic books and sports cards from the 80s and 90s is that more people these days have more old stuff in better condition than in previous years, but because of this, the market is saturated, and profits are slim, if they are making any profits at all that is, from buying a bunch or comics or sports cards in the past as investments for the future.

So since modern facilities can make more product than previous decades and since more people realize that there is possible profits to be made with older instruments, I feel that in a few years, the potential vintage market may be oversaturated with too many decent guitars from a previous decade. So that the profit margin between what you spent for the guitar new in 2010, and perhaps sell it for later lets say in 2040, will not be as high as someone who maybe bought a 70s Fender and sold it around the year 2000....

So my advice is buy guitars to play them, buy precious metals, bonds, stocks, or or something of that nature if you are looking to invest. Just because it cost more now, does not mean it will be worth more years from now. Relics are cool and expensive now, but that does not mean that 20 years from now they will cost more on the vintage market because they cost more today...20 years from now, the hot guitar on the vintage market could be something that originally sold for half the price of what the Custom Shop Fender might have sold for originally...

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RAMA LAMA FA FA FA

Thanks for the very informed replies, I appreciate it. I did own a 62 strat for a very short while. I had to sell it when i was made redundant to cover the mortgage. I did make a few nickels profit and it hurt real bad to see it go but needs must. I'll heed your advice. Thanks again.

I have seen these post Pre CBS but whats that stand for?

+1

Pre-CBS means when Leo Fender himself, owned the company. Guitar wise, this would loosely speaking be 1948 through 1964. He sold out to CBS Musical Instruments in very early 1965. CBS owned Fender until they sold out in 1985 to the current 'dynasty' known as Fender Musical Instrument Corporation.

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You dig?

Regardless of playability, etc, etc, etc, I'd think the real collectability as far as any Fenders go would be in anything Pre-CBS.

As always, this is merely, IMO, YMMV.

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You dig?

Brian if you want customshop for investment purposes there are plenty of limited edition models to choose from.
This one for instance is prime investment material, not really a players guitar to go crashing round the pub gigs with.
http://www.nevadamusic.co.uk/Guitars/Electric_Guitars/Collectable/sc1049/p5744.aspx

Sadly all the appreciation has gone from it for atleast another twenty years to my mind. Too many people who dont understand the idea of buy a rare guitar, stick it under the bed for a few decades, then sell it at profit have become involved in collectable guitars. They buy em and try and sell em the next day with a sizable profit.

Given the chance buy a players guitar like a time machine series or the custom deluxe. If your the type of fellah who wants a guitar to look after but use, order a masterbuilt. It will increase in value over time, not the day after you get it. If your ordering a masterbuilt to your personaly requirements expect to wait up to 18 months whilst its built. Them things dont happen over night.

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No no and no

In my experience — not that I wheel and deal at all — the only way to ensure that you can always expect to make your money back on a guitar is to buy second hand. You never know when you'll be forced to sell a new guitar before it's had a chance to appreciate... that takes twenty years or so, for a guitar that's quite sought-after in the first place. If I were looking to buy a guitar that would possibly make a small profit should I choose to sell it (but primarily would just be an "investment" that happened to provide years of entertainment), I'd get something like a second hand John English CS Strat, an early '62 or '57 Reissue (those really seem to hold their value) or a Dan Smith Strat from the immediate post-CBS years.

Custom Shop Strats are good "investments" for having a good guitar to play. Selling or trading one in is not why you buy one. No matter who wants to buy it from you, you're not gonna get what you think it's worth.

As for CBS, when they took over the company from Leo, things took a nose dive quality wise. Anybody remember the SS amps they produced in the late '60's? Space Age technology. Pure effen awful! I made the mistake of trading in a blackface Pro Reverb on a silverface Super Reverb in 1967. Big mistake. (When I got rid of that pig, I didn't buy another Fender product for almost thirty years.)
Quality didn't come back till CBS sold the company. And it still ain't what it could be in some instances. The real Fender amps are from the 50's and early 60's. Point to point hand wired, paper caps, RCA tubes, alnico speakers. And they weren't perfect by any means, but oh, that tone. To really believe any of this you had to have been there, so I expect a lot of flack about these statements. Anyone old enough to have "been there" will agree I'm sure. I'm sorry the rest of you missed it--it was great!

You post this on the Custom Shop Forum and you might just get a reply from our premier collector Alainlafrance. I don't know that he browses the Lounge, but the Custom Shop, for sure. If he picks this up, I have no doubt your question will be answered in full.

Doc

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"Another day in paradise!"

Buy it, nothing to lose......except for your money

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riley