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Post subject: Re: Looking to buy - what makes a strat maintain value
Posted: Mon Jan 08, 2018 4:43 am
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I purchased in 96 a strat plus, I long ago swapped out the lace sensors, and replaced them with texas specials and the case was replaced with a Fender Tweed back when you dind't have to get a personal loan to buy one.

Fantastic player, dig the TS pickups big time,, I will die with this one... I would say if you can find one of those in good shape, do it..


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Post subject: Re: Looking to buy - what makes a strat maintain value
Posted: Mon Jan 08, 2018 1:56 pm
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Congratulations on your interest in Stratocasters.

One thing to think about is that if you're planning to buy a hard case, most of the American models have it included in the price.

The Mexicans are good, nothing wrong with them. One of mine (bought around 1994) even has a cheap zinc alloy trem block and I don't change it because it's always been that way and it sounds good in its own way. The nut was cut a little high, making it harder to play chords, but I paid a guy to set it up and file it down some. I upgraded the pickups to Fat 50s, changed the screws in the bridge saddles so they don't scratch my hand, threw in a new cap and it sounds great.

I also have a Jimi Hendrix MIM strat which is a step up in that the neck is a little nicer and it comes with American Vintage '65 pickups, which sound really nice. The bridge and trem block are also nicer than the standard MIM.

My most expensive guitar is an American Deluxe that I got cheap because it has a little cosmetic ding in it. I go back and forth on the N3 noiseless pickups but it sure is nice to be able to practice while using the computer and not hear it picking up stray sounds. The neck on it is very well crafted, and it is significantly easier to finger chords and do bends with. It was setup well out of the box and the nut is cut perfectly. The bridge is modern style which some like and some don't. Another reason you should go to the store and try out a few strats. The new version is the American Elite and has the Gen4 noiseless pickups. The only thing is the finish is thick polyurethane. Good for looks and durability but the guitar feels kind of plasticky compared to the polyester finish on my other two guitars. I'm not sure I can justify a fourth strat but if I get one it will probably be more vintage style and have a nitro finish.

I would not buy used if you don't know what you're doing. Guys do really weird things when they're setting up their guitars, like super heavy string gauges and other dumb stuff. You don't want to be struggling trying to play someone else's mess.


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Post subject: Re: Looking to buy - what makes a strat maintain value
Posted: Thu Jan 11, 2018 7:55 pm
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Colour choice can sometimes play a part in recovering some of your investment. Like everything, you might have something considered to be of value, but it does no good if you don’t have an interested buyer.

Rare colours and combinations like maple, birds eye maple, ebony, and rosewood can sometimes tweak the interest. Some early Strats came at a premium with optional maple necks when rosewood became the norm.

I had a great one year old church played Amn Dlx player in Tungsten with black hardware. I got that Strat at a great price only because the former owner wanted to order a custom Strat. I thought I’d like it, but later I thought that combo would look better with a maple neck. Something about grey cars and brown interior kept creeping into my head as I looked at the grey cab parked next door. Others obviously like that combo. Was it that I didn’t like rosewood? Nope. The first Strat in my hands was a ‘62 Daphne Blue with the original rosewood and it looked awesome. Which brings us to this.

Daphne Blue is a very likeable colour amongst many of us. If not for the colour, the rarity of it. Fender recently re-introduced a limited selection of it.

I used to have an ordered chart of the most popular Fender colours sold. Preference changes, but back then it was by a large amount 3T Sunburst, then White (mostly Olympic), and then Red (mostly Fiesta and some Salmon). Black was way down the list having moved up the group as music changed, and in truth preferences can be all over the place with Surf and metallics, and much more.

I guess the point is it’s a toss up with. colours. Do you go for what’s popular today, what is vintage correct, what was rare then or rare now?

Do you consider hardware combos? How about neck and headstock choices? Why don’t we rub some colour off and give it a well used look?

It’s really a roll of the dice, and it’s the collector or buyer in the end that will choose. IMHO.

Unless you plan on keeping the axe unplayed, choose the one that gives you the most mojo. :wink:

FSB

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Post subject: Re: Looking to buy - what makes a strat maintain value
Posted: Fri Jan 12, 2018 7:49 am
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Fender Strat Brat wrote:

... Unless you plan on keeping the axe unplayed, choose the one that gives you the most mojo. :wink:

FSB


Spot on. Anything you own to use, be it a guitar or a house, is worth nothing in respect of coin in your pocket unless you want to sell it and then it is only worth what people are willing to pay.

You could buy the best guitar there ever was, which is guaranteed to bring in more than you paid for it, but if you hate playing it then it has completely failed. So you get your money back, say, but what was the point?

I have a guitar that I don't like playing, but also don't want to sell. In that respect it was a complete waste of money but, even if I got back what I paid for it, I am still not keen to get rid. It is because it is a guitar, and guitars are more than just things.

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Post subject: Re: Looking to buy - what makes a strat maintain value
Posted: Fri Jan 12, 2018 10:48 am
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Well put, John.

I always like to use Willie Nelson’s constantly patched up acoustic ‘Trigger’ for example.

Some would grab his guitar because it is historically Willie’s, others because it sounds so dang hot and it’s acoustic character is identifiable. Some would want it for both reasons. However, there’s little chance one would play it like Shotgun.

In the end . . . it is a guitar as you have pointed out, John, and a fine one at that. :wink:
FSB

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Post subject: Re: Looking to buy - what makes a strat maintain value
Posted: Fri Jan 12, 2018 6:40 pm
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strayedstrater wrote:
Getting your money back if you sell after a few years is a terrible return on investment. It's the same as keeping your money under your mattress. Worse than a savings account -- and a savings account is a bad investment. Buy mutual funds for an investment.

Buying a vintage guitar is a speculative investment. Historically that's had a good return on investment, but there's no guarantee that will be true in the future.

Otherwise, a guitar is a commodity. You buy it because you enjoy it.

People spend lots of money on bigscreen TV's and computers, knowing they'll drop drastically in value as soon as they take them out of the box. Knowing that they'll be outdated in a few years, and eventually they'll just be broken trash.

People pay financing fees for cars. They pay a bank more than the car's purchase price for the privilege of driving something that loses value with every mile. And that will most likely end up in a junk yard eventually. A couple of sets of nice tires costs as much as a good guitar.

A guitar will outlive you. It'll never be outdated or obsolete (unless you buy some weird modeling guitar-thing).

The return on investment is the joy and pleasure it gives you. If you end up losing 50 cents a day, big deal.

Find a Strat that makes you say "wow, I want that one!" Play it. Polish it and stare lovingly at its beauty. That's much more rewarding than breaking even, or even making a couple of bucks.


You're making up your own stories.

Who's talking about buying guitars as an investment.

You need to practice your reading comprehension.

I buy used guitars at VERY good prices. A LOT of the time I'm buying at least of better than what GC pays for used guitars.

I always want to get my money back and then some when and if I sell any of my guitars.

I'm not hoarding guitars and in 15-20 yrs. hope I get some good profit.

I always just try to find deals that If I ever need to move quickly to fund another guitar, I won't lose money.


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Post subject: Re: Looking to buy - what makes a strat maintain value
Posted: Sat Jan 13, 2018 3:47 am
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Fender Aficionado wrote:
....

Who's talking about buying guitars as an investment.

You need to practice your reading comprehension.

......


Well obviously you are and, with regard to comprehension, perhaps you should try re reading the original post.

With knowledge of any product you can make money trading it. It is that knowledge that is critical. You don't often buy below market value purely by luck if you have no idea what the market value is.

The OP has noted very limited knowledge of Stratocasters. In this situation buying for investment (not loosing money or making a bit if he sells) is a dangerous strategy as he might get stung with a fake.

In this instance the financial loss experienced in buying new will be an investment in knowledge and comfort in ensuring what he is buying is what he thinks he is buying.

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Post subject: Re: Looking to buy - what makes a strat maintain value
Posted: Sat Jan 13, 2018 6:54 am
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John Sims wrote:
Fender Aficionado wrote:
....

Who's talking about buying guitars as an investment.

You need to practice your reading comprehension.

......


Well obviously you are and, with regard to comprehension, perhaps you should try re reading the original post.

With knowledge of any product you can make money trading it. It is that knowledge that is critical. You don't often buy below market value purely by luck if you have no idea what the market value is.

The OP has noted very limited knowledge of Stratocasters. In this situation buying for investment (not loosing money or making a bit if he sells) is a dangerous strategy as he might get stung with a fake.

In this instance the financial loss experienced in buying new will be an investment in knowledge and comfort in ensuring what he is buying is what he thinks he is buying.

You make a good point here, John. Whether you buy new or check out the model variations when they are introduced, it will give you an advantage as to what is out there and where on the pricing and popularity they fall. Whether it’s buyer beware or seller beware, I know some old accounts would go so far as to list how many of a model in a given year was made. Is this important? Not necessarily, but it doesn’t hurt. Especially if there is only one. :lol:
Most of us have had a used car at one time, and still, perhaps, had a new one or at least perused one. This will prevent (but, not stop) you from pulling up along side a similar set of wheels only to say, “I didn’t know it came like that.”

I don’t know a lot about metal shredders, but I do know what a real ‘62 Strat sounds and looks like. :wink:
Yep, knowledge is a wonderful thing.

FSB

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Post subject: Re: Looking to buy - what makes a strat maintain value
Posted: Mon Apr 23, 2018 12:16 pm
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Thanks to everyone!

I got a ton of great guidance. Learned a bunch about different models/what to look for.

I can really close to buying a 2nd hand Eric Johnson white blonde - really that was a no compromise guitar for me. Not really an EJ "fan" but this guitar really talked to me. Absolutely loved the way the grain of the wood bled through the nitrocellulose finish. And the sound, tone & feel were the best of any guitar I picked up.

I ended up finding what I thought to be a 1996 MIJ '57 reissue that I liked almost as much at half the price and pulled the trigger. After taking it home and pulling the pickguard, it's marked as a '54 reissue (ST-54DEX2) and it has Fender Custom Shop pickups ( which Fender tells me are not stock). Looking forward to getting to know it better and graduate from being a beginner.

In the end, researching, getting smarter on options, taking my time & playing a bunch of different ones were the key in finding one that 'talked to me'. This thread definitely helped out a bunch. Shout out to Atomic Music in Beltsville, MD. Those guys there couldn't have been any more helpful - really a great experience.


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Post subject: Re: Looking to buy - what makes a strat maintain value
Posted: Mon Apr 23, 2018 4:37 pm
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ribasaurus wrote:
Thanks to everyone!

I got a ton of great guidance. Learned a bunch about different models/what to look for.

I can really close to buying a 2nd hand Eric Johnson white blonde - really that was a no compromise guitar for me. Not really an EJ "fan" but this guitar really talked to me. Absolutely loved the way the grain of the wood bled through the nitrocellulose finish. And the sound, tone & feel were the best of any guitar I picked up.

I ended up finding what I thought to be a 1996 MIJ '57 reissue that I liked almost as much at half the price and pulled the trigger. After taking it home and pulling the pickguard, it's marked as a '54 reissue (ST-54DEX2) and it has Fender Custom Shop pickups ( which Fender tells me are not stock). Looking forward to getting to know it better and graduate from being a beginner.

In the end, researching, getting smarter on options, taking my time & playing a bunch of different ones were the key in finding one that 'talked to me'. This thread definitely helped out a bunch. Shout out to Atomic Music in Beltsville, MD. Those guys there couldn't have been any more helpful - really a great experience.
Congrats, Ribasaurus! That’s a great example of knowledge and gut feeling working together. For sheer enjoyment - trusting your ears, eyes, and mojo will always be a good thing. Your choice is a very nice one, and I wish you many good times with your MIM Strat.

Another guitar finds a good home. Nice! :D
FSB

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Post subject: Re: Looking to buy - what makes a strat maintain value
Posted: Sun Apr 29, 2018 11:30 am
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As far as maintaining value goes, keeping the guitar 100% original (including the case) in perfect condition and being MIA are definitely key. After that, certain signatures seem to have held particularly well: Eric Clapton, Gilmour, Eric Johnson, Mark Knopfler, and John Mayer come to mind.

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Post subject: Re: Looking to buy - what makes a strat maintain value
Posted: Sun Apr 29, 2018 12:38 pm
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01GT eibach wrote:
As far as maintaining value goes, keeping the guitar 100% original (including the case) in perfect condition and being MIA are definitely key. After that, certain signatures seem to have held particularly well: Eric Clapton, Gilmour, Eric Johnson, Mark Knopfler, and John Mayer come to mind.
That’s pretty much the case (no pun intended).

On the other hand value is what you decide it is to you. Think about it. Look around. I’m betting all of us will have something we cherish sitting around the house. It might be as simple as a photo or a beat up trinket that brings memories. Others will have little or no love for it. But, to us it is precious and priceless. That’s true value. IMHO.

Maybe, it’s that guitar in the corner of the room. :P
FSB

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Post subject: Re: Looking to buy - what makes a strat maintain value
Posted: Sun Apr 29, 2018 4:30 pm
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01GT eibach wrote:
As far as maintaining value goes, keeping the guitar 100% original (including the case) in perfect condition and being MIA are definitely key. After that, certain signatures seem to have held particularly well: Eric Clapton, Gilmour, Eric Johnson, Mark Knopfler, and John Mayer come to mind.


Absolutely! Pay top dollar for an incredible guitar, never use it for fear of devaluing it and ten years later, having played it twice, sell it for what you paid for it. Solid.

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