I recently had a friend bring over a fender shenandoah 12 string acoustic. It is supposed to be an original and the one thing that i noticed was on the tail it says patent pending? Is this guitar worth anything? Please help!

I can't help you with your question, but it looks to be a nice guitar. How does it play? And where are the rest of the strings?

The guitar is quite legit. As I remember those models, they were in production around the late 60s/early 70s. As a matter of fact, I just worked on one recently. I'm sure they have some collectible value however, I'm not an appraiser of that nature. Rather, I confine myself to the the quality of a given instrument's parts, workmanship and playability as a whole. And even at this, I tend to be somewhat cynical about what the vast majority of production instruments are bought and sold for, regardless of age and/or 'pedigree'.

I'm sorry I couldn't give you a definitive answer but I'll venture an educated guess: Regardless of what said, "Blue Book" claims, from what I've witnessed in the 'real world', I'd surmise anywhere from $500 to $1,200. I'll spare you all the comparatives which lead me to this 'arm chair' conclusion.

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You dig?

Why does the 12 string only have 6 strings on it? Does that make it a 6 string? (Dumb question, but I gotsta know >_>)

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I traded my car in for a microphone.

I surmise that it's a 12 string, strung 6 as a preference by the player.

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"Another day in paradise!"

ok, i have noticed prices around that to, but the one thing i noticed are none of them say patent pending?

That's because the specimen you've posted is one of the first ones made.

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You dig?

[quote="Martian"]

cpgamer wrote:

Martian wrote:

The guitar is quite legit.
As I remember those models, they were in production around the
ok, i have noticed prices around that to, but the one thing i noticed are none of them say patent pending?

That's because the specimen you've posted is one of the first ones made.

Much like the famed Seth Lover PAF humbuckers. They were released and marketed. before the patent was actually conferred. Even after the fact, they continued to be known by that designation.

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"Another day in paradise!"

would this mean its worth more then one that doesnt say this?

Yes. However, that guitar is not a super collector's item to begin with and still falls within the aforementioned price range.

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You dig?

ok thanks so much!, also he said had somewhere between a 1956-59 strat. he has had them since he was a child and now he is up there lol, but im only 18 and he doesnt play so would this be worth anything?

You're quite welcome.

If he still has that 1950 something Strat, that is worth MEGA bucks; we are talking MANY thousands of dollars here as these are one of the most sought after, collectible guitars known to humanity. Specifically how much? Again, that's not my 'bag'. In this particular situation, Google around and see what collectors are buying and selling them for. Yes, collectors as they are clearly out of reach of the average player's financial means.

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You dig?

If he still has that 1950 something Strat, that is worth MEGA bucks; we are talking MANY thousands of dollars here as these are one of the most sought after, collectible guitars known to humanity. Specifically how much? Again, that's not my 'bag'. In this particular situation, Google around and see what collectors are buying and selling them for. Yes, collectors as they are clearly out of reach of the average player's financial means.[/quote]

I've seen sellers of instruments of that vintage asking upwards of $35000. A '58 at Rudy's Music Stop in Manhattan, and a '56 at the GC in Carle Place. They both looked like they'd been dragged behind Achilles' chariot. . Make one wonder sometimes. I could see something on the order of a closet classic, like the John Page Holly guitar, but not the former. Be interesting to know the serial number of that guitar for a start.

Doc

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"Another day in paradise!"

I remember them. Fender wasn't a real heavy hitter in the acoustic guitar realm. Martin and Guild were the biggies when I was young.

Fender ads always showed a guy playing a Shenandoah at the beach with a fire and girls in bikini's around. I wanted one for the bikini girl factor. They still weren't bad sounding or playing guitars at all.

Some people couldn't get used to the 12 strings and took six off. I know a few guys who did. I have an old cheap Yamaha 12 string lying around. it sucks to keep in tune so I really don't mess with it much except for 12 string slide.

Johnny Winter used a Fender 12 at Woodstock and took six strings off for Meantown Blues. He sounded awesome.