I have a 1979 Stratocaster Anniversary Edition. I have the bill of sale from 1986 when my father gave it to me as a kingly christmas present. The original case and all original parts are in mint condition, and playable. The case exterior has normal wear and tear, but the interior is plush orange like new.

This 1979 model was a release of 10,000 units. The 1st 500 units were painted with a White water based paint that cracked. The remaining 9,500 units received a silver-grey acrilyc paint. I have been seeing prices for the Grey Anniversary edition around $2500 to $3000.

This guitar is one of the 500.

Given that there are about 19x more Grey than the White, it would stand to reason that the White body would be far more valuable. I checked over 12 yrs ago in a paper publication, and the price was $3800 that long ago.

In trying to value this item, I have not found any other like it being advertised for sale. That is good from one stand point, but bad from another.

Where is the best place to market and auction such an item?

Thanks.

Hi bryangrant,

Some pictures would be nice. Do you still have the COA? The last time that I looked, the white ones were no more valuable than the silver, maybe less so because of the finish.

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---> "The amp should be SWITCHED OFF AND UNPLUGGED before you do this!" <---

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Obligatory gear list: Fender, Rickenbacker, Gibson, Gretsch, Vox, Martin, and more Fender.

shimmilou I need to go mining for the collectors guide, but your comment about it being worth Less than the other is not true. The guide specifically stated that the guitar was significantly more valuable owing to its rarity, roughly 19x rarer than it's cohort.

What does COA mean?

(I will post a photo sometime when I get around to actually taking high quality images of the item. Poking around on this site, I dont see an easy way to post an image here without hacking html code.)[/img]

Most of us use a remote hosting server such as Photo Bucket. It's much more user-friendly.

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

I hope it is worth more. Certificate of authenticity is the piece of paper that comes with the Ann models. To post pics, get a free PhotoBucket or other picture storage account that is publicly viewable, upload your pics there, get the [img]photobucket/picture.jpg[/img] code and paste it in your post here.

_________________
---> "The amp should be SWITCHED OFF AND UNPLUGGED before you do this!" <---

Por favor, disculpe mi español, no se llega a la práctica con mucha frecuencia.

Either the first or second one produced was for sale on ebay not too long ago in the $100,000 range maybe even 200K - from memory. The story that went with it was cool and it had a serial number like 00001 or 0000 something like that. I couldn't find it by googling it but this was probably2-3 months ago. I think the white one's are considerably more valuable and there are less than 500 surviving because many were returned and then refinished in silver.
I had a white one that I gave back because of the cracked finish and got a 79 antigua burst back in 79. It was probably refinished into silver. Damn if I could only time travel. Wouldn't it be cool to know which of the silver ones originally were white? It would be like the Yesterday and Today album cover.

I dont have a COA that I am aware of. I am not in the "biz". I just received the item as a gift back in 1986. The store where it was bought is still in business.. Midtown Music in Atlanta... a very reputable store that dealt with collectibles for many years. Havent been by there in a very long while.

It is the real Mckoy. Any idea how to get "provenance" in absence of having a "COA"?

You really shouldn't need to -- the 25's were the only 4-bolt neck Strats made in '79 and the monogrammed body with the specifically-engraved neck plate are proof enough.

I owned a silver 25th Anny a few years back, serialed in the 9XXX range. It was the heaviest Strat I've ever seen -- well in excess of 15 pounds.

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

Retroverbial- Yes.. shes a heavy girl.. and it has the four bolts, and the custom steel plate on the back with the 75th Anniversary info.. as well as the stenciling on the front. All the innards are original as well.

I wouldnt think it would easy to fake one, much less would there be any profit in the effort..

Well I know of at least one silver edition that was parted out recently. I saw the body on Ebay a week or so back. A smart cookie could prolly put one together from parts. IMO though, why bother? It'd be easier to fake a CS model and those are worth substantially more than a 25th Anny.

I never had the commemorative case or the COA for mine. I paid nine bills for it back in '93, broomed it off in a straight-across trade some seven years later for a brand-new Gibson Historic Shop '62 Les Paul with aged finish by Tom Murphy. I guess I did okay......

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

Hi guys,
following-up on the value issue, i have a doozy here I think.
A mint Silver Anniversary (in silver!) signed by Albert Collins and Steve Morse, with the Certificate (matching numbers), original case, wammy bar, wammy springs, neck hanger (store ticket, with the builders stamps), silver-covered original handbook, even the concert stub from the gig in '92 where Albert signed it. Gift from my brother years ago.
The story goes that it was actually Albert's, bought at the concert...it has his characteristic brass nut and lowered action...
I've seen pristine examples, without the provenance and extras, go for mid 3k.
Any ideas what this guy might be worth?
serial number is: 254754

grateful for any help

Here, one for $2850:

http://www.eddievegas.com/store/details ... caster.php

Yes the price for those '79 are less than $3000. I have a '80, IMO this is not a very good guitar and collector know that.
Mone is natural, like new, with original case, and I can,t sell more than$ 2300

Hang on to it in its original state. Some day it will be. They've been making 70's reissue for some time already. Market for 70's gear is bound to grow.