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Post subject: Relic finish
Posted: Sat Jul 07, 2012 10:42 pm
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Lookin through the photos on the Fender Custom Shop site, I noticed so many relic and heavy relic finished instruments. It seems so bleh. Did not dig it. Like wearing ribbons and medals not earned, or buying pants of the shelf with rips in the knees and such, it seems like it's faking a history. It just rubs me the wrong way. I know a lot of people dig it, but I just can't get into it. Thoughts?

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Post subject: Re: Relic finish
Posted: Sun Jul 08, 2012 12:01 am
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I agree with you and I'm not a fan of the relic process.

There are many people who buy them which is why Fender makes them. Things that don't sell well, like a left handed Standard P-Bass for example, get eliminated from production. The relic treatment instruments often look more beat up than an authentic vintage player class instrument. The Custom Shop bass Fender gifted T-Bone Wolk shortly before his death was supposed to be a recreation of his personally modified #1 which he played on many Saturday Night Live broadcasts on NBC. But if anything the Custom Shop version was in my opinion overly distressed.

Genuine vintage instruments are so expensive that many players assume that a far more affordable relic treatment instrument from the Custom Shop is the next best thing. Actually the Closet Classic level looks closer to me than some of the heavy relic treatment ones. But just because it looks vintage doesn't make it vintage.

A key point here is that different players have different techniques and the play wear patterns will be different on each and every genuine vintage bass, more so than on a Spanish electric like a Strat or Tele. Yet on a relic treatment instrument, and especially on the mass production relic treatments, the wear patterns and even the finish checking locations are pretty much identical. When you see a rocker type playing a heavy relic treated P-Bass with a pick it makes the finger style wear patterns present look even more fake.

You can't blame Fender though, they are just giving the people with deep enough pockets what they want and some customers are apparently glad to pay an exorbitant amount to get it. Relic treatments are a significant revenue enhancement for Fender, but one which in my view add nothing to the playability, tone, durability or even to an instrument's resale value on the used market. Nor does a relic treatment make the instrument more collectible. In fact they are a harder sell on the vintage market in some cases!

Personally I prefer an instrument that looks good as I believe a nice looking instrument makes a good impression and is more of a source of pride for the owner. Each nick and wear pattern on your instrument should have a story or a memory or even a lesson in it.

Modern poly finishes are extremely durable, much more durable than the pre-CBS all nitro finishes. Nitro has the advantage of being breathable but is not very durable and most of them are extremely photo-reactive. The poly instruments will never wear like the true vintage nitro ones or fade like them or have the photo-reactive color changes the nitro ones have.

Many folks might be buying a relic instrument to get the nitro paint thinking it is going to breathe and make their instrument sound better in 10, 20 or 30 years or perhaps make it more valuable down the road. However under the nitro paint topcoat is usually a poly primer sarcophagus that makes it airtight so that the only thing that breathes is the top coat itself.


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Post subject: Re: Relic finish
Posted: Sun Jul 08, 2012 1:34 am
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That pickstyler playing one that has fingerstyle wear is what I think clued my in first that it rubbed me wrong. Just looked... off. The relic finish really looks overdone in my opinion too, like someone who just beat the ever living hell out of his instrument with no care, like a rich, spoiled teenager that knows mommy and daddy will buy him a new one, no matter how it got broken. Now I understand that some musicians who've been around the block for years have finishes that have worn through and just look like hell, but that is YEARS of sweat destroying the finish, and half the time they understand that feckall this looks like garbage and is going to ruin the wood.

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-1980-something Bentley Series 10
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Post subject: Re: Relic finish
Posted: Sun Jul 08, 2012 3:44 am
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The advantage of a relic instrument is that you don't have to be afraid of extra dents, chips, scratches etc. when you play it.

So you can use the instrument for what it is made for, namely to play it.


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Post subject: Re: Relic finish
Posted: Sun Jul 08, 2012 10:40 am
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my 72 Jazz that some dude played in smokey bars for a hundred years ( every weekend I bet) is just worn from that type of Honky Tonk nicotine stained booze guzzled worn down played like all get out untill the guys finger dug a hole in it guitarlicious total freakin cool relic lookin bass thing-- oh yeah I like it. Relic doesn't bother me. I like it. I don't care about fake or not fake. It's just whatever. A real relic seems to look better but those guys at Fender are really good. It DOES take artistic skill to relic a guitar like they do and others I've seen. Not all are good at it. The ones who are-- I look at it as Art. That's all. I can never cop an attitude at a guitar UNLESS it's just a piece of junk and won't stay in tune or some kind of stuff like that---then I get rid of it. I've never smashed one either.


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Post subject: Re: Relic finish
Posted: Sun Jul 08, 2012 12:19 pm
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My response = No fake relic jobs. Kthxbye. 8)

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Post subject: Re: Relic finish
Posted: Mon Jul 09, 2012 1:47 am
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There are plenty of genuinely worn instruments out there. Their history is far more interesting than a faked worn one. Play a few and one can find an instrument the speaks to them.


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Post subject: Re: Relic finish
Posted: Mon Jul 09, 2012 5:05 am
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I would bet that guitar players like relic finishes more than bass players. Bass players are just so "down to Earth". I bet there are more bass players that are farmers than there are guitar players that are farmers. Wait... I could be wrong. Okay more smelters are bass players than smelters that are guitar players? Ever smelt anything?

Gimme a break it's 100 degrees out and this forum is in the summer doldrum phase anyway.


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Post subject: Re: Relic finish
Posted: Mon Jul 09, 2012 6:01 am
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I smelt something once, i came in the basement door and this odor had permeated the entire house. On further investigation, i found the source!

IT WAS SPAGHETTI!


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Post subject: Re: Relic finish
Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2012 3:23 am
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MMM, sketti

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-Candy Apple Red Precision Bass (Maple fingerboard) carrying Rotosound Steve Harris Strings
-1980-something Bentley Series 10
-Fender Rumble 15


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Post subject: Re: Relic finish
Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2012 6:33 am
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Image


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Post subject: Re: Relic finish
Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2012 8:53 am
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The real problem with the whole "relic" craze is that it is eroding the value and the memory of the actual vintage instruments.
Many players have never actually played a Fender Guitar or bass from the 50's or 60s or even 70s!
Their collective impressions of what the actual vintage instruments play like are being influenced by the fake recreations that Fender and others are making.

I have often gotten into conversations with a player who says the plays a 60's Precision bass only to find out that their instrument is a custom shop recreation of a reliced 66 Precision.
They are very nice instruments but they are not the real thing.


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Post subject: Re: Relic finish
Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2012 10:33 am
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You know-- I can understand what you are saying. It just makes sense to me. My 74 and and 72 Fender basses do not sound or feel like any bass from the 80's or beyond. That kind of goes for my 83 P bass. It is a well made guitar and is (to me ) allot different than the modern era Fenders (98 and beyond is what I call modern). Why 98? Well because the Precision Deluxe of that year marked a change as far as a big change in a precision bass- that was actually pretty darn good. I think they discontinued it though if I'm not mistaken. I'm talking about the smaller body Chrome Logo version.


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