Selling guitars that you dont play.

Started by jshortz, April 21, 2014, 01:39:34 PM

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DF400

This is a topic I think of every so often. Like many of you, I have guitars (two) that I bought when I started playing - now with me for over 35 years old. I'm up to 13, most of which I absolutely love. Of all my guitars, the only one that I constantly think about offing is the Dark Fire. Not that I don't love the look - but never gig with it and rarely pick it up for anything other than to fire up and watch the tuners spin. Although, here I am more than 5 years later still hanging on to it. Although all my guitars have a different flavor, here is the order from highest use, to least:

Fender Telecaster (Baja - MIM). Newest of the herd, but love this guitar.
Brian Moore i2.13. Absolute work horse and excellent integration with GR-55. My primary gigging axe.
Gibson Tribute Gold Top Les Paul (with P-90s). Great instrument at a reasonable price.
Gibson 1977 Les Paul - A classic, what more can I say.
1989 Ibanez RG-770. Nice metal guitar.
Jose Ramirez 2cm. For classical and some flamenco work.
Fender Strat, 50th anniversary. Great guitar, but prefer my Tele.
Blue Ridge Acoustic - another great guitar for the money
Guild Steel String Acoustic - my gigging acoustic
Godin Nylon Classical ACS with Synth Access
Ibanez Nylon string classical. It's my beater guitar
Gibson 1979 S-1. Had this one for a long time. I have it tuned to open G for Stones covers, etc.
Gibson Dark Fire - nice wall art.

SOLD, DESTROYED or STOLEN:
1955 Gibson Co-Classical (stolen)
Yamaha SGC2 - check out the photo below, just a weird instrument! Destroyed on stage!!!
Aria Pro 2 - cheap metal axe when I was broken
1972 Fender Strat (stolen)
Gibson J-200 (Elvis) copy (broken by baggage handlers while transporting on an airplane)
Yamaha natural wood (three tone). Can't remember the model, bought in late 70s. Traded for the Gibson S-1
Hand made Flamenco guitar, Sold (due to broken hand and did not think I would play again...)

mbenigni

#26
I know you guys are talking guitars, but I can never read a thread like this without mentioning an amp I deeply regret selling.  When I was in college someone just wandered into my dorm room carrying a Mesa Boogie MkIIc+, and said, "You have to buy this amp."  For $300.  I had no money, and no interest in buying an amp for that matter, but this thing blew my mind instantly, and somehow I made it happen.  A couple of years later I'd moved to CA, and when I moved back to the East coast my roommate was supposed to ship the amp back to me.  Instead, he called saying that a friend of his offered to buy it, and to save him the hassle I accepted the offer - $350 or $400, I can't remember now.  At the time I was bouncing between studio apartments, sleeping on floors, doing the minimalist thing, and decided to let it go and travel light.

To this day I've never heard an amp as scary as that one, and looking back it was a very personal thing: I didn't find the amp, it found me.  I was foolish to not recognize how uncommon that piece was, and sold it for a couple of bucks and a little convenience.  :(  I've sold a few things where I know I should have gotten more money, but that's the only one that I think of and say, that really belonged with me.

aliensporebomb

My Mesa Studio Preamp has a Mark IIc+ preamp in it.  I've had it since 1990 and am unlikely to ever sell, it's astounding so I can relate.  I use it all of the time.

Guitars I wish I hadn't sold/traded:
-The G-202 Roland
-Jackson Soloist (a relatively recent error)
-The Black Fender Contemporary Strat (MIJ)
-Charvel Model 4 with EMGs and a Floyd (I wore the neck out)
-I could go on
My music projects online at http://www.aliensporebomb.com/

GK Devices:  Roland VG-99, Boss GP-10, Boss SY-1000.

mbenigni

Quote from: aliensporebomb on April 23, 2014, 08:44:35 AMMy Mesa Studio Preamp has a Mark IIc+ preamp in it.  I've had it since 1990 and am unlikely to ever sell, it's astounding so I can relate.  I use it all of the time.

Same year I bought my MkIIc+, if I recall correctly.

pedwards2932

How about this for a stupid teenager sale.......blonde fender bandmaster - sold it to buy one of those new fangled amps by a new company called Peavy.......what a bone headed move......ah well we were all young once I just can't believe I did that.

bbob

#30
In descending order of stupidity for selling, all purchased in mid to late 60's when in high school:

Gibson ES -335
Fender Twin Reverb
Fender Stratocaster (bought used for $75)
Fender Bassman (bought used for $100)
Hagstrom Electric

Kept and still have:  ;D

Gibson B45 12 string

GovernorSilver

Fantastic story about selling a particular guitar, regretting it, and getting it back years later, featuring one of today's great players:

http://www.fretboardjournal.com/features/online/lost-found-bill-frisells-es-175

JolietJake

In the mid 90s I traded my Marshall Bluesbreaker amp for a shiny new Laney.
Why would I keep it it was tatty and old (made in 1965).  :'(

jshortz

I sold a 60s Les Paul Special Cherry red with 2 P-90s.
Like to have that back.
Thing is now that Im playing V Guitar My others don't get stage time.
I also miss using my wireless.

mbenigni

Keep 'em coming, guys.  Helps to know I'm not alone LOL.

Elantric

#35
My first Gibson was a 1966 ES-330 - paid $200 in 1970

Looked just like this



Being a lead guitarist, I hated the restricted upper fret access, and the Bridge PU just howled because the P90 coil windings had become loose after sitting in the trunk of a car during a hot Chicago Summer.  Since I was age 15, I did not know about taming self induced high pitched feedback by dipping the pickup in beeswax - so I played lots of Grand Funk Railroad covers using the Neck PU.
http://digital.premierguitar.com/premierguitar/200904_1/?folio=139#pg146

So 9 months later I traded the ES-330 even for 1961 Gibson SG Special.
See guitar on bottom here:


The guy I traded my old ES-330 to did not care for the Cherry Red color - so he painted the guitar Black with spray can Automotive touch up paint  - did not even take the guitar apart , just sprayed Black all over the electronics and pickups, then he took a Belt sander to the guitar and tried to sand off the Black Paint, but the sander went through one or the lamination layers of the ES-330's pressure board arched top. (Yikes!)

Seeing my old guitar in such a sorry state, I took the guitar and spent a solid month in my parent basement refinishing the guitar in natural wood, even sanding off the damaged top layer off the front of the ES-330, exposing  the next layer of wood, resulting in a Gibson ES-330 in Natural clear finish, but  with the top wood grain running horizontal (not vertical)   
Recently found a (blurry) photo of the guitar after my efforts


mbenigni

QuoteSeeing my old guitar in such a sorry state, I took the guitar and spent a solid month in my parent basement refinishing the guitar in natural wood, even sanding off the damaged top layer off the front of the ES-330, exposing  the next layer of wood, resulting in a Gibson ES-330 in Natural clear finish, but  with the top wood grain running horizontal (not vertical)   

It probably sounded even better as a result!

Alec Lee

IME, some guitars are keepers for me, others aren't.  The trick is telling one from the other. The keepers fall into a number of different categories:

  • it speaks to me
  • it's hard to replace and I suspect that I might want it again
  • it has some sentimental value
  • it's not really in the rotation but fills a niche
Even if a guitar's buried on the depth chart and doesn't meet the above criteria, I still tend to hold on to it until I want to use the $$$ for something else. I do have a substantial sell-off coming up.  There are a few things I have in mind.  8)

Eric Craptone

Happy to read, that I am not alone with my guitar "collection" ;) And still longing for more...

My wife (who certainly does not have the same emotional relationship to my guitars) sometimes wants me to sell some pieces, cause they take a lot of space. But I stick to all of them for sentimental reasons. Actually, I don't play two or three of my cheap (but pimped) "beginner"-guitars from the late 80s, and I could sell them. I think I will sell 'em some day ;) No, I won't. Maybe I will... Aaaargh, I'm a schizo, I'm afraid.
Gibson LP Classic 60, Fender Strat US, Godin Mulitac Nylon, Godin L. R. Baggs Acusticaster (...), Kemper Profiling Amp, Marshall JCM 800, H/H V-S Musician, Schertler JAM 100, Mesa Boogie V-Twin, Gordius LG2, BOSS BR-1600C

Mrchevy

This is not a story of a sold guitar, but one of a lost guitar forever........or was it. Most of you know him and he was my inspiration to pick up the guitar. I honestly can't watch these without tearing up.

THE STORY...



THE REUNION.....


Gibson Les Paul Custom
Epi Les Paul Standard
Gibson SG 50's prototype
Squire classic vibe 60's
Epi LP Modern
Epi SG Custom
Martin acoustic

Princeton chorus 210

GT100
GR-55
Helix LT
Waza Air Headphones
Boomerang III

And, a lot of stuff I DON'T need

Elantric

Great Story on  the Frampton LP!

Thanks for sharing

kenact

Quote from: Elantric on April 24, 2014, 11:21:59 AM
My first Gibson was a 1966 ES-330 - paid $200 in 1970

Looked just like this



Being a lead guitarist, I hated the restricted upper fret access, and the Bridge PU just howled because the P90 coil windings had become loose after sitting in the trunk of a car during a hot Chicago Summer.  Since I was age 15, I did not know about taming self induced high pitched feedback by dipping the pickup in beeswax - so I played lots of Grand Funk Railroad covers using the Neck PU.

I bought a similar one from Sam Ash in 71, but I'm not a lead guitarist, so upper fret board access didn't bother me, but I did swap out the P90s from Humbuckers. Then someone decided they wanted it more then me. Mine was stolen in 73 and I've never seen it again. I never bought another one.
Godin Session & Montreal FTP, LGXT, LGX SA, Redline, ACS, A12, A11, A10, A4
Danoblaster Baritone w/GK-3
Gretsch Nashville, Viking
Fender Strats
Fret King Supermatic
Larrivee DV03RE
Parker Midi Fly
Seagull, S&P 12
VOX Phantom XII
GR-55, 33, 30, 20, GI-20, RC-50, US-20, VG-99, VP-7
Sentient 6
Cyr 7

Toby Krebs

I keep them all as I sometimes need a GR55 guitar( I have 4 of those) and sometimes I need one with no GK on it ( I have I think 5 of those). Also my son records with them so he can have them when I am gone.

gumtown

I have trouble parting with them,
I sold one that I did not like at all, and another to a friend many years ago, which I don't recall him paying me for it.
All the rest (guitars and basses) are littered through out the house, garage, and storage shed.
I try to get around to them all and play atleast 10 minutes on each per year.
My 2 year old son has taken a shining to the blue Krammer electric guitar.
Free "GR-55 FloorBoard" editor software from https://sourceforge.net/projects/grfloorboard/

BackDAWman

I miss my Marshall JCM800 combo (1 x 12") and my Westone!! That guitar sure was pretty...Brass nut, all through neck, metalic blue. It was the only guitar I'd come across that actually had a dual-gang pot (with center ident) to control the split and phasing of my humbuckers.

I had to sell both to get a deposit on a house that I eventually sold and eventually divorced the wife. All the kids grew up...

Naw...now I just feel sad and old...

Loved the Frampton story! He was one of a few very special guitarists who inspired me to play :-D

JolietJake

"I miss my Marshall JCM800 combo (1 x 12") and my Westone!! That guitar sure was pretty...Brass nut, all through neck, metalic blue. It was the only guitar I'd come across that actually had a dual-gang pot (with center ident) to control the split and phasing of my humbuckers."

Good call. I had a guitar called a Westone Prestige 250. It had the brass nut and centre indent pots. Came with a perfectly fitted case too. Now that was a guitar.

Forgot about that one. Wish I had it now.

chrish

#46
Old thread but still relevant.

I followed  the same trend as many people who posted here. After having sold, in 1978, an early 70s Les Paul Custom, a 60s Fender Twin Reverb, and a crazy univox tape Echo machine, I tend not to sell guitars*.

After a disco touring gig fell through, and the need to generate some cash, I was left without a guitar and thought I was done with music.

In the early nineties I started jamming again after I found a $75 used Epiphone Dot and a cheap amp. The drummer's wife said we sounded like noise so we called ourselves 'The Noise Boys.'

'The Noise Boys' eventually evolved into 'Luna Llena' and we mostly played summer hobby gigs for around 6 years playing Latin jazz fusion.

*The exception was a Gibson Chet Atkins nylon string Electric that I sold when I purchased a Godin nylon string multac so that I could have synth access. Also sold that Epiphone.

Still wish I had those Gibsons.

Rhcole

I buy and sell guitars often. I've owned close to 50 of them but only keep around 5 or 6 at a time. Some of them have been really nice, too. But I mostly let them go and look forward to the next purchase.

scratch17

Regrets:

Kramer 450 with aluminum neck.
Guild StarFire 4

Polytone Minibrute II
Fender Bandmaster (Twice!)

About to really regret:

2015 Gibson SG Standard Fireburst that I never played, but is listed on eBay right now.

Note: I own a third bandmaster. This one I got lucky with. It is an early 1968 Drip Edge. But it was built with lefy over parts from the 1967 Blackface model. It has an AB763 preamp.

I currently own a Hamer Duotone, a Taylor 710 BCE 25th Anniversary Edition and a Brian Moore i213.

The bottom line story:

I had a buddy in 1974 who's dad owned a musical instrument store. He let me put $100 down on a Guild Starfire 4 on layaway. He even let me take the guitar home. It was the first quality guitar I'd ever played. I kept it for about two years, paying about $50 more towards it. What can I say, I was scraping by at the time. After about two years, my buddy asked me when I thought I could pay it off. I told him the truth. I just wasn't able to give him a guaranteed time. His dad was asking for the money, but he did me another solid. He had to take it back, but he gave me a used Yamaha (I think it was a Pacifica) to replace the SF4. I moved to Texas in 1978 (from Ottawa) and gave back the Yamaha. Considering I'd had use of two nice guitars for four years, I considered it a bargain.

In 1978, after moving to Texas, I had a good job and finally had some spending money. So I bought a new Kramer 450 with a Polytone Mini Brute II amp. I sold the Kramer to afford a Godin XTSA. I sold the Godin to buy my Hamer Duotone which I will NEVER sell. I will be buried with that guitar.

Why am I selling the SG, and why have I never played it?

I bought the guitar in the summer of 2015. I was selling my house and moving, so I was too busy to play. I had already packed up my studio and my amps. So I figured I'd wait until I was settled into my new house.

I'd also been having trouble with numbness in my arms and hands for a while. So after I'd moved I went to a specialist. I needed ulnar nerve realignment surgery in both arms and carpel tunnel surgery in my left hand. I could do the left arm and hand surgery and then I had to wait until I recovered enough to have the right arm surgery. It has been fifteen months since the first surgery. I have not played the SG. Now you know why.

I am still having issues, but there is some improvement. My doc tells me I might see more improvement in time, so I should not sell my guitars yet. I was not planning on selling any of them.

Then around 1 p.m. on Christmas Day, a drunk went off the road, across my neighbor's yard, and T-boned my car which was parked in my driveway. It is totaled. I need more money than what I got from insurance to get another car. I don't want a car payment. So I must sell the SG.

The good news is that no one was hurt. The drunk took off, but my security camera captured the hit on video. The cops caught him and his insurance is covering the damage.

Will I regret selling? Sure. But I might replace it down the line. And as Forrest Gump put on a T shirt, "Shit Happens".


Hamer Duotone, Brian Moore i213, Taylor 710 BCE 

VG-99, FC-300, RMC Fanout
RJM Mastermind GT10
Kemper Profiling Amp
Radial JDV Mk3, X-Amp
Mesa Recto Pre + 20/20
68 Fender Bandmaster (AB763)
Marshal AS80R

UA Apollo X6, Twin X, Logic Pro, Luna, Melodyne Studio

acousticglue

Layoffs from work:
Lowden F23
Taylor 514CE, Taylor 814CE, Taylor Koa w Cedar top no electronics
Traded Godin XTSA after having for two days and strap came loose broke neck, ordered new one/replaced and traded for another acoustic-bad move
Fender strat maple board to charity for death of kids friend-mixed feelings here
last was G&L Legacy special on huge trade of equipment for Taylor 914CE, drive to Nashville from STL to get and didnt like the neck on it and sold for just about what I could have had out of all equipment. Means to an end but G&L had been with me a while. Had Grosh pickups on it.
I now own only 3 Grosh guitars which I am very happy with.