1955 Fender Strat...

philboyd studge said:
Geez Jimi, it was a long time ago that I rode my bike over to the factory a couple of times to see them make 'stick' guitars as my dad called them.

If the material was vinyl and not ABS plastic it could its color and condition a little better.

I just can't believe the prices some vintage guitars bring. It brings up an interesting question; taking collectability and speculation out of the mix, how much would you pay for a mint '55 strat that you actually intended to play? I'd go about $2000.
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I would pay the same price I always pay for a used electric guitar.....150 bucks.
Of course I would sell it for $2000 if possible.

I have never played a '55 strat, so, I don't know if they are any better, as far as playability goes, than the current crop of brand new strats.
 
I've owned two of those amps...one was a beaten to death 58 and the other was a pristine condition 60.(yeah there were a few tweeds in 60 mostly leftovers while they switched to the piggyback lines and Tolex) The amp looks legit. So does the Strat but I've seen a few fakes that were really good.

It is in Nebraska...They do store old guitars under beds there than grandpa and grandma played in the old days..

Its not mint but the price is not for a mint one at this time either. A dead mint 55 might get as much as 100k from the right collector.
 
The thing that bothers me is that it is unlikely that she took the thing
apart herself and took pics of the neck date.Why not have the tech
that did it authenticate it in writing?
 
SHEPPARDB. said:
The thing that bothers me is that it is unlikely that she took the thing
apart herself and took pics of the neck date.Why not have the tech
that did it authenticate it in writing?
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Yeah, or show she has some ovaries and hold a no reserve auction.

Seems kind of odd the wood is that dark at the base of the neck.
 
I thought the old ones turned a "greenish" color due to the laquer and aging?

My neighbor had brought over his 58, or 57...and it had a greenish tint.
also read somewhere thats normal, i thought? I could be wrong again.
 
COOLCAT said:
I thought the old ones turned a "greenish" color due to the laquer and aging?

My neighbor had brought over his 58, or 57...and it had a greenish tint.
also read somewhere thats normal, i thought? I could be wrong again.
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It depends on the material and how it was stored. Certainly that is the case with the cellulose they used on the white/black/white pickguards, but not always on the earlier solid white ones.

Why is everyone looking for a reason for it to be fake? I've already said, I know someone who knows this guitar. I'm about 95% sure it is for real.

Things like this DO show up from time to time, you know.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
to spot fakes you have to check out minute details:

notice on the repo decal how the top of the E in Fender is rounded and also look at the curl on the N
 

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here is the decal from the '55 strat on ebay.....it's kind of hard to see the details.

Is the little curl coming off the "N" in fender? I can't tell from the pic.
 

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heres a close up...not really enough contrast to tell much though. I would get more detailed close ups from the seller if I were bidding.
 

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Light said:
It depends on the material and how it was stored. Certainly that is the case with the cellulose they used on the white/black/white pickguards, but not always on the earlier solid white ones.

Why is everyone looking for a reason for it to be fake? I've already said, I know someone who knows this guitar. I'm about 95% sure it is for real.

Things like this DO show up from time to time, you know.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
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It just seems odd, something of this value.

Its bizarre, who would (or could) spend that much on something sight unseen?
$45,000 from looking at some poor digital pictures from a stranger?

They do show up, but usually at an auction house or pro-shop.

What if it's fake?

hell, i'm so broke I spend hours over a frkn $400 guitar amp! let alone $45,000 on a EBAY auction.

this thread di have me looking at old Fenders and history articles....Good stuff. I wasn't aware all the amps had shutdown in the US in 2002!
RipVanWinkle here!!
 
jimistone said:
heres a close up...not really enough contrast to tell much though. I would get more detailed close ups from the seller if I were bidding.
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I take that back. If I were bidding in this price range, I would make the trip to personally inspect the guitar....and also, have someone much more knowledgeable than me take a look at it also.

If that wasn't possible...I wouldn't bid.
 
Light said:
Things like this DO show up from time to time, you know.
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They sure do. Tuesday I was my friend's local mom & pop music store and we were talking about this strat and he says 'you never know' 'just last October I drove up to open up the shop and an old guy in his 80's is standing outside his old car with an old Gibson case. He asked if I buy instruments and I said sure, lets have a look. It was a '59 335...totally original except for one PAF changed around 1970, otherwise excellent. Arthritis wouldn't allow him play anymore and he asked how much cash could he get right then. I said, sir, I have to let you know this guitar is worth a awful lot more than the $500 I've got in the safe, but he said $500 was fine and I bought it.' Rather than hunt down a proper pickup he sold it to Norm's Rare Guitars for $8500 where you can bet Norm either has one or can find it, and it'll go for upwards of $15,000.
 
Ok, I don't know why this guitar bugs me so much but take a good look at the headstock on this one:
http://www.stratcollector.com/inventory/sc0123755sb.html

Notice the string retainer location. Pilot holes were pre drilled I believe.
Now look at the Fender decal. First, it's location and bending a bit can very a bit with application but why one line of script below 'Fender stratocaster' on the auction guitar?
 
Philboyd,
See how yellowed the neck is on the link you posted? Now compare that to the one on ebay.....


I'm not saying it's a fake, Light, but I gotta tell ya....



I sure as hell wouldn't bid sight unseen
 
guido #2 said:
Philboyd,
See how yellowed the neck is on the link you posted? Now compare that to the one on ebay.....


I'm not saying it's a fake, Light, but I gotta tell ya....



I sure as hell wouldn't bid sight unseen
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Yeah the color seems off especially with that red background of the case and all, but there are so many factors in lighting and digital cameras and all.

I want to fool with both shots in photoshop till I get them to the same tint and see what happens to the decal.

Maybe this strat is something Tokai made for their own amusement in 1980.
 
I used to buy and sell vintage guitars for a living.

I cannot offer an opinion on it's legitimacy without actually holding it in my hands.

The look and feel of the real thing is not something that can be captured in a photo.

Just my 650 yen.
 
:D
This keeps getting more and more far fetched!!

"I have the original strap, pick, dustcloth, my first lesson book, and basically everything that came with it. It's lived its whole life with me. I have replaced one string. That's it!!"
Questions to Seller
 
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