1955 Fender Strat...

guido #2 said:
: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
Click to expand...

Ok, forget the photo.

It has a REPLACEMENT string? What a piece of crap.
 
One more thing to consider. She is unwilling to ship the guitar, you must pick it up.

Now, would you REALLY want to see someone face to face, much less insist on it, if you were selling a fake?

And she has said that she would like for someone local to get it, so she is probably more than happy to have serious bidders come over and look at the guitar.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
That's true.
Ireally DO hope it is real, Light. It's fun to think that there are still jewels left in the world. And it sure did give all of us something to talk about for awhile!

Anyway... my entire point from the beginning was that it just didn't SEEM right.
I suppose if I had $50,000 to spend on a guitar, it might seem "righter" :D



It just dawned on me...
It's like a "Strat Pack" for the silly rich!
 
About three years ago, a woman (I think her name was Kathy) posted at the Fender Discussion Page (FDP) that she had an old, all original Strat that had been her deceased father's. She had played music with her father as a girl in the late '50s, early '60s, and the guitar had been carefully stored by her father who hadn't played it for quite a long time. Out of curiousity, she wanted to know more about the guitar and was certainly wondering how valuable it might be. She had no plans to sell it, and in fact, planned to give it to her teenage son who was learning guitar. She was given much assistance by forum members (including myself) and she was finally able to post pics. It turned-out to be a mint '54. The plate # was 4xx (can't remember exactly). Of course, the same doubt questions went-on for a while, but it was finally authenticated by a vintage dealer. It was suggested to her that she give the guitar a name. She did so, and named it in memory of her father whose name was Earl. The guitar's name? "The Earl of Strat". I thought that was way cool! I recall that she had been contacted by one of the prominent guitar magazines who wanted to do a story about it, but I don't know if that ever happened. Again, three years ago, I think she was told the guitar was worth a bit more than $20K. I shudder to think how much it could fetch today.

Edit: FWIW, I just did a search at the FDP for the thread on the '54 I mentioned, and the neck plate number is actually #590. The magazine that the guitar was profiled in is "Frontline".
 
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great story. 54.

my neighbor across the street came over one night and showed me his.
wait that didn't read right?! :eek:

anyway, he heard thru the wifes i played guitar and showed me his old 56 to 58, and had the case, little paper flyer. A couple broken strings and the laquer wood was a sunburst, had a green tint. This is normal I guess (average storage). It looked old but unplayed if that makes sense.

I was amazed. He never learned to play but had kept it all these years.
He told me the amp that came with it, they threw into the garbage to make room in the garage years ago...set it on the curb for the junk man.

but the guitar was the real mcoy. He too was going to let his son "learn" on it.
but the son messed up the whammy bar. minor.

he got like $10K and it wasn't mint. had to pay heart attack Dr. bills.
I didn't have the moola$.

Think any of the new ones will have that uniqueness, there's so many 1,00's of them made. time will tell. maybe the anniversary's or something.

???????
Anyone have a guess at the total quantity guitars made in the 50's, total qty. built ...in comparison to 2005?
Always wondered who keeps the numbers of sold Fender guitars?
 
Well, I am skeptical (not neccesarily about this strat, but old strats in general).

THESE ARE RARE GUITARS!

That being said, everytime you turn around there is one...or two,....or five, in MINT condition offered on ebay. Week after week after week after week.

)side note....where are all these 1000's of old strat parts, sold on ebay, going....perhaps in the assembly of "mint" vintage strats? How many old starts gave up the ghost to provide this never ending supply of old strat parts?))

Doesn't jee haw in my opinion.
 
jimistone said:
Well, I am skeptical (not neccesarily about this strat, but old strats in general).

THESE ARE RARE GUITARS!

That being said, everytime you turn around there is one...or two,....or five, in MINT condition offered on ebay. Week after week after week after week.

)side note....where are all these 1000's of old strat parts, sold on ebay, going....perhaps in the assembly of "mint" vintage strats? How many old starts gave up the ghost to provide this never ending supply of old strat parts?))

Doesn't jee haw in my opinion.
Click to expand...

I'm beginning to think it's all over the vintage and collectable music gear market, not just strats. In December I listed my ES 150 and as soon as I did, several others pop up to compete. It sold for $2550 but the guy wouldn't pay (yet later gives me positive feedback) so in the meantime I file a dispute and the others go off listing as well with none of them selling to my knowledge. Soon as I list it they're all back again. Though the guitar gets twice the hits it did the first time around it doesn't meet my reserve of $1900 and I give up and take it off the market.

Right now I've got a blackface black tolex Fender Bassman amp on ebay that goes off on Sunday. Before listing I watched for a week or so to see if there were any others, and with no others I list it with a $450 mimimum bid and $600 reserve and sure enough, three more follow suit. Coincidence? I don't think so.

Man, that strat is up to 55 thousand and still the reserve isn't met.
 
Seward Nebraska is about 22 miles from Lincoln. If I was going to spend $50k on a guitar, I am spending the few hundred bucks to fly into Lincoln and rent a car and drive to Seward.
I believe the guitar is the real deal. Unfortunately, some airlines let you bring a guitar on board and some don't. How would like to have to check that guitar in baggage? I'd pay for a second seat right next to me and strap that baby in. I wonder if the Strat would want peanuts or pretzels for the ride home?
 
You don't take an axe like that on an airplane; you HEAVILY insure it and ship it to yourself via truck...

I had a '57 Strat many years ago, before I knew enough about the value of such things...Don't even remember what I traded or sold it for...Got it from a relative that also didn't know or care...It had the off-coloring (severe) because it sat out leaned up against a wall for nearly it's entire existance, soaking up indirect sunlight. Lacquer's worst enemy is sunlight in the invisible spectrum--That's why we housepainters never lacquer exterior woodwork...It takes only a couple years for yellowing and oxidation to begin. This is one reason I paint all my guitars (except acoustics) with PPG auto urethanes...

Oh, and my Strat's neck heel was also pencilled, but it had the serial number pencilled on as well...

Eric
 
jimistone said:
Well, I am skeptical (not neccesarily about this strat, but old strats in general).

THESE ARE RARE GUITARS!

.
Click to expand...

same here. agree. Skeptical. Amazing they do such a good job being rip-offs too. Probably better guitar than say a MIM! or a Fender Relic!

Rare. interesting and a subjective term, makes it fun.

Stratocaster S/N state: Up to 40,000 from 1950 tp 1960. 10 years!

in contrast, 1976 alone S/N went from 200,000 to 500,000 ...1 year!

this is just ballpark figures form the Fender site, its all the info i could find on production numbers.

then they went to this strange S/N id system and I can't figure out how to to read it.V's and X's and crap. How many Guitars do they make now?

well...it doesn't take a Smithsonian Degree to figure out why the newer ones don't grab that much $$.

A new Strat off the GC floor at $750 will probably get you $400 if you brought it back in to Guitar Center 45 days later, per their blue book.
and even then they really don't want it because they only have so much shelf space. The GC's I go too are so full they put sht up in pyramids. can't hardly walk thru the place.

off subject sorry! Rare Stratocasters...yeah.
 
I bought my vintage '58 Strat in '76 for $300. Sold it on ebay 3 years ago for a pretty good sum. Largest return on investment I EVER made. I did a bunch of things with the $$$ -- bought a high-end Taylor acoustic guitar, amp, paid off bills, paid for my wife's laser-eye surgery, etc. etc. Not to be without a Strat and quite liking the vintage look and feel, I also bought a '57 Strat Reissue with the $$$. In my opinion, this guitar sounds and plays every bit as good an my original '58. To say otherwise is just pretty anal, IMO. I think the whole vintage thing is waaaay over the top and has been for a long time. And I agree that some pretty shifty things are going on. It took me about 26 years to get over the vintage thing. I now believe they're just old guitars -- cool, but not THAT cool! Anyhow, I did good by it. Thank God for capitalism!!! ;)
 
I truly have no clue if it is real or not.

I DO have a ton of ebay selling experience (3800+ total auctions with a 100% rating)

I would never try this on my own with one feedback.

But she could nuke all of the naysayers if she just posted a pic of her and these things from the 50's. (as previously stated)
If it's legit, I am SURE she has one.
 
Done for $76.3k.... (sniped w/ 7 secs left)
You should see the buyers's history..... He's a member of the "$10,000+ Guitar of the Week Club"..... :eek:
 
1954 Fender... it'll probably do better than stocks and you don't have to pay property tax like real estate?
definately a lot more fun for sure.

1954 "Leo-is in the building" Stratocaster. trip. :)
 
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