Five Dollar Strat

stevieb

Just another guy, really.
Picked up a Squire strat at a garage sale. Five bux. Nothing wrong with it, functionally- the kid has spray-painted the top- with pick guard, bridge, EVERYTING, still in place, with red oxide primer. Some Urethane bumper paint stripper and steel wool took it off; buffing with my high-speed buffer brought back the shine.

Plastic parts would not let go of the paint, so they had to be replaced. Cheaper to buy a loaded pickguard from Guitar Fetish than just the parts I needed, so $20 later (still waiting on it getting here) and all is right with the world.

One of the easiest guitar rescues I ever did.
 
Nice to pick up a project guitar without spending a ton of money. A couple years ago I found a Squier that'd had a similar paint job sticking out of a trash can in the local student ghetto. The body was split, but the neck was still good--and 22 frets. Upgraded one of my other Squiers with just a little trimming.
 
Picked up a Squire strat at a garage sale. Five bux. Nothing wrong with it, functionally- the kid has spray-painted the top- with pick guard, bridge, EVERYTING, still in place, with red oxide primer. Some Urethane bumper paint stripper and steel wool took it off; buffing with my high-speed buffer brought back the shine.

Plastic parts would not let go of the paint, so they had to be replaced. Cheaper to buy a loaded pickguard from Guitar Fetish than just the parts I needed, so $20 later (still waiting on it getting here) and all is right with the world.

One of the easiest guitar rescues I ever did.

Must be a southern thing! ;) Around here, they try to sell them on craigslist as 'almost new' for $100.
 
Must be a southern thing! ;) Around here, they try to sell them on craigslist as 'almost new' for $100.

Oh, that happens here, too! Just got lucky that day. Scored two other guitars the same day, the same way- popping in on garage sales and if I didn't see any guitars, asking if they had any. Others were a 50's Kay flattop acoustic for $10, and an apparently home-built flattop acoustic that the woman's dad had bought in the Philippines in the 60's or so. The kay needed only a neck reset (and it was bolt-on, so that was easy,) but the home-built was in sad shape- Joe at Woodstock (GA) guitars was at an estimate of $200 and climbing when I stopped him. Too bad, too- it's a cool looking thing, just too badly damaged by age and neglect to be worth the money. Only out $5 for that one, too, and it will make a cool wall hanger- but little else, the neck will probably break off if I string it up and tune it to pitch.

Wonder what the Kay might be worth...
 
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