Reliccing

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I'm another who doesn't understand the whole distressing trend. (Pun intended) Why take a brand new guitar and beat the shit out of it. Oh wait - I know why. You can charge an outrageous amount of money for it afterward. I can understand what one poster said about using this technique to help blend in repairs. That makes perfect sense.

A buddy of mine got a chance to play one of the Franken-Strat relics. He said the pot was loose and the tremolo was rattling around. He put it down rather quickly as he was afraid it was going to fall apart in his hands. I'm (fairly) sure they're put together better than they appear but what's the point?

Most working musicians take care of their instruments. When I'm finished playing I wipe off the sweat marks and clean up the strings. I can't ever recall kicking any of my guitars across a wooden floor. I keep my guitars in their cases as well.

As mentioned previously, if you want a vintage guitar you can buy a new one and hold onto it for forty or-so years or go out and buy something used and abused. I don't care whos guitar they're replicating - it's just that. A replica and not the real thing. I also find it interesting that a used guitar looses value points for nicks and other signs of not being well taken care of and "distressed guitars cost more in relationship to the amount of damage they sustain at the shop. On the other side of the coin, they wouldn't be doing this unless buyer demand supported it.
 
It all comes down to an old quote: "No one has ever gone broke under estimating the intelligence of the American Public"
 
This make a living at it

I read about this guy, Bill Nash http://www.nashguitars.com/ in The Fretboard Journal http://www.fretboardjournal.com/. It seems he buys after market Fender parts distresses them and bolts everything together. He offers three levels of "aging" and/or "abuse". It was a very interesting article and he admits he is not a luthier and is very surprised that a basement hobby has turn into such a successful business.

I don't understand the buying brand new instrument that looks beat to hell myself,( I once joked with the guys at a local wal-mars/sam's ass that they should take all of their strats and teles[which are most often factory seconds or blems by the way], turn them into relics by slinging them across the blacktop outside and tripple the selling price)

But anyone interested in relic type guitars should look into this guys guitars. They all seem to be built of high quality parts and put together with care and with propper set-up in mind.
 
Light said:
The stupidest call I've ever taken at the shop was the guy who called, frantic, asking if we could touch up the nick he put in his relic'ed Custom Shop Strat.

I said no.



Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
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I recall seeing an on-line ad a while back that had a discounted 'blemished relic' guitar--I don't understand how that would even be possible!:rolleyes:
 
Anfontan said:
I recall seeing an on-line ad a while back that had a discounted 'blemished relic' guitar--I don't understand how that would even be possible!:rolleyes:
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Overspray?

I think it makes sense to relic as part of making precise replicas, like the ones made for individual artists whose iconic originals are beyond a refret or are unplayable. Even the "public replicas" like Lenny, Blackie, and the EVH Frankenstein are cool (but surely not 20k cool!).

One thing that's very funny to me: cuthroat, that Strat looks someone could pass it as a "bad" relic because it's poly. Not everything is from 1959 and nitro! I'm convinced you've been playing it for 36 years. Just goes to show that when the market is flooded with crap examples, the real ones can get lost in the shuffle.
 
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