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I don't get it....why buy aged guitar???

Tom Wittrock

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... why buy aged guitar???

The exact same reason as the answer to:
Why by a red guitar???

It's simple. :ganz
 

Sparta

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Aug 7, 2002
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693
I just sprung for True Historic '59 Reissue, aged. Didn't look "aged" in the photos, really, had a gorgeous top, but when I got it this afternoon, I just wasn't into it. The checking kinda freaked me out. It just looks ill-cared-for. Returning it tomorrow...bummed.

I think that could be a mistaken plan. Maybe try playing it a few hours. THs are different from the other ones. Louder acoustically in my experience twice now. Three times including another guy's guitar. Give it a try.

Writing this because when I got mine I thought it looked a little weird too, but now I literally do not notice it as being anything odd or uncomfortable.
 
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J T

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How much aging on new guitars was done before Tom Murphy made it popular?
 

CAGinLA

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I just sprung for True Historic '59 Reissue, aged. Didn't look "aged" in the photos, really, had a gorgeous top, but when I got it this afternoon, I just wasn't into it. The checking kinda freaked me out. It just looks ill-cared-for. Returning it tomorrow...bummed.

Funny, because I bought a Murphy aged TH58 last month and it's a thing of beauty - love, love, love it!!
 

JPP-1

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Jul 11, 2006
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1,336
It don't take 50 yrs to age one.

They look fake.

I won't pay more for fake age.

A fake aged guitar is not a vintage guitar, it is a phony vintage guitar.

Mojo can't be faked.

Fake is fake.

Pretending is pretence.

No one who knows is fooled by it.
Fake is fake.

Obviously I'm not a fan and my overstated opinion is more of a reaction to years of listening to silly justifications by fakers and pretenders and is only my opinion. Truth is they ain't forced on me and as long as there is a choice, what's the harm? It does feel good to poke the bear though.


Oh, I almost forgot, FAKE IS FAKE:hee:spabout

I must respectfully disagree.

Some of the recent aged Les Paul's especially the CC's look and feel like an old guitar. Hat's off to Gibson. Unlike some of over-the-top relic'd Fenders, most of the LPs seem tastefully done. Take an old Les Paul and one of these aged Les Pauls and you'll see how close

Mojo can't be faked because mojo like the Easter Bunny and Ghost's isn't real.

Pretending can be pretence but some people like aged guitars because they appreciate the aesthetics and/or the broken-in feel. How is that pretentious. How is buying an old worn guitar different than buying a new worn guitar. Is "mojo" transferable? The person buying the old guitar had no hand in the aging. Melvyn Franks bought the Peter Green / Gary Moore Burst. Those Green fans not fortunate enough to own the Peter Green burst may have bought the Gibson's Collector Choice #1. Does that make them pretentious?
 

Tom Wittrock

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How much aging on new guitars was done before Tom Murphy made it popular?

30-40 years? :hmm

I personally watched it being done in 1972.


And was Cunetto before Murphy, in making aging popular? :hmm
 

El Gringo

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30-40 years? :hmm

I personally watched it being done in 1972.


And was Cunetto before Murphy, in making aging popular? :hmm
Can you tell me a little about Cunetto work with Fender ? I have heard and seen the Cunetto aged Fender Custom Shop guitars but that is all I know about them .
 

ewhip17

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Sep 21, 2016
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I found a guitar I fell in love with. It rings like a bell. Plays as well as any guitar I've ever owned. Sounds great. Perfect weight. Love the color. It just happened to be aged. It also happened to be on sale. Now I own it. The "in house" aging looks completely fake, even to my not-really-experienced-or-interested-in-vintage eyes...... but I don't really care when I'm playing the thing. But I'm simple minded.
 

AA00475Bassman

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Apr 26, 2016
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They were sent to Cunetto for the work of aging they were very nice guitars I bought a 60 & 57 in 1997 I really liked the 60 . The 57 went in the closet one day I opened the case to find 2 worm holes in the body a friend knew someone who collected guitars with worm holes he bought the guitar . The peg head on the Cunettos had custom shop stamp different the the later relics I think the later ones were etched not sure how it was done never really looked at the post Cunetto relic IMO these guitars had sub standard finish & just did not have the over all vibe of a Cunetto . A friend i played with had a 96 Telecaster if you held the back of the body to a black light you could see clearly a 50's pinup girl under the finish . My 57 did not have this i was told only the very early ones had this feature . The hardware received very tasteful aging IMO . Im sure members on this Forum collect Cunetto's and will chime in .
 
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Arch D. Bunker

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one day I opened the case to find 2 worm holes in the body a friend new someone who collected guitars with worm holes he bought the guitar.

Just when you think you've seen it all...:bigal

I guess that guy's dream guitar must be the 'termite burst' found on Hawaii. :##
 

El Gringo

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They were sent to Cunetto for the work of aging they were very nice guitars I bought a 60 & 57 in 1997 I really liked the 60 . The 57 went in the closet one day I opened the case to find 2 worm holes in the body a friend new someone who collected guitars with worm holes he bought the guitar . The peg head on the Cunettos had custom shop stamp different the the later relics I think the later ones were etched not sure how it was done never really looked at the post Cunetto relic IMO these guitars had sub standard finish & just did not have the over all vibe of a Cunetto . A friend i played with had a 96 Telecaster if you held the back of the body to a black light you could see clearly a 50's pinup girl under the finish . My 57 did not have this i was told only the very early ones had this feature . The hardware received very tasteful aging IMO . Im sure members on this Forum collect Cunetto's and will chime in .
Thank you for the info
 

Tom Wittrock

Les Paul Forum Co-Owner
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Aug 2, 2001
Messages
42,567
How much aging on new guitars was done before Tom Murphy made it popular?

30-40 years? :hmm

I personally watched it being done in 1972.

I should have read closer, as the work I watched was not done to new guitars, either at the factory or right after they were built.

But, artificially aging guitars in general has been going on at least as long as I stated.
 

Tom Wittrock

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42,567
Can you tell me a little about Cunetto work with Fender ? I have heard and seen the Cunetto aged Fender Custom Shop guitars but that is all I know about them .

Vince did sub-contract work for Fender in a shop he built in Bolivar Missouri. He used to check his colors and aging by comparing them to Strats and Teles in my collection.
I wish I could remember the dates of this. He stopped in 1999, but I do not recall when he started. :hmm
 

badmisfortune

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Dec 11, 2011
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276
... why buy aged guitar???

The exact same reason as the answer to:
Why by a red guitar???

It's simple. :ganz

This, exactly.

It always amazes me when anyone attempts to question (or worse, challenge) someone else's preferences.

It's your money; buy what you like and I will too.

What about that is hard to understand or "get"?
 

djcmusician

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Apr 29, 2015
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I had Feb 97 and Jan 98 Cunetto Relics Strats. Both great guitars. The Fender Custom Shop Logo was embossed in the back of the headstock. When I bought the '97 I was in the market for a higher end Fender Strat as I had a 95 Am Std at the time. I was not looking to buy a relic. I repeat, I was not looking to buy a relic - and I thought the idea was kinda silly.

I ended up buying an Olympic white relic "60s" strat with Rosewood board and light birdseye maple neck. I really didn't like the look of the guitar. It flat out killed every other strat they had in the store that day. So I did not buy that guitar with my eyes. I didn't want to like it. I didn't even want to buy it. But the minute I strummed it acoustically, I knew.

I then bought a sunburst relic 60s strat in Jan 98 really as a backup/sister guitar to the first one. It had a bit more SRV growl than the white one and they both were fantastic guitars. I have never owned another guitar with relicing done to it. Not really into it anymore.

My Historics are a 1998 R8 and a 2010 BB7 with the VOS finish. So maybe the BB7 would sorta qualify as a relic, but not really in my eyes. it does look great though.

Based on what I am seeing from NAMM, etc, the relic fad/trend is dying out.
 

El Gringo

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Vince did sub-contract work for Fender in a shop he built in Bolivar Missouri. He used to check his colors and aging by comparing them to Strats and Teles in my collection.
I wish I could remember the dates of this. He stopped in 1999, but I do not recall when he started. :hmm
I have seen them (Fender Custom Shop Mary Kay Strats) when the have come thru Lark Street Music and the thing that was odd to me was the Custom shop Logo on the back of the headstock was still imprinted in the maple but the ink was removed .So I see it on one Cunetto it's like no biggie ,but then I see the same thing on subsequent Cunetto's and it made me wonder what that was about ?
 

Uncle Gary

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I just bought a Gibson Les Paul True Historic and I'm happy to be the one who'll age it as time goes. I'm not sure I understand the idea of buying a guitar massacred by someone else though :hmm

Well, for one thing, time has already gone by for me (I'm 64). I won't live long enough to make a new guitar look 50 years old just by playing it.

On the other hand, I don't get the negative reaction to "aged" guitars. I just look at it as another finish option. There are plenty of "new" looking ones to choose from, after all, if that's what floats your boat.

Me, I like some new looking guitars, I like some aged guitars. It depends on the guitar in question. In my case, I don't buy into the "mojo" factor of aged guitars, and I'm not looking to "buy" credibility. In fact, if I want to see some weather-beaten relic, I need only look in a mirror.
 

Uncle Gary

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I should have read closer, as the work I watched was not done to new guitars, either at the factory or right after they were built.

But, artificially aging guitars in general has been going on at least as long as I stated.

I suspect that "antiqued" finishes on violins started right after Antonio Stradivari died, and there were no more new "Strads".
 
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