Is vintage worth the price?

Discussion of vintage Jazzmasters, Jaguars, Bass VIs, Electric XIIs and any other offset-waist instruments.
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46346
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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by 46346 » Mon Feb 06, 2012 12:25 pm

pocaloc wrote:
46346 wrote:
pocaloc wrote:The one I'm looking at is a re-finish in Natural from the original sunburst. It has the original
case in very good condition, and the guitar is in really good looking and functioning condition. It's about a $1000 less in price because of the re-finish at $1950. Fair price?

P.S. I'm looking more for mojo . And maybe it increasing or keeping value. That 3D sound description sounds like what I want to hear.

the mofo factor... you won't know until you play it. if the back of the neck looks well played, there's a good chance that the thing has soaked up some good vibes, in both a physical and maybe a spiritual sense. i was checking out new jags, and went with an old '65, it's the best jag i've played yet. vintage refin jags are a good value because they can be had for only $100-400 more than AVRI. of course, vintage Strats and Teles are way more expensive than their reissues, and even Jazzmaster refin's fetch quite a bit more than AVRI. just make sure the frets are good, etc.
Well, I've decided to give it a try. It's worth $200-300 dollars to see for myself. At the very least it will hold it's value and I can get out of it if I need to. I really think I prefer the natural to sunburst, and the re-finish is going to allow me to get into vintage. An all original (other than the finish) 1963 jaguar.
rad!! seems that you are like me and get inspired by the history of the original Fender guitars. there really is something about them! and it makes me want to play them more often. my parents met in fullerton, and my older sister was born the year my jazzmaster was built. i was born years later when they all moved to pennsylvania... so i'm fascinated with the era and the old fender factory. yeah... for a while i wondered if i would ever be able to afford a Leo-era fender - thankfully the spiralling prices have taken a break long enough for me to catch up. i spent a little tweaking time and no money getting my old Jag up to gigging speed (i paid about the same as you). and eventually spent a few hundred on refretting my '59 jazzmaster exactly how i wanted, even though it was still quite playable as it was, i loved the sound and vibration of the neck, but wanted to be able to dig in more on the left hand. these are wonderful classic guitars, but since they are both refins i never worry about experimenting with them or playing a bit rough. enjoy!! let's see some pics - '63 is my birth year so i'm a bit envious!
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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by pocaloc » Mon Feb 06, 2012 8:30 pm

Yeah, all that history appeals to me. The fact that it was built while Leo Fender was at the helm in Fullerton is just cool.

I'll post pics eventually...I have to buy it on layaway. >:(

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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by arkivel » Mon Feb 06, 2012 10:29 pm

If you happened to buy a Fender offset in the 80's when they had very little value and sold one today you probably made a lot of money. If you are buying one today in this market it's difficult to say whether they will continue to appreciate or not. There is no guarantee that these guitars will continue to appreciate at the current rate forever.

Take a look at the value of vintage Strats. They started to be priced out of the hands of players in the 90s and seemed to reach their peak in the previous decade. Lately however their values have been declining.

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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by jim93 » Mon Feb 06, 2012 11:00 pm

arkivel wrote:If you happened to buy a Fender offset in the 80's when they had very little value and sold one today you probably made a lot of money. If you are buying one today in this market it's difficult to say whether they will continue to appreciate or not. There is no guarantee that these guitars will continue to appreciate at the current rate forever.

Take a look at the value of vintage Strats. They started to be priced out of the hands of players in the 90s and seemed to reach their peak in the previous decade. Lately however their values have been declining.
This. Commodities come with no guarantees on appreciation.

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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by tonewoods » Tue Feb 07, 2012 9:38 am

jim93 wrote:Commodities come with no guarantees on appreciation.
I dunno...
It's pretty well guaranteed that I will appreciate them.... ;)

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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by pocaloc » Tue Feb 07, 2012 9:41 am

Well, I think I would've appreciated it, but Dave's guitar shop called me and said someone else was interested. I hadn't mailed my trade in to them, so I just said let it go if someone wants to buy it. I was going back and forth because I didn't want to take a loss on my trade in. I guess I'll sell my guitar and just start hunting with cash in hand and maybe it will still be there.

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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by bterry » Tue Feb 07, 2012 10:52 am

In terms of vintage value and investment there are really two variables, I think: value and desire.

Currently the value of vintage instruments has declined...that's because no one has any money or they are afraid to spend the money they do have. Does this mean the desire to own has decreased? I think the answer is a definite no.

Therefore, in today's circumstance, if you buy a vintage instrument that is highly desired but valued lower than it's desire seems reasonable, you have an investment. If not, make sure you have a great playing/sounding guitar or don't care about selling it for a profit.

Either way it's best to buy a great guitar and play it :)

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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by jm707 » Tue Feb 07, 2012 1:39 pm

Couldn't agree more, and when they aren't being played they are displayed on the wall as fine works of art. The desire factor is often taken for granted.

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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by 46346 » Tue Feb 07, 2012 5:57 pm

pocaloc wrote:Well, I think I would've appreciated it, but Dave's guitar shop called me and said someone else was interested. I hadn't mailed my trade in to them, so I just said let it go if someone wants to buy it. I was going back and forth because I didn't want to take a loss on my trade in. I guess I'll sell my guitar and just start hunting with cash in hand and maybe it will still be there.

good plan to not hurry... there seem to be some good jaguar deals around these days. check out these:

http://www.offsetguitars.com/forums/vie ... 18&t=54741" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

viewtopic.php?f=18&t=54767


out here in SoCal, even...
Cat Museum, ACME, Malcolm Mooney, Dream Apes, The Cooling Time, Kind Hearts and Coronets, Quarks

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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by pocaloc » Tue Feb 07, 2012 6:06 pm

46346 wrote:
pocaloc wrote:Well, I think I would've appreciated it, but Dave's guitar shop called me and said someone else was interested. I hadn't mailed my trade in to them, so I just said let it go if someone wants to buy it. I was going back and forth because I didn't want to take a loss on my trade in. I guess I'll sell my guitar and just start hunting with cash in hand and maybe it will still be there.

good plan to not hurry... there seem to be some good jaguar deals around these days. check out these:

viewtopic.php?f=18&t=54741

viewtopic.php?f=18&t=54767


out here in SoCal, even...

Wow, that is a great deal. Daves wanted $2000 for the re-finished '63 in much worse shape. I must learn patience.

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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by Jaguar018 » Tue Feb 07, 2012 6:59 pm

pocaloc wrote:Wow, that is a great deal. Daves wanted $2000 for the re-finished '63 in much worse shape. I must learn patience.
The retail market adds a few hundred to the price. The last four(!) refin'd Jags I sold went from $1,300-1,600--with different bits of original and non-original parts. If you hang out here or TGP long enough a cool one will surely pop up. Also keep in mind that 62-64 Jags will be that much more pricey with the coveted Pre-CBS thing.

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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by Cowboystitching » Wed Feb 08, 2012 1:44 am

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I'm really new here so this may be a little forward, but do you mind if I use this quote as my signature?

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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by jass » Fri Feb 10, 2012 4:01 pm

I believe they're worth it in some cases... Especially when you can't really find anything comparable that's modern.

For example, I bought a vintage starcaster because there's nothing like it in the market. I have two teles with Lollar's regals, but even though they come close, they aren't really the same thing.

With jags and jazzies, though... Well, though I might not be inclined to agree, I'll give you the final word ;D
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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by Badger809 » Fri Feb 10, 2012 8:15 pm

I own two pre-1970 electrics and although I didn't want to believe it for a long time... They are the best- sounding guitars I own. I like all of my guitars but there is an... "electricity" (pun intended) to the sound of these guitars that just cannot be reproduced. I'm not saying all vintage guitars are great. But I believe that great vintage guitars are better than almost all of the newer stuff.

On the other hand, put a vintage guitar in my hands and a brand new axe in the hands of Derek Trucks and I will lose every time

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Re: Is vintage worth the price?

Post by XF6YH » Sat Feb 11, 2012 3:29 pm

I agree, somewhat, with vintage guitars being worth extra (though I still can't wrap my head around why a CAR Fender Jazzmaster should be thousands upon thousands of dollars). My first Jazzmaster that I owned was one of the new Fender Blacktop Jazzmasters, and it sounded good for what it was, but it never did sound like a "true" Jazzmaster to me, and no where close to a vintage one. There was this sinking feeling I got when ever I played it that I wasn't playing the real thing. Don't get a reissue, if you can, you should definitely save up. I'd rather Vintage Mustang personally rather than a reissue Jazzmaster, and I don't even like Mustangs that much.
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