some advices on a 59

Discussion of vintage Jazzmasters, Jaguars, Bass VIs, Electric XIIs and any other offset-waist instruments.
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fredweb
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some advices on a 59

Post by fredweb » Mon Mar 25, 2019 6:23 am

Hey guys!
I finally found a great anodized guard 59 that feel amazing and sounds great.
They have it a t a very well renowned shop, they showed me the inside and all matches and is fully original.

They are asking 9500, that i see is the average on the market.
I have only one big doubt: the frets.
The have still life , and i love how being low make the neck so easy to navigate, but not sure if i should ask for a refret, that they were anyway planning to do.
I tried it for 2 hours and just loved how it feels, but i dont know how much a refret will cost me in the future and how will impact on the value of the guitar.

What would you do? ask for the refret or wait?
and what about the price? i have the cash, and i trust this shop better than buying from internet ( even if i know i can save 1500$)

Thanks for any help :)

Federico

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Axolotl
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Re: some advices on a 59

Post by Axolotl » Mon Mar 25, 2019 8:28 am

A pro refret should cost you somewhere between 200 - 350 dollars depending on location. If it was mine, most likely I'd refret it. I refretted all my vintage guitars, and never looked back. They came to me with worn frets, and Fender vintage frets are small and low to begin with.

On a guitar that expensive and original I'd go with vintage sized frets or something just a bit bigger. I'd ask the luthier if he can pull the frets carefully enough that he doesn't need to sand the fretboard over.

A refret shouldn't decrease the value of a guitar IMHO.

I'm sure that guitar plays amazing but if the shop was planning for a refret maybe it does need it. A refret, when needed, makes a HUGE difference in playability. Good luck and show us some pics when you get it!

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Re: some advices on a 59

Post by bterry » Mon Mar 25, 2019 8:33 am

my .02 cents...

If the guitar is in original mint or near-mint condition, don’t refret it, ever.

If it’s anything less than that, refretting it with vintage-sized fret wire won’t hurt the value more than a few hundred dollars. You have to decide if the frets need changing now or later, but, if the frets still play well and they don’t bother you I would wait if it were me.

For $9500, I would expect original frets - $8500/$9k with new frets, assuming the guitar is in nice, original condition w/ case...

That said, you’ve played it and if it’s a great Jazzmaster of course you’ll have do decide if it’s worth it, either way :)

Good luck!

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Re: some advices on a 59

Post by fredweb » Mon Mar 25, 2019 11:59 am

Thanks for your thoughts.

I might be a weird one since i kind like the vintage thin and small fret. I have a wildwood 10 strat with 6105 frets and once i tried vintage stuff i hate to play it.

Im really thorn here about the refret, when they let me try it they told me ahead that the guitar need a refret, so i was expecting a very bad playability, but instead it was a really smooth ride.

Any way they told me they accept offers but in the end they didnt move from 9500 , with or without the refret.

Great people though , so lets see if they will help me deciding.

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Re: some advices on a 59

Post by fredweb » Mon Mar 25, 2019 12:01 pm

Also , i forgot to mention, no buzzing or problem bending, is there any test i should do to see how bad a refret is needed?

the guitar estetically is nice but is not mint, i dont have any images yet.

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Re: some advices on a 59

Post by MT » Mon Mar 25, 2019 2:17 pm

I got my ‘58 refretted and it was the best thing I could have done. Plays and sounds so much better now. Got it done with the same sized fret wire as originally used. If all you want it for is to look at or as an “investment” then leave it as it is. If you want it to play, then get it in the best playing condition you can.

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Re: some advices on a 59

Post by timtam » Mon Mar 25, 2019 5:12 pm

Axolotl wrote:
Mon Mar 25, 2019 8:28 am
I'd ask the luthier if he can pull the frets carefully enough that he doesn't need to sand the fretboard over.
If the board itself is worn I think it's worth considering having it sanded / re-radiused if it's being refretted. Also, it's hard to pull frets for a refret without any board damage, and sanding can smooth some of it ... as long as the luthier isn't thinking 'I'm going to sand this board anyway so I don't have to be too careful when ripping out the frets'. They have to be thinking 'I want the absolute minimum board damage.'

You want to talk to them about how they will do it, and what results to expect.
"I just knew I wanted to make a sound that was the complete opposite of a Les Paul, and that’s pretty much a Jaguar." Rowland S. Howard.

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Re: some advices on a 59

Post by 601210 » Mon Mar 25, 2019 10:26 pm

If you like how the neck plays as it is, I don't see why you need a refret.

Did you mean that they were going to refret it anyways for free?

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Re: some advices on a 59

Post by fredweb » Tue Mar 26, 2019 6:08 am

yes they let me try the guitar but they said they were going to refret it before sellin.
It wasnt supposed to be out yet. So maybe i should take advantage of that?

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Re: some advices on a 59

Post by señormisterioso » Tue Mar 26, 2019 6:19 am

Is this the one you found in New York?
Just remember you would pay about $400 in taxes on top of your purchase. Maybe worth negotiating a bit down?

Refret is great if the guitar badly needs it. From the guitars i own, the ones I gravitate for my work everyday all were refretted at some point.

That said, a refret is going to change the way the guitar feels. You want to make sure the type of frets and set up is the way you like it. Who does the work matters. If you like how it feels right now, understand that it will be different once its refretted (maybe even better? impossible to tell)

Good luck!

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Re: some advices on a 59

Post by fredweb » Tue Mar 26, 2019 6:29 am

Yeah i have it on hold and the shop is one of the best in ny.

they wont negotiate too much so i was thinking to take at least the refret. i think they want 9800 taxesincluded in the end.

Lot of money, but i love the guitar..

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Re: some advices on a 59

Post by bterry » Tue Mar 26, 2019 8:26 am

what condition is the guitar in? Apologies if you mentioned it and I missed it, but, $9500 is a good price for a ‘59 in at least excellent condition, not anything less than that.

It’s an important detail b/c if it’s less than excellent and it gets a refret, you’re talking about an $8k guitar, now...

If you love it and will keep it and play it maybe it doesn’t matter to you, but just a head’s up ;)

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Re: some advices on a 59

Post by gringopig » Tue Mar 26, 2019 8:30 am

Re-fret!

Have on qualms about re-fretting even a mint guitar. A mint guitar that doesn't play well or sound good because the frets are too low is worthless.

The guitar's value will not be affected one bit by having it done expertly and may indeed be a selling point. I have bought 3 vintage Jaguars and a Jazzmaster and had 2 of them re-fretted and it brought them back to life. I got Little Bob in Edinburgh to do it as I know he is good and he put on Vintage width but a tiny bit taller. Think it was Jescar fretwire he used and I wanted a vintage look so they were almost identical but slightly taller.

I hated the rubbing off the tips of my fingers on the board when bending below the 5th fret. The other Jag and a Jazzmaster have the original frets on but they have no wear are fine as they are for now.

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Re: some advices on a 59

Post by fredweb » Tue Mar 26, 2019 12:22 pm

The shop is retrofret, i think they are great, so i am ok with them doing the refret.

Guitar itself is not in mint condition, it looks good but not as good as the one in sale now at emerald city guitars, that is above 10k.

I am waiting them to do the refret and then i will be the first to try it, lets see !

THANKS everyone for the thougths!

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Re: some advices on a 59

Post by bterry » Tue Mar 26, 2019 1:09 pm

Retrofret is a great shop, no worries, there...

The one at ECG has a refret, I know that guitar. FYI my guess is that guitar will end up selling for around $8500.

If you like the way it plays and are going to pay $9800 I would recommend waiting to refret it as well. That way, you already have a guitar you know you like the feel and sound of, and, if you do decide to sell it’s still 100% original.

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