CE100 Value and cosmetics

[Mingus]

Hey there! I'm headed to look at a 1981 CE100 (in blonde) tomorrow and I'm trying to figure out how much "checking" is going to be normal with an instrument like this. I realize it's poly, which means the checking looks more like cracks. I've seen some photos, but it's hard to really tell.

What's a fair value for an instrument like this? Owner says the action is razor low and does not need a neck reset, so i'm hopeful, but will heading over there to carefully inspect it tomorrow. Any thoughts appreciated!

 

[AcornHouse]

I don’t know about it being poly. I’d expect nitro at that period. Finish checking is purely dependent on how the guitar has been kept, with any real bad finish cracks happening if it has been exposed to dramatic shifts in temperature. The good news is that they are purely cosmetic.
I’d think price wise it would be in the $1500-2000 range.

 

[Mingus]

Thanks - yeah, that's about what I see on Reverb, but the checking is the wildcard for me. On a vintage nitro finish, checking can look more like wear....but i've seen some 70s fenders with poly finish where it just looks broken. It's a whole different look. I'm pretty sure this guitar is poly (based on the finish cracks that i COULD see on the back of the headstock), but i'd be happy to be proven wrong. Like I said, i'm going tomorrow to check it out, so we'll see. It's an hour away from me, so it's not an easy trip - I just want to be armed with info and, if I make an offer, I don't want to be insulting to the guy!

 

[Shakeylee]

I agree that 15-2 seems fair.
If it’s the one in hacketstown, I would just make sure that headstock crack is finish only , and that the bridge had room to go lower .

I have played a blonde CE-100 for a good 35 years .
If it’s in good shape, you will love it and so will your audience.

 

[Mingus]

I agree that 15-2 seems fair.
If it’s the one in hacketstown, I would just make sure that headstock crack is finish only , and that the bridge had room to go lower .

I have played a blonde CE-100 for a good 35 years .
If it’s in good shape, you will love it and so will your audience.

That's the one! He's asking $1700 (I think - can't find the facebook ad anymore and the reverb listing is higher) which seemed a little high and, if you saw the pictures, it's tough to tell how much checking is on the face. So we'll see. He said that the action is SUPER low (all relative, so i'll see when I get there), so i'm hoping the neck angle is good.

 

[Mingus]

@GAD - any thoughts on this one?

 

[AcornHouse]

Looks pretty clean overall. As long as the bridge screws aren’t bottomed out to get that super low action, I don’t see any red flags from these pics.

 

[GAD]

@GAD - any thoughts on this one?

PMd

 

[Mingus]

Looks pretty clean overall. As long as the bridge screws aren’t bottomed out to get that super low action, I don’t see any red flags from these pics.

Plenty more room to drop the bridge and it was as described! Plenty of bruises, but the frets were surprisingly unworn considering the age and the other playwear....and these are those super low and wide frets so i'm pretty sure you'd know if they had been even dressed. We made a deal and i'll take ownership of it next month. Excited!

 

[dpc915]

Send pics when you get !

 

[Mingus]

Picked it up on Friday! I'm pretty sure the neck has been reset at some point. The neck angle is REALLY good and the body joint is shifted a minuscule amount towards the treble side. There's also some touchup on the heel that I can see under the black light.

Really pleased with all of it. Great purchase! Only thing i'm not super sure of are the frets. Those low late 70s/early 80s Guild frets are something else! I had them on my S-300, but they were beat - so I refretted. These are actually in really great shape, so i'm going to hang with them for awhile before making any decisions.






And here she is with my T-100!

 

[GGJaguar]

Looks great, congrats!

 

[mushroom]

What a pair!
Awesome colour on the T100.

 

[jp]

Beautiful and welcome to the Capri Club! Interesting difference in neck woods from my '68. Mine also has a three-piece neck but is hog-maple-hog, while yours is maple-hog-maple. I also have the mini-humbuckers. I bet those HB-1s sound fantastic!

 

[The Guilds of Grot]

Looks a lot like mine!

 

[Mingus]

bet those HB-1s sound fantastic!

They really do! I kind of want them in a solidbody now as well!!

 

[GGJaguar]

I kind of want them in a solidbody now as well!

Time to start looking for an S-100 or M-75 from the 1970s.

 

[Prince of Darkness]

Time to start looking for an S-100 or M-75 from the 1970s.

Or a S-300, the styling's not to everyone's taste, but they are phenomenal guitars to play!

 

[Mingus]

I've got an S300, but it's got the stock Dimarzios! Cool in its own right....but not HB-1s!

 

[Bill G]

I've got an S300, but it's got the stock Dimarzios! Cool in its own right....but not HB-1s!

I wish I still had mine, it was a rock and roll monster!