Opinions, please

[chazmo]

Good luck, WC!

 

[WC_Guitarist]

I like to say "nothing dies harder than a bad idea," and me, buying an expensive vintage guitar... It's a bad idea! LOL! I'm turning my attention now to a new solid wood dread. I will be much happier with one of those in the long run.

 

[banjomike]

I'm really grateful to everyone who took the time to reply to this thread. I've had a good night's to sleep on it, and my first cup of coffee, and once again have come to the conclusion that for the money I am willing to spend, I want a new guitar with a warranty and OHSC.

I'm willing to gamble a few *hundred* dollars on a used one, and if it turns out to have some fatal flaw I could not suss out, I can play it that way for a while until it totally fails, and then figure out what to do with it (part it out? hang it on the wall as art? recycle?).

For a few *thousand* dollars, I want everything to be original, and give me trouble free playing, no weird smells, no repaired cracks opening up and no neck resets in my lifetime. Which means that beautiful maple D60 is probably going to remain wall art at MFGs for the foreseeable future, or go home with someone who is a lot more knowledgeable than I am, braver and with more $$$. Unless the price drops significantly, and I don't think that will happen. If by some miracle the price does go way down, I can reconsider.

What a learning opportunity this has been. Between this thread and Jared, BeeCee, and Steverok's recent threads about their own guitar buying experiences, I'm completely convinced I am not a candidate for a vintage guitar. Luckily, there are plenty of new ones. I suspect I will end up rejecting the all mahogany D-20 and the rosewood D-55, and it will come down to a Martin D-18 vs a Guild D-40. They are rough equivalents in quality, style, price, etc. I know I can find one (or more) of each locally so I can play them in person.

Thanks again for your opinions. Very helpful!

It can really help if you learn how to really look at pictures of a guitar carefully and look for cracks and/or other signs of damage when thinking of buying a guitar over the net.
I blow a picture up as far as it can go, and I'll study it forever, looking for anything that resembles a faint scratch to something that appears to be just a little hinky and not right. If I find something, I'll ask the seller about it, and I won't accept anything but a specific answer to the question. If the photos are fuzzy, or lack good contrast, I ask for better pictures.

But not all cracks are serious. And not all photos will show a crack that is. So if possible, I'll ask for a reasonable period of time to inspect a guitar and to play it a little before the deal is done. Usually no more than 2 days should enough time. And if I decide to send it back, I expect to pay the cost of shipping it back, unless the seller will agree to sharing some of the cost.

And sometimes, I will accept the guitar even if it has some cracks or something because the guitar still sounds terrific and the crack doesn't harm its durability much at all. If I have doubts, I will take the guitar to someone who's a good repairman for a look-over and get some opinion other than my own on the guitar.

If I think I should pass one up, I do, and don't look back afterward. Most of all, I try hard to avoid impulsiveness.

None of the above means I'm any good at doing all the right stuff though. I have at least 2 basket cases that had serious problems when the arrived, and still have them, but I love 'em anyway and can't bear the thought of parting with them.

There's one in particular; I got it for next to free, and it looked swell when it came, over 20 years ago, but ever since then, it's been such a money pit I can't even remember how much money I've spent on it. Fixing one problem makes another noticeable. I must have a month's worth of time working on it myself, and at least 4 good luthiers have worked on it too.
It's the little girl who was very very good when she's good, and horrid when she is not good. But the last trip to the repair shop seems to have done the trick, as for about 2 years now, it's been stable and a grand guitar. Always the first to be picked up when a friend comes over for some pickin' time.

It's a big blonde, and I've taken to calling it Marilyn. She's still flashy and glamorous, but shows a lot of old battle scars from all that work.
it's kind of like the ornery willful girlfriend a guy just can't give up.