ridiculous Fender "Roadworn" clip

Walter Broes

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hansmoust said:
I surely can appreciate the looks of a well worn instrument but I could not scratch up a guitar just because it looks cool.
Same here - my main Guild is all dings and wear, but none of it was "on purpose"!
That looks like a very nice tele Hans!
 

krysh

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The Guilds of Grot said:
Should have gotten Krysh to do the promo! :wink: :mrgreen: :lol:
:mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
would be cool kurt, but it's in His hands. :)

I don't care about this relic-thing, too.
my 2 cts: a guitar has to feel and sound good - maybe has to have a nice look, but definately should make me play and sound better.
if a relic does this - ok. if not it'll be me who will do it on my instruments.
but paying more money for a new relic ? no way.
I only buy used instruments - they are cheaper and already sound better.
 

tele4tone

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I only buy used instruments - they are cheaper and already sound better.[/quote]


That is a golden statement I try to impart to my bandmates. They don't listen though.

My tele's and Starfire IV have come by their "character marks" in real time. Honestly, my California Fat Telecaster's metal parts started corroding about 6 months into ownership (I always wipe my stuff down). Why buy something that looks old, but has no story. I wish I knew something about the guy that played my Starfire IV so much that he dug his nails into the fretboard and wore the frets completely down before it was sold to a pawn shop.

Why fake it.
 

chazmo

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Well, to be the lone voice in the house...

Actually, this relic'd stuff doesn't appeal to me either, but if you were to ask classical instrument luthiers (violins, violas, etc.)... this is what people buy. Relic'd classical strings are the norm these days.

My own story goes back to my youth. I remember many years ago my parents put exposed wooden beams on the ceiling of our dining room. The guys used chains and hammers to relic the beams before hanging them. The point was to arrive at an old farmhouse look, I think. By my estimation, it did look cool, and of course it was a purely cosmetic thing. Which brings me back to the Fender relics... I guess I take the "whatever works for you" strategy. The hard part to swallow is that these are *good* instruments, not First Act junk... I know over in the Ibanez collectors world, everyone cringes when someone takes a round file to a fretboard to scallop out a fingerboard or puts non-original electronics in a '70s axe... This is the opposite issue -- people want to preserve the past *not* relic it. :)

Two sides of the same coin, I guess.
 

fronobulax

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<VEER=On>
Chazmo said:
Relic'd classical strings are the norm these days.
Really? What part of the market? Thanks.
Chazmo said:
not First Act junk....
Tell me more. I'd never heard of First Act until they made a bass for Drive By Truckers that used DarkStars. As a custom instrument it looked to me like it might fill the niche that a new Starfire bass would fill (when such a thing is available again, he said hopefully) but quality never came up.
<VEER=Off>
 

chazmo

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fronobulax said:
<VEER=On>
Chazmo said:
Relic'd classical strings are the norm these days.
Really? What part of the market? Thanks.
Chazmo said:
not First Act junk....
Tell me more. I'd never heard of First Act until they made a bass for Drive By Truckers that used DarkStars. As a custom instrument it looked to me like it might fill the niche that a new Starfire bass would fill (when such a thing is available again, he said hopefully) but quality never came up.
<VEER=Off>
Hi Frono... My knowledge of this is based on a discussion I've had with a couple of would-be luthiers in the symphony I play in. This is what they tell me luthiers are doing these days as they can sell their new violins, violas, cellos, and basses for more money if they're relic'd. I'll see if I can scrounge up more details and maybe some examples.

Sorry, I was pretty hard on the First Act stuff. My son picked one of these up (an electric with a built-in speaker) for $50 in Wal-Mart, unbeknownst to me, and I've proceeded to watch the thing disintegrate. A serious piece of junk, and not worth the $50 he paid. Turning this into a relic (or firewoood) would disturb no one. Right now, the neck and headstock of it are something of a spear in our front yard, which my kids use in the woods. Multi-purpose!!!
 

fronobulax

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Chazmo said:
Hi Frono... My knowledge of this is based on a discussion I've had with a couple of would-be luthiers in the symphony I play in. This is what they tell me luthiers are doing these days as they can sell their new violins, violas, cellos, and basses for more money if they're relic'd. I'll see if I can scrounge up more details and maybe some examples.

Thanks. The market I know best is the school children upgrading from starters and relic'd doesn't seem to be a selling point there. The pros and semi-pros I talk to have naturally relic'd instruments and aren't in the market for new ones.

No problem with First Act. I have no experience with them and their custom shop seemed to be reasonable. But it is hard to take any $50 guitar seriously, at least from the perspective of Guild ownership.
 

tele4tone

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I think what most of this spawns from is wanting to look like you payed you dues to play the blues. I remember growing up playing trumpet in school thinking the nicest and "best" horns were new and shiny. Somewhere in life we have all seen our idols playing some worn in piece of gear and we think.... I got to get one of those. For me... I thought Winton Marsalis' horn was cool. So half of our section went and Scratched all of the lacquer off of our horn to look like a jazzer. It wasn't until I purchased a true vintage horn that I understood the difference. Look is nothing.

Sand away fender... It's still a $400 tele to me
 

guitarslinger

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That '59 of Hans' is so totally bitchin'. I think I'm going to build one just like it if Hans would send me pictures so I can duplicate all the scratches and dings. :wink:
 

taabru45

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Kinda like a youngster wanting to look like Keith Richards......to attract girls :lol: :lol: Steffan
 

capnjuan

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That pre-rusted bridge is especially appealing ... why wait 25 years to replace it? :wink:
 

capnjuan

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taabru45 said:
I wonder if you have to pay extra for new old strings...Steffan
Hi Steffan ... the canal behind my house is brackish ... about 50% seawater ... very salty. Send me your old strings - or new ones if you feel strongly enough - and I'll suspend them in there for a day or two ... turn them green as lima beans and oh so retro! We'll corner the market in dead, corroded strings ... make a killing ... maybe we can get on Oprah ...?
 

taabru45

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May be a good idea in the making here. Do you think we could patent the sound...you know, like Harley did......or tried to do........ :idea: Steffan
 

capnjuan

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taabru45 said:
May be a good idea in the making here. Do you think we could patent the sound...you know, like Harley did......or tried to do........ :idea: Steffan
We could ... if they have any :wink: . We could make a YouTube demo vid with a guitar plainly strung with 'reliced' hmm ... spelling here is an issue .. that looks like re-liced ... could go Anglais as in relicqued? anyway the vid could be over-dubbed with by someone who actually knew what they were doing with healthy strings ... !
 

krysh

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meanwhile I read some great reviews of the basses in a german bass forum, they seem to sound and feel really good.
did one of you ever check the feeling of the guitars?
what if - as they advertise - these instruments really give you the feeeeling of playing a real relic?
what if they make you play better, be more creative?
why don't they sell then instruments with the same feeling without these computer generated relic look for even at a cheaper price?
is it only me who believes the only left over of leo is the name and none of the ones in charge ever cares about the instruments anymore?
 
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