Let's see your guitar and bass gear!

Ian F wrote: Unless you're me... "Buy High; Sell Low" seems to be my motto...

Huh. I'm more of a "Buy high, illogically hang onto forever" kinda guy, myself.

So, I bought my wife an acoustic guitar for xmas last year, and now my old one moved to the dingy basement. No guitar deserves that treatment. So I'm going to sell it, but I don't have any idea on what I should ask for it.

It's an Applause AE-32. I'm guessing its not worth much but I can't figure out if it's a $100 or $250 guitar. I did have the plastic back and the top reglued at one point by the local guitar store. A portion had a gap and they just fixed the affected area.

That looks like a $100 guitar to me. More if it is a hardshell (not chipboard) case.

And ebay agrees.

At $100, I should be able to trade-ish it for a Squier Strat. What's the ranking for the Squiers? Bullet is the low end, Affinity is the highest? I would love an old Squier HM3, but I'm not sure if I could find one locally.

RossD wrote: At $100, I should be able to trade-ish it for a Squier Strat. What's the ranking for the Squiers? Bullet is the low end, Affinity is the highest? I would love an old Squier HM3, but I'm not sure if I could find one locally.

People on TDPRI, etc., go on and on about how great the new Squiers are, to the point where I was convinced I needed a Squier Tele. Went and played one, and it was the biggest hunk of E36 M3 I've ever held in my hands. I'd be looking at a Fender MIM if that's your thing...or older japanese guitars, as that's my thing I've got a 73(?) Aria SG that I picked up on ebay for around $300 with upgraded pots and bridge. Threw a $45 setup at it, and it's the bee's berkeleying knees!!!

Looks pretty much exactly like this. Complete with scratches/checking, etc.

While I'm only a bass player, I have a $100 Squire Tele and it plays nice, has tons of sustain, the hardware all feels nice, and it sounds pretty good too. I have a hunch that a set of good pickups would really wake it up.

I imagine it's like most mass-produced items that have a human element to their construction - no 2 are alike, so find one you're happy with rather than buying sight-unseen.

poopshovel wrote:

Ian F wrote: Unless you're me... "Buy High; Sell Low" seems to be my motto...

Huh. I'm more of a "Buy high, illogically hang onto forever" kinda guy, myself.

That's how I used to be... and how I had 22 guitars at one point, including 5 Les Pauls, 2 Strats, a PRS and a hoard of others... I'm not sure it's as easy today... I'm like to try-before-buying kinda guy and with the demise of the small indie music store I just don't see as much interesting stuff in the big stores like Sam Ash and Guitar Center. I used to love hanging out in the local shop... B.S.ing... trying/buying/trading stuff... the good ole days...

I'm a "somehow just seem to accumulate and never let go" kinda guy, myself. Which is how you find yourself losing track of exactly what you've picked up over the years.

Which is how I find myself with six or seven Gretsch hollowbodies (I've honestly lost count), two Gretsch solidbodies, an acoustic, two basses, a ukulele and almost surely at least one or two I'm forgetting.

The worst part is, that's after turning down at least two.

Tim Baxter wrote: I'm a "somehow just seem to accumulate and never let go" kinda guy, myself. Which is how you find yourself losing track of exactly what you've picked up over the years. Which is how I find myself with six or seven Gretsch hollowbodies (I've honestly lost count), two Gretsch solidbodies, an acoustic, two basses, a ukulele and almost surely at least one or two I'm forgetting. The worst part is, that's after turning down at least two.

I have 7 Acoustic guitars and a mandolin. No electrics currently, and only one of those acoustics has a pickup (that works).

2 of those I will never sell. 1 I would have a real hard time replacing, 1 I will probably sell to my brother. 1, my girlfriend won't let me. 2 I'd have no problem selling

I only have one, maybe two that I would ever consider selling. And those are awfully low value. I'd be more inclined to donate them to one of those Guitars for Vets charities or something.

I have two that I'll have pretty much until I die: my '81 Les Paul Studio w/ a factory (Gibson branded) Kahler and my '94 Strat. The Gibson was my high school graduation gift from my mother. The Strat is simply the guitar I love playing the most.

Of course, right now I have no plans to sell any of them. I'm in "adding" mode now...

Super-secret-spy photos of the HellaBastard and Blasphemaster, currently in progress

In reply to poopshovel:

Sweet. Are you DIY'ing these or having them made?

I might be starting a build project as well... currently watching a Strat body on eBay, which if I win will have me searching for a Floyd and possibly ordering a Warmonth neck unless I can find something used. If you have any tricks/leads on finding a German-made Floyd for a half decent price, please let me know. I still need/want one for my ESP.

Ian F wrote: In reply to poopshovel: Sweet. Are you DIY'ing these or having them made? I might be starting a build project as well... currently watching a Strat body on eBay, which if I win will have me searching for a Floyd and possibly ordering a Warmonth neck unless I can find something used. If you have any tricks/leads on finding a German-made Floyd for a half decent price, please let me know. I still need/want one for my ESP.

My best-buddy/singer's dad is building them. I bought the Floyds brand new from Warmoth. Best price I could find, and I know if I have a problem, they'll make it right. I think I scored pretty well on the necks. ~$200 each. The one on the offset is a damned-near-new Warmoth. Everything else I went "new," and didn't skimp.

In reply to poopshovel:

Cool. Thanks. Right now I'm pondering a CBS-era style Strat neck from Warmoth. Just because it would be a little different and not terribly more expensive than what you paid. Gotta win the body first, so I'll worry about that when the time comes.

I like 'em.

My only concern: Does it not look like the bridge is sitting craaaaazy far "forward?"

Compared to the purple one, yeah, but in general, no.

In reply to poopshovel:

Has to be because of the 24 fret neck. The 24th fret is where 22 would be on a normal Strat style neck, which moves the bridge. Plus, is it a 25.5" or 24.75" scale neck? The latter would move the bridge even closer to the neck than normal for a Tele.

Durp. Forgot it's a 24 3/4 scale. Perhaps that's why Charvel never made a 24 3/4 tele. Thanks dewds. Now I'm all worried it's gonna put my hand in a weird spot. Oh well!!!

poopshovel wrote: Thanks dewds. Now I'm all worried it's gonna put my hand in a weird spot. Oh well!!!

Don't worry, the catholic church promotes for things like that.

Ian F wrote: In reply to poopshovel: That's close... but one thing the Charvel I recently bought has taught me: I don't like a recessed Floyd... Also, they don't sell that guitar anymore. All of the HSS Floyd Strats now have 21 fret necks. The other option would be the Jackson Adrian Smith model.

I was in a Sam Ash store last night and they had an imported copy of the Jackson AS model (Made in India). It was ok... but didn't set my heart alight.

On the plus side, I finally got a bar for the Charvel modified and installed and found a reasonably priced black pick guard for the Explorer (the white one has always bugged me).

I'm going to post a request: if any of your guys happen to encounter a left-handed Rickenbacker 4003/5(5-string), or left-handed 4003/8(8-string) bass, please let me know. I had a 4003/5, and they're not nearly as rare as I expected. I've confirmed at least one 4003/8 was produced, though that's likely going to be a rarer model to find.

I did find a 4003/5 available in the UK, but it would likely be ~$4500 to get it and have it shipped!

I brought a new (to me) bass home last night!

There's a small antique store my wife and I like to go to every once in a while, and last time I was there in November, they had an Epiphone Goth Thunderbird hanging in the store with a price tag of $200. It wasn't perfect, and was missing a string, so I passed, but I kept it in mind. Last night, we went back, and it was still there, so I decided to ask about it. They knocked $100 off the price. I couldn't resist.

Here it is as purchased:

It was missing a string, the action was WAY too high, and it was a mess. I cleaned it up, slapped some new strings on it, and reset the bridge height, and here it is now:

You can't really tell, but it's a lot cleaner.

DAT INLAY

It plays and sounds like a $1500 bass! It has a growly tone with grand piano-like sustain, and it is perfect for Metal and Hard Rock. It is my favorite bass out of all of them right now. If you see one of these on the cheap, pick it up.

In reply to SilverFleet:

Wow, that's incredible!!!