Guitar Collecting

Charvel Spectrum Epidemic!

flyssy — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:53:31 +0000

I thought you may be interested to see this. A high end guitar collecting friend of mine has a guilty pleasure. Collecting Charvel Spectrums! His addiction has been satisfied for the time being, with the arrival of a black model from Australia, although he is making noises about the lack of maple necked models. He has also persuaded a [...]

Relic your guitar parts

flyssy — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 16:06:37 +0000

I found this interesting video yesterday. I’d never considered doing this myself. but it’s given me a few ideas..

New Taylor Swift Signature Guitar

flyssy — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 08:25:00 +0000

Taylor Swift now has her own signature model guitar to be built and distributed by Taylor Guitars, the renowned acoustic and electric guitar company founded in 1974. She joins Leo Kottke, Doyle Dykes and Dan Crary as artists who have a signature model built by the company. The Taylor Swift Baby Taylor guitar is based on [...]

Guitar Collecting for the Financially Challenged

flyssy — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 13:18:42 +0000

As guitarists, most of us would love to have the financial means to acquire a dream collection of our favourite instruments. Real world pressures usually get in the way though, and most of us restrict ourselves to having one or two guitars at most. Our collecting urges can now be satisfied though, as well as solving the [...]

Collectable Guitars pt 36 – Fender Electric XII

flyssy — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:24:43 +0000

The Fender Electric XII was a purpose-built 12-string electric guitar, designed for folk rockers. Instead of using a Stratocaster-body style, it used one with a Jaguar/Jazzmaster body style. It was also a departure from the typical “Stratocaster”-style headstock, instead featuring a long headstock nicknamed the “hockey-stick” headstock. The Electric XII used a unique split pickup design [...]

Westone Cutlass Rebuild pt 2 – The Body and the Scratchplate

flyssy — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:10:51 +0000

As I said in part one of the Westone Cutlass rebuild, I have decided, in agreement with the guys at Get Musical, to not paint this guitar, but to keep it natural looking. The original body finish was a pale, yellowy clear lacquer which suited the look of the guitar, but now has some quite deep [...]

1958 Gibson Les Paul Standard is up for Auction

flyssy — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 09:58:08 +0000

California Auctioneers will be auctioning one of the rarest rock guitars in the world; The 1958 Gibson Les Paul Standard. An amazing collection of over 70 Autographed guitars of the who’s who in rock n roll, contemporary art, and a rare collection of Marilyn Monroe and Michael Jackson Memorabilia. On Sunday Oct 11th, 10 am California Auctioneers [...]

Hendrix 1967 Stratocaster For Sale

flyssy — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 17:07:14 +0000

A 1967 Fender Stratocaster guitar owned by Jimi Henrix with a controversial past is now for sale after its owners settled with the late rock star’s estate. The sunburst Strat is a right-handed one that was converted to left-handed use to accommodate Hendrix. The owners, Rockstarsguitars.com, are asking $500,000. The instrument, currently on display at the Musicians Hall [...]

Collectable Guitars pt 35 – Fender Duosonic

flyssy — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 17:54:05 +0000

The Fender DuoSonic guitar was first produced by in 1956. It was meant to be a student guitar. It featured a short, 22.5 inch, scale length that was considerably shorter than the 25.5 inch scale used on standard Fender guitars. The DuoSonic, which is sometimes spelled as Duo-Sonic or Duosonic, has two, single coil, pickups and a [...]

Westone Cutlass Rebuild pt 1 – The Background

flyssy — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 18:18:11 +0000

// When I first started this site, one of the reasons was to get back into restoring, customising and fiddling with guitars. I have played around with guitars all my playing life (30 years this month!) as most of us players do. It is always useful to know how to fix your own gear, and sooner [...]

Bill Wyman criticises ‘Guitar Hero’ style video games

flyssy — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 12:07:55 +0000

Bill Wyman, the former bassist of the Rolling Stones, has claimed that Guitar Hero, Rock Band and other music games discourage children from learning real instruments. His criticism comes on the eve of the release of ‘The Beatles Rock Band’ computer game, which allows players to play along with to band’s back catalogue. “It encourages kids not [...]

Steve Lukather sells his surplus gear on Ebay

flyssy — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 08:53:26 +0000

Ex Toto guitarist and all round session superstar Steve Lukather has listed a whole bunch of instruments and gear on Ebay through L.A. Vintage Gear. Included are a very cool looking Rickenbacker 6/12 string double neck and a unique 26 year old Ibanez prototype of a potential Lukather signature model that never made it into production. [...]

Westone Thunder 1-T Rebuild pt 6…Finally finished!

flyssy — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 12:33:48 +0000

I can’t believe that last update on this subject was December 31st 2008! Sorry for the massive time lag, in truth the guitar was finished months ago but I had been busy writing on so many other subjects I just forgot to tie this subject up. In the last post I alluded to the wiring issues I [...]

Epiphone 1966 “worn” Wilshire

flyssy — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 10:07:59 +0000

// A year or so after Epiphone’s lovely but hugely expensive 1962 Wilshire reissue, they have now announced a much cheaper, but just as tempting 1966 model, in the nicely faded “worn” range. The following is directly from the press release; Epiphone brings back the Wilshire with a faithful reproduction of the 1966 model. Like an [...]

Collectable Guitars pt 34 – Gibson Nighthawk

Connor F — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 11:05:21 +0000

// Gibson’s radical Hawk series was another shortlived attempt to modernise Gibson’s image in the 1990s. It lasted from 1993 to 1998 and the series comprised 5 models. In the mid 1980s Gibson released new models that were nothing like previous ones to try and compete with new companies in the market. The Corvus (radical new shape, [...]

Free Guitar Collecting Ebook!

flyssy — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 13:14:47 +0000

We have put together a free ebook for all our visitors as a thankyou for your support over the last few months. “25 Cool Signature Guitars” is almost 50 pages long and is available for free download by filling in your name and email address on the right. We are also giving you permission to copy, give [...]

United Breaks Guitars pt 2

flyssy — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 16:26:45 +0000

Dave Carroll has released the second of three videos in this now world famous saga. This one is about the now legendary “Ms Irlwig”…enjoy

RIP Les Paul

flyssy — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 16:50:26 +0000

// Les Paul, whose pioneering electric guitars were used by a legion of rock stars, has died at the age of 94. Mr Paul died from complications of pneumonia in New York, according to Gibson, the firm that sold his guitars. He is credited with inventing the solid-body electric guitar, which went on sale [...]

Warning of guitar ‘identification’ sites

flyssy — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:02:20 +0000

A number of websites have cropped up that claim to be able to provide visitors with information about their guitar via its serial number. This has misled some guitar owners into believing that their counterfeit guitar is an authentic one. In fact, some counterfeiters or sellers of these fakes now even refer potential buyers [...]

It Might Get Loud

flyssy — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 15:58:16 +0000

// This new film (great title!) looks like it will be worth a look.. Featuring interviews with Jimmy Page (Led Zep), The Edge (U2) and Jack White (White Stripes, Raconteurs, etc)

Collectable Guitars pt 33 – Ibanez Musician

Connor F — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 09:33:37 +0000

The Ibanez Musician was born out of the Japanese copy boom of the 1970s, which also helped spawn the Ibanez Destroyer and Iceman. After Ibanez were sued for copying Gibson designs they branched out into original designs. Their first original models were the aforementioned two guitars, as well as the Performer, a Les Paul-type with [...]

Oh No!!! Van crashes into guitar repair shop

flyssy — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 00:43:00 +0000

Doc Pittillo described the Saturday morning crash that has left him physically unharmed but financially devastated as something akin to a psychedelic experience. “I turned around and actually saw the van come through the window of the store,” Pittillo said. “It was slow motion.” Pittillo, owner of The Guitar Doctor, 18171 Euclid St., said he was plucking [...]

How Guitar Strings Are Made

flyssy — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 14:43:23 +0000

Interesting video this, for anyone who was ever curious about how the process of string making took place. This video shows D’addario string manufacture. Enjoy!

Start ‘em Young!

flyssy — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 11:30:39 +0000

Not a guitar collecting item, but this deserves some further promotion; “Folsom Prison Blues” performed by Wesley, 5 years old, at the 2009 Spring Coffee Shop Jam, at The Columbia City Theater in Seattle, WA. Amazing what 5 year old kids spend their time doing these days, eh?

Bay Area Guitar Show Sees Fewer Buyers

flyssy — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 10:22:59 +0000

Rob Szupak is a semi-retired contractor itching to become a fully retired contractor. For the past three years, the 62-year-old Fairfax resident has been restoring vintage lap steel guitars and tube amplifiers and reselling them, hoping to earn enough of a living to make that his primary source of income. Szupak’s entry into the guitar market [...]

Collectable Guitars pt 32 – Washburn A-20V Stage Series

flyssy — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 12:07:00 +0000

// The Washburn A10-A20V Stage series of guitars were produced between 1979 and 1985. Shaped like a truncated Gibson Explorer with a chunky slanted headstock, the high quality Stage series found homes with a fair number of rock guitarists in the early 1980’s. They were produced in Japan in the highly regarded Matsumoku factory, which also [...]

Collectable Guitars pt 31 – Tokai Talbo

flyssy — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:19:18 +0000

// This guitar was originally made from 1982 to 1984 in Japan by Tokai, who at this point were looking to expand away from the copies they specialised in. It was very unusual in that the body was not made of wood, as you might expect, but aluminium instead. As such the name was actually an [...]

Canadian Guitarist Gets Revenge For Airline Damaged Guitar

flyssy — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 10:51:22 +0000

// You have probably seen this story by now, but I thought I’d report on it anyway; A broken guitar is turning out to be a major break for Canadian musician Dave Carroll. Carroll has become an Internet sensation after posting a revenge song on YouTube about United Airlines’ baggage handlers breaking his guitar during a flight [...]

John Lennon’s Hofner Senator sells for £205,250!

flyssy — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 08:37:53 +0000

// A 1958 Hofner Senator guitar owned by John Lennon sold for £205,250 at Christies London auction yesterday. Guitars owned by John Lennon very rarely appear on the market and George Harrison’s verification of this guitars’ provenance in his letter to Lily Evans is invaluable. Harrison’s own keen interest in guitars meant that he had a clear [...]

The Michael Jackson Tribute Post

flyssy — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 00:01:16 +0000

Michael Jackson isn’t the name that usually springs to mind when thinking about guitars, although Eddie Van Halen and Steve Lukather played on the “Thriller” album, Slash played on “Black and White”, and I think Steve Stevens played on “Dirty Diana”. As the world and his wife are still going on about his death, I thought [...]

London Guitar Show 2009

flyssy — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 19:43:35 +0000

We made a trip to the London Guitar show last weekend, or to give it its proper title, the London International Music Fair 09, held at the Excel Centre in East London. I have to say it was a disappointment. There were noticably fewer guitar manufacturers on display; no Fender, Gibson, or Dean and very few bass [...]

Vintage Guitar Parts

flyssy — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 09:53:22 +0000

I found an interesting new website today, which may be useful for all of us at some point. The Parts Drawer is a vintage guitar parts service, dealing primarily with Gibson and Fender (about 80% of their stock) but also catering for other makes too. In their own words; With over 20 years of experience in the business [...]

Collectable Guitars pt 30 – Fender Elite Telecaster

flyssy — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 10:38:35 +0000

Fender’s iconic Telecaster has many submodels to its name, which have their own distinct set of players. These include the Thinline semi-hollow model, the Custom with a humbucker at the neck and a different scratchplate, and the Deluxe, with two humbuckers and a wide headstock reminiscent of the 1970s Stratocasters. But that isn’t the full list [...]

Collectable Guitars pt 29 – Ampeg Dan Armstrong Plexiglass

Connor F — Fri, 29 May 2009 16:26:46 +0000

The Dan Armstrong Plexiglass was a very odd guitar originally made from 1969 to 1971 as an effort by popular amplification company Ampeg to draw in some more sales than their then-ailing amp lines were. The guitars came about from legendary guitar builder and repairer Dan Armstrong posing Ampeg the question: “Since you make guitar and [...]

Collectable Guitars pt 28 – Daion Guitars

Connor F — Thu, 28 May 2009 10:23:03 +0000

Now here’s one you might not have heard of. Daion were an old Japanese company operating from the famed Matsumoku factory for a short period in the early 1980s. The Daions were very high quality, and full of innovative features. They had a range of electrics, basses and acoustics which were often very different to the usual [...]

Ronnie Monrose sues Gary Moore over theft of ‘59 Les Paul

flyssy — Wed, 20 May 2009 13:51:56 +0000

In a downer moment that must have left countless concert-goers blinking, shaking their heads, and bellowing, “drag, man!” Guitarist Ronnie Montrose actually stopped a show in mid-song, had the house lights turned on, and scoured the theater when his 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard was stolen right off the stage. Montrose, a San Franciscan, hasn’t seen his [...]

Collectable Guitars pt 27 – Fender Robben Ford Model

flyssy — Wed, 20 May 2009 00:09:33 +0000

Blues/Jazz guitarist Robben Ford merges styles to redefine the term “fusion” music. His sound, delivery and conception are all his own – as unmistakable and personal as a fingerprint. He chose a deliberate reinterpretation of the unusual Fender Esprit Ultra as the basis for his signature instrument (the Fender Robben Ford Signature model), which reflects [...]

New Guitar Collecting Magazine Launching

flyssy — Thu, 14 May 2009 11:30:11 +0000

Guitar Aficionado magazine and GuitarAficionado.com from Future U.S., the publishers of Guitar World, is a new upscale men’s, niche lifestyle publication for music enthusiasts who collect, play and invest in new and vintage guitars. According to Guitar Aficionado, readers know that guitars are among some of the best-performing, tangible asset investments available today. Traditionally, the value of [...]

Collectable Guitars pt 26 – Fender Starcaster

Connor F — Sun, 10 May 2009 17:08:24 +0000

The Starcaster was a short lived semi-hollow guitar made in the mid-1970s and early 1980s as competition to Gibson’s ES335 model. It is uncertain whether it was made from 1976 to 1977 or 1980 to 1982. The guitar featured the Gibson traditional semi-hollow body and humbuckers, but with a new 6-on-1-side headstock and Fender’s trademark bolt-on [...]

Neptune Bound: The Ultimate Danelectro Guitar Guide

flyssy — Sat, 09 May 2009 14:58:32 +0000

Neptune Bound: The Ultimate Danelectro Guitar Guide You may have never heard of a Danelectro guitar. But Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton certainly have. The unorthodox instruments — known for their unique design and prized for their clear, bell-like tone — belong in the arsenal of every rock guitarist from Aerosmith to ZZ Top. And with the publication of [...]

Legendary Guitars Going on Tour

flyssy — Wed, 06 May 2009 10:03:00 +0000

Guitar Center will take its iconic "Legends Collection" on the road beginning May 23 for a 4-city tour that will make weekend stops in Fountain Valley, La Mesa, San Francisco and Hollywood.

Daddy Mojo Cigar Box Guitars

flyssy — Tue, 05 May 2009 14:52:44 +0000

These are so cool.. Daddy Mojo builds handcrafted guitars from cedar and mahogany cigar boxes. The instruments, which are smaller and lighter than standard guitars, sell for between $265 and $735 and have found a following among blues aficionados who can’t get enough of the warm sound they provide. “It has a very unique tone that you can’t [...]

Gibson Holy Explorer

Connor F — Mon, 04 May 2009 18:13:20 +0000

The Gibson Explorer is a guitar most readers may be familiar with, and it is a well-designed, well-loved shape used by several distinguished rock and metal players. So what in the name of all that is holy (see what I did there?) have they done to this one, many will ask. The Holy Explorer is a [...]

New Epiphone Roy Orbison Signature 12-string acoustic

flyssy — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 09:01:19 +0000

The Epiphone Guitar Company of Nashville, Tennessee announces the release of the new limited edition Oh, Pretty Woman 12-string acoustic guitar. Produced in cooperation with the legendary singer/songwriter Roy Orbison’s estate, this signature guitar is based upon Roy’s own 1962 Epiphone ‘Bard’ 12-string acoustic guitar. Orbison used his original Epiphone acoustic guitar to write and perform [...]

Collectable Guitars pt 25 – Charvel Spectrum

Connor F — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 22:36:14 +0000

The Charvel Spectrum was a Superstrat type guitar made from 1989 to 1991 in a variety of wild colours. The series was inspired by a custom model made for Jeff Beck. The model was a part of Charvel’s Contemporary Series, and was possibly named after the veritable rainbow of bright colours it came in – including bright [...]

Gibson’s Eye Guitar – a future collectable?

flyssy — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 10:51:49 +0000

The new Gibson Eye guitar has certainly caused a storm of controversy since its recent launch, but mainly for being so damned ugly. The limited run, red and white, bastardised SG style guitar has bought a flood of negative comments in blogs and forums for its looks, and it’s not cheap either with a RRP of [...]

Collectable Guitars pt 24 – Yamaha SG2000

Connor F — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 22:36:52 +0000

Yamaha is now a huge corporation covering all aspects of musical instruments, and more products including motorbikes. However, in 1976, when the SG2000 was introduced they were very much still an upstart company trying to make a name for themselves. In 1973 they had introduced a range of Gibson inspired SG models- equal cutaway designs with [...]

New Guitar Collecting Facebook Group!

flyssy — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 09:53:24 +0000

I’ve just set up a group on facebook which will relate to this website, and will hopefully grow the content more quickly with posts from other readers. Please feel free to join the group, it is open membership, and add your comments, suggestions, photos or anything else you know about old and collectable guitars. Guitar Collecting [...]

Rare guitars found after 50 years

flyssy — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 12:02:00 +0000

A collection of rare British-made electric guitars has been discovered in the basement of a house in Cheltenham. The Supersound instruments came out of a brief partnership between Jim Burns and Alan Wootton during 1958 and 1959. Guy Mackenzie from West Cornwall, who bought the guitars, described them as “the holy grail” of his [...]

Michelle Obama gives Carla Bruni a Gibson Guitar

flyssy — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 18:01:28 +0000

Much has been said about the Obama’s gift giving recently. An Ipod for the Queen, the DVDs given to Gordon Brown after his visit to the White House. But Michelle Obama may have struck the right chord with her gift to her newest friend, Carla Bruni -Sarkozy. After meeting the wife of French President Sarkozy, Mrs. Obama [...]