GuitarPoint - Vintage and Custom Shop Guitars (2024)

FAQs

What is the most sought after vintage guitar? ›

Generally speaking, guitars from 1950 to the early 80s are considered “vintage” instruments. Among the most expensive guitars are vintage Gibson Les Pauls, Explorers, and Flying Vs, with 1958 to 1960 models fetching the highest prices.

Masterbuilt guitars can take 6 to 10 months, however some builders have up to a 4 year backlog due to high demand. The Music Zoo can get an accurate estimated build time for your Fender Custom Shop idea by submitting your specifications to our sales team for a free quote.

The index guitars that cost $153,000 in 1991 could have been bought in 1980 for around $37,550 and in 1970 for around $15,100. Our experience has been that from 1963-75 vintage fretted instruments increased in value as much as 25 percent per year.

What is a vintage guitar? While an antique is defined as an object over 100 years old, there's no strict chronological definition of what makes something vintage. Typically, though, guitars around 30 years old or older fall into that category, and even newer instruments will often be labeled as such by sellers.

Environmental regulations, labour controls, higher wages, materials procurement and market competitiveness mean there can never be a true return to the 1950s guitar making days. That being said, relative to monthly wages, a Fender Custom Shop guitar is only marginally more expensive today than a Strat was in 1954!

Some vintage instruments can lose as much as 50% value from refinish, and there are some examples like this early Esquire that could lose maybe 70 or 80 percent of their value with a refinish. A poor condition original finish is much better than a brand-new refinish. So just don't do it.

You can play the same chords, alter the tuning, shred, and create harmonics. However, when you're playing a vintage guitar, you may struggle to do some of these things. The fretboards of some vintage guitars make shredding very difficult. It will also take some work to get modern sounds out of your vintage guitar.

For years, serial numbers have been used in various locations on Fender instruments, such as the top of the neck plate, the front or back of the headstock and the back of the neck near the junction with the body.

Seven years later, Fender USA manufacturing, R&D and Custom Shop divisions, were moved to its present location in Corona, California. The Fender Custom Shop employs over fifty craftsmen and produces both custom one-off projects and limited CNC-tooled production runs.

What makes a vintage guitar valuable? ›

Key Factors That Primarily Dictate A Vintage Guitar's Value

It all depends on its quality, rarity, and originality, to mention some. Here are some key factors that dictate a vintage guitar's value. Its Condition: An instrument in mint condition, with the original case and parts, is a sought-after find.

Check the Blue Book of Guitar Values.

You can find the Blue Book online and search it for free at bluebookofguitarvalues.com. Any value you find in the Blue Book or any of the other guides is merely a suggestion. Various characteristics of any individual guitar could cause its value to increase or decrease.