I made a Mistake: GAS, gasp??!

I am only posting here to see if it helps get it out of my mind.

I am the only guitar player I know, other than you guys actually. I am just an enthusiest/hobby player...So I have no-one else I can tell who will understand.

For fathersday, I got one of those nice little Orange TT heads, and ever since all of my guitar and amp lust had been satiated. I have three amps, three electrics, and an acoustic. The electrics: I have a 335 type Epiphone Dot, a Telecaster, and a Les Paul type Agile. So all the bases were covered.

Well I went into guitar center on friday for some strings and I made the mistake of looking around. Then I saw it, one of the most beautiful les pauls ever, and something clicked in my head; like a recovering junkie getting the itch for a fix.

I have had a boycot on Gibson stuff because, in my opinion I think they are tooooooo expensive to justify; thus my Agile. Even though, I have actually been in denile, with a hidden lust for a real Gibson.

Anyway, I can't get the thing out of the back of my mind. The only way I could come up with the scratch would be to sell or trade everything I have except an amp, and then, charge the rest...

I know what I should do is just walk away and tell myself exactly what my father used to tell me in times like this, "there will always be another one." But you cats understand, it's hard.

as long as I just rant for a moment, I think I will be OK... I might be able to even avoid reading this thread ever again.

thanks for putting up with me.

Jeff

Don't dig a deep hole for yourself just for a guitar!

We can ALL enjoy our GAS if we keep it within sane limits...

Look for trades, buy secondhand, do not buy from a dealer. Move gear on that you don't bond with- trade UP!

Sooner than you think you will have a Gibson (or whatever) that didn't cost the Earth!

Jeez, Jeff. You sound like a lot like me!

The issue isn't really the Les Paul. The real question is “should I go through life without something I want.” You even used the term, "hidden lust for a real gibson," but in reality, who are you hiding it from?

During my grade school years, I’d stop at the local music store to look at the guitars on the wall, and by age 13, the desire for an ES 335 was planted.

Because of price, finances, other guitars, and a boatload of assorted excuses and justifications, I suppressed the desire for a real 335 until I was in my 50s. Since then, I owned a few before I really bonded with one.

Are real Gibson Les Pauls pricy? Yes. Are they the “holy grail?” No, but they can be excellent guitars. Is there any limit on the number of reasons that you can use to talk yourself out of buying one - at least temporarily? Probably not.

Although there are tons of great guitars available for less than the cost of a real Gibson, I doubt if anyone has bought a real Gibson and said, “Aw heck. I wish I had bought the Epiphone dot, Tokai, etc. instead.”

It’s really about life, value systems and priorities, desires, and whether we fulfill them.

If you want that Les Paul, and can afford it, then buy it or one just like it – unless you have a really good motive for continued self-denial. If you can't afford it, save for it, sell your other guitar stuff, or whatever, and then buy it.

Life is short. Get the guitar you really want and then enjoy it.

Probably not the advice that you were hoping for - - or maybe it was! :lol:

I recently bought a Les Paul Studio online from MF - was an exclusive with ebony fretboard and coil splitting. Had a serious case of GAS and don't know why. Was also Alpine While which was a bonus since I wear black for gigs.

Already had a 68 tele, 74 LP Custom, 73 Gretsch Country Gent, Epi SG and Seagull acoustic/electric.

Welcome to the club - love the axe but still use the 74 Custom on gigs and the SG for rehearsals.

The GAS went away but then I bought a TSA15 head and bottom - will be putting a vintage Jensen speaker into it or a JBL K120 that I have sitting around. Already had a 69 sf twin and a Cube 60 but wanted less power with tubes - plus it almost looks like a tremolux that I once had.

There's just no end to it - and in Montreal with a 70% French population, English bands don't have that much work so it will probably take 5 years to get the $$$ back.

But it's a fun hobby and you might get lucky with recording like a couple of my groups did in those "classic-rock" years.

You are screwed.Welcome to the club.I get gas for stuff i neither want or need.It's only been 35 years............maybe its a faze im going through.

Going to GC was your first mistake. Buy your strings online and avoid anything else guitar related. That's the best cure for GAS. Otherwise, it's like hanging out with junkies and trying not to get hooked.

If you really want the real deal LP, save your money and then go get the one you like best. It'll be worth it. Console yourself with the assumption that like a lot of beautiful women, the one you spotted probably isn't as nice as she looks.

Back in 98, PRS came out with the Hollowbody II, and it became an instant dream guitar for me. Even the base model was expensive, so I saved for nearly four years to afford it. I'm keeping that thing til I die!

First off.....you don't have the bases covered. Where's your 3 single coil guitar?

As far as your predicament......although I have way more guitars than I should (14 or 15, I forget), and only play on Sundays in a P & W band, I still get GAS for something new. I'd presently love to get a particular hardtail Peavey Wolfgang carved top I've had my eyes on.....or a Collings City Limits.....or a LP Custom in white with white binding (LP's guitar).

Along the same lines......I went to a car show yesterday with one of my sons. Italian car day. I find myself looking at all the cars and getting used to the prices that are in the dealer car windows. I'll come across a used Lamborghini Gallardo at $101k and think "man, this is the bargain of the century....I should buy it now!". Then I realize that it's a freaking hundred grand. I'm not going to mortgage my future and kids college for a car.

Or if you really want it......what I tend to do with guitars is decide that I have to sell more in guitars FIRST, then buy what I have my eye on. I have 4 mim's up for sale for that Wolfgang. 3 are strats. I noticed you need a strat...... :)


(see what I did there?)

GAS begins as a feeling. It doesn't necessarily have to turn into a behaviour. Get what I mean? Soooo.....enjoy the feeling. Smile at that feeling. Enjoy the hell out of it because that feeling means you're passionate about something in your life. It's just a feeling about something. That's all. I'll bet you see attractive women as you go through the day and you get 'feelings' sometimes about them. But does that mean you have to act on those feelings as they occur? That could be disasterous. It's just a feeling. Get it?:wink:

Jeff,

Being a neighbor of yours, the first thing I'd say is hit Lakeland Music, Fondren Guitars, or Morrison Brothers (just down the street from GC). Shopping at our GC is infuriating - no one knows anything about the gear they're selling, and you get swarmed by a bunch of them b/c they're commission only. It gets old telling 7 different people, "I'm just looking."

That aside, I feel your pain. Sometimes, I think about selling off most all my gear to get just one really good guitar or amp. I think your dad was right, though - there's rarely, if ever, such a deal that is too good to pass up or won't come up again. If we don't have the money, we're stupid for buying (been guilty of this many times). I know what you mean, though - I never wanted a Les Paul until I went into a local store, and one on the wall just kind of called out to me.

Yeah, this was just a GAS rant thread....thanks for the "Amen" guys. I'll be OK, it just had one of those dreamy finishes; natural flame maple. But for $2600, I'll keep my Agile until my skill level necessitates such an instrument, thank you...(SeaSick Steve is my Hero!)

Scantron08...Man, it sucks cause my office is halfway between Morrison Bros. and GC; North of County line, and on Fridays I get off at noon. So I usually hit one of the two just to look. I just go to GC because I think they're a little cheaper on some things; have a bigger selection; and it is easier for me to sneak in and out without buying something; or feeling like I have to...they are the Wal-Mart of music stores after all. But I agree with you.

Jack_FFR1846: My Tele is my three single coil guitar, I have one of the mexican deluxe blackout teles. some folks love them, some hate them, I like mine, but would like to re-wire it a bit.

Thanks again gentlepeople, my GAS has subsided until.....Someday.

First off.....you don't have the bases covered.

LOL ... I keep telling my myself the next (amp, guitar, pedal) is all I need to cover all the bases!

How many bases are there???????? :confused:

GAS begins as a feeling. It doesn't necessarily have to turn into a behaviour. Get what I mean? Soooo.....enjoy the feeling. Smile at that feeling. Enjoy the hell out of it because that feeling means you're passionate about something in your life. It's just a feeling about something. That's all. I'll bet you see attractive women as you go through the day and you get 'feelings' sometimes about them. But does that mean you have to act on those feelings as they occur? That could be disasterous. It's just a feeling. Get it?:wink:
100 percent agree, even if you don't own it, you get to enjoy seeing it. People go to museums all the time with no intention of going home with a Picasso.

Think you answered your own question. You said you were satisfied with your gear and the only way to justify is trade everything but an amp off. I would suspect after you do all the trading there would be some buyers remorse later and you will be stuck with cc payments on top of it. Only one guitar that i absolutely loved that i traded (Squier tele custom P90) and that was because i found a dream guitar (Parker Hornet) and it happened to be in the truck that day. I do wish i just put it on layaway and came back up next week with something else. Luckily it was a common guitar and i can get another eventually.

Your father was a wise man.

I just did the same thing, went into GC and found a used LP Classic Honeyburst and immediately put it on layaway without thinking about how I was actually going to pay for it. I'm going to sell my Egnater. It was a tough decision, but I've got my AC15, and that's enough for now. I'd been looking for a plaintop sunburst LP with binding that I could afford for...ever, and I can't resist this one.

A friend of mine wanted a Paul reed Smith really bad and the local shop got one. He traded nearly everything he had for it.

He came to regret it before he got home. He spent the next few years trying to get some of his guitars back. He got one back but it wasn't the same. He said it was like he let his wife fool around for a while with other men. Gas is a terrible illness for me too. However I cover all the bases with my tele nowadays except when I'm in the studio

well if money was no object then it would be great. I would say hold off as it does not sound like you can afford it. Then if you bought it you might be too scared that it would break etc that you would feel weird about playing it. Not worth it.