How many of you are happy you bought a relic'd guitar?

[Digiplay]

This Thread is NOT about opinions/discussion from members who HATE the very thought about anyone buying a relic'd guitar because that's "cheating/not pure"


I simply want to hear from members who did buy one, and I'd like to know if/why you are happy, or if not, why you wish you hadn't bought one.


Thanks,
Jerry

 

[golfnut]

Both my Fender Telecasters are relic. The custom shop 52 I own is a Journeyman relic which is my favorite relic level. I also have a Brad Paisley sig guitar that has a relic job meant to copy Brads 63 tele. Its not my favorite but doesn't bother me. The guitar it self is great so its a keeper for me.
I had a heavy relic masterbuilt tele that was a fantastic guitar. The way the neck was relic'd was my favorite thing about that. But I'm not fond of that level of relic. But it wasn't what made my decision to sell it.
I would take a heavy relic over a brand new shiny looking tele. And the main reason is that I like the worn in feel they have. Like slipping in to a well worn pair of slippers.
I have a couple of t-shirts that are 25+ years old and are thread bare and not pretty to look at. I wear them to bed because they feel so great. Thats what relic guitars are to me. So I don't care that it is manufactured wear. I love the feel. I prefer the feel of a heavy relic but not the look. Thats why I prefer the Journeyman. Its a balance.
I'm 60 years old so not likely enough time to put natural wear on a guitar. Most of those saying that they want to put natural wear on a guitar likely polish their guitars endlessly keep them in cases when not in use, obsess over an accidental microscopic ding and will likely never produce wear in their guitars. I don't even gig anymore so likely my journeyman relic has all the relic its ever going to have.
Hope this thread lasts.

 

[tery]

I wish that I had bought a relic'd guitar - then I wouldn't worry about putting a ding on it .

 

[rze99]

I love my CS63 light relic. Bought used. Mad to buy new.

 

[8trackmind]

Happy!
I went the used route with an older custom shop relic that was already modded. The wireing was poorly done and it had aftermarket pickups and copper sheilding.

Since neither of those issues were a deal breaker for me, I felt like I got a deal. However, the guitar found me, I wasn't actively looking.

 

[teletail]

This Thread is NOT about opinions/discussion from members who HATE the very thought about anyone buying a relic'd guitar because that's "cheating/not pure"

Good luck with that.

As to your question, I've bought bought light relic, heavy relic and what would more accurately be described as "aged" because there was no discernible wear, although the guitar did not look brand new.

I've never bought one where I thought, "man, that was a mistake" but just like new guitars, some were outstanding, some were meh.

People that say "just wear it naturally" are showing a laughable ignorance about how modern finishes wear. I have a 90's strat that I bought when it was only a year or two old. I don't baby my guitars, but I do take care of them. There is ZERO finish wear on it and it was my main guitar for 10 years.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, they aren't entitled to their own facts.

 

[RoscoeElegante]

One of my (too many?) guitars is relic'd. I much like it. I forget that it's a pretension/faux thing, and feel like it invites me to play exploratively. It seems to say, "Dig in and see what made these gouges and stains worthwhile. You're not gonna break anything."

Then again, I have a powerful weakness for fake as well as real antiques, if they're well done. Gimme Camden Yards over Nationals Park any day.

 

[IronSchef]

Bought a Road Worn 60s Strat - happy!
Built a relic Tele from MJT body and RW neck - happy!
Built a relic Jazzmaster from MJT Body and RW neck - happy!

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my pristine and perfect FMT HH Tele and my PRS SE as well!

 

[bettyseldest]

I would not go looking for a relic'd guitar, but four years ago I bought a wierdly relic'd partscaster. Black MIM Classic 60's tele, refinished surf green with painted on grime/grunge. Bridge and control panel have been relic'd. Neck replaced with a modern maple MIM tele neck (?), and Bareknuckle Brown Sugars fitted. It plays and sounds great, looks a bit odd. I have no intenetion of changing anything.

 

[6String69]

I have two and I love them. They play great, sound great, feel great. Plus I don’t worry about dings and such. They feel like genuine vintage instruments that have been played for years despite one being a 2014 and the other being a 2019. I appreciate the art of a relic’d finish.

 

[Guitarteach]

....must... resist..... must.... resist...

 

[Piggy Stu]

I never bought a relic, but I do have badly beaten up guitars that I would happily swap for new, Aladdin and The Lamp style

 

[golfnut]

I wish that I had bought a relic'd guitar - then I wouldn't worry about putting a ding on it .

Go ahead ding it up. I spent $15,000 on reflooring my house in oak hardwood 8 years ago and was obsessed with keeping it completely ding free an pristine. Its a fight in futility. 8 years later with the floor in great shape but not perfect are really showing signs of character and to a point don't mind the ageing.
I have 2 Martin Authentic guitars, one that I bought brand new and the other was used but mint. I've had them now for about 4 years and they probably look closer to 8 years old. I'm not exactly the most careful and I rarely wipe them down and they are ageing nicely. I take them out of the house more than my electrics as I go to jams but don't gig anymore so that may account for some of the wear. I'm not worried about resale because my Martins are forever guitars. Its the most I could spend and the closest I'll ever get to vintage Martins that I can afford.

 

[golfnut]

I would not go looking for a relic'd guitar, but four years ago I bought a wierdly relic'd partscaster. Black MIM Classic 60's tele, refinished surf green with painted on grime/grunge. Bridge and control panel have been relic'd. Neck replaced with a modern maple MIM tele neck (?), and Bareknuckle Brown Sugars fitted. It plays and sounds great, looks a bit odd. I have no intenetion of changing anything.

View attachment 745092



View attachment 745093

Where did you get that neck plate. Would love that for my BP sig guitar.

 

[cravenmonket]

People that say "just wear it naturally" are showing a laughable ignorance about how modern finishes wear. I have a 90's strat that I bought when it was only a year or two old. I don't baby my guitars, but I do take care of them. There is ZERO finish wear on it and it was my main guitar for 10 years.

+1

I use my 10yr old Tele every day and I don't baby it, but it looks brand new. I don't throw it around carelessly or snort coke off of it or use it for deflecting baseballs, but I use it a lot. But it's a musical instrument and it was expensive, and I'm not self-conscious enough about being judged for having a guitar which looks un-played to want to have phony wear and tear. I wasn't a gigging musician for 30 years, so my guitars are not likely to look like that. I also have a nice Kawai upright piano at home, and I am not interested in having chips and dents and scratches all over it either. And I have a BMW in the garage which I drive every day, but I'm not looking to get a bunch of dents and chips in the paintwork just to indicate that I am an experienced driver (wouldn't it suggest the opposite?).

Having said that, I do like the look of some worn guitars - when the wear looks (or is) real, I think it adds a sort of beauty to the whole package, like there's a story there to be told. But 90% of the relic jobs I see on guitars look phony to me.

 

[LarryJunior]

I'm very happy! I bought a heavy relic 60th anniversary strat a year and a half ago locally,if I hadn't picked this particular one up I probably would have still not bought one yet,It's now my #1 for sure.I actually do like Teles more but it really is a guitar I can trust to be "right" everytime when I need it to be.The thing is like a piano,it sure stays in tune like one!,it's super stable,(I know,I know,it sounds like I'm talking about a Tele!)the setup is perfect.the 9.5" radius and 6105 frets just works nice and the neck is to die for.I have to say that even though it was the most expensive guitar I ever bought in 40 years of playing,I'm not sorry in the least about it.Someday I hope to find a Tele that can match this strat but I've yet to even come across one relic Fender Custom Shop Tele in person and that's the only way I would actually even consider buying another one because I have played a few other CS strats and they didn't come anywhere near mine.

 

[golfnut]

+1



Having said that, I do like the look of some worn guitars - when the wear looks (or is) real, I think it adds a sort of beauty to the whole package, like there's a story there to be told. But 90% of the relic jobs I see on guitars look phony to me.

Whenever I hear that statement I always wonder what is "real looking" relic. Since as players we all have our different ways of playing and subject our guitars to different conditions how can there be a consistent way to naturally relic a guitar other than the arm spot where we all rest on? Naturally relic could be as different as fingerprints. Manufactured relic as different as the artists interpretation. And like any kind of art a particular piece won't appeal to everyone. I also can understand that relic in any form just doesn't appeal to everyone.
The tired old comparisons of guitars to cars is silly. I like my jeans to look worn but I don't like my office casual pants to look worn. Completely different applications.
I certainly won't criticize anyone for liking brand new looking guitars. I used to be one of them. Certain guitars I still like the new look.
One thing that killed wanting new looking guitars for me is when you go to sell it the moron that spends 3 hours in your house trying to tell you that you're guitar is only worth half what you're asking because of the microscopic ding in the top that only he can see. Imagine if there was real wear on it. An artificially aged guitar takes that completely out of the equation and when you're selling only the people that know what it is show up to your door.

 

[JL_LI]

My FCS ‘69 Stratocaster is heavy relic. I was fortunate enough to have won it at the last stop on the Fender Custom Shop Road Show last year. I love the guitar. I’d order one just like it, except for the heavy relic. The Road Show was featuring heavy relic master built guitars. It’s what Fender does better than anyone else. If I were placing an order, I’d go for custom paint, ‘69 Camaro yellow with a matching headstock.

 

[burntfrijoles]

I simply want to hear from members who did buy one, and I'd like to know if/why you are happy, or if not, why you wish you hadn't bought one.

I own four custom shop guitars and one of them is a "relic" finish. It's '61 Wildwood 10 Strat. I love it. As a finish itself, it's average. I've seen better and I've seen worse. I love the neck profile. I love the feel and, most of all, I love the tone. It is, hands down, the best sounding guitar I have. They had almost the identical guitar in a NOS finish but I always wanted a "relic". Plus, the salesperson who tried out several different Strats (relic and nos), described this guitar's tone in a manner that appealed to me. The John Cruz pickups are spectacular. I have 57 NOS WW 10 which is gorgeous. It's also great but it has that more clear, bell like tone of an earlier Strat. If I had to part with one, it would be the '57 NOS.

 

[teletail]

Whenever I hear that statement I always wonder what is "real looking" relic.

I have a sneaking suspicious that a lot of relic'd guitars go unnoticed because the people that made them knew what they were doing.

Just my opinion, but to me a relic'd guitar is supposed to mimic actual wear and tear. Too many "relics" are done by people with no understanding of what they are doing and they look grotesquely fake. One example of a really awful relic is the Brad Paisley tele by Fender. It looks brand new except for one spot that looks like it was hit with a sander. No guitar ever wore that way naturally.

I love good relics, bad ones make me cringe.