Rabs Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabs Posted March 22 Author Share Posted March 22 And this is why I think Gibson and Fender do what they do.. The market is way over crowded. Its why I havent gone back in to making them. With the likes of Harley Benton and many other cheap makes these days, I cant compete.. There also seems to be more luthiers than ever before and while I always liked my guitars, I cant really pretend I can offer anything really different. Maybe some different wood selections and some variations on body design and hardware but thats about it. Where as Gibson and Fender almost sit alone in the historic and high end. So thats where they live these days and actually I cant say I blame them. It is a shame though. It didnt seem that long ago where I was buying new Gibsons for like £750 (like my goldtop studio and the LP DC Special Faded, even the Gary Moore BFG I had was like £850).. I doubt we will ever see those days again. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdgm Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 (edited) Indeed. It is a buyers' market and will (probably) remain so at the lower end of the price scale for some time. And that will make it harder for expensive stuff too IMO. There's not much demand for big jazz f-hole guitars either; not economically worth it for Gibson to produce them except in small, special edition runs. There are many guitar makers out there who can offer you a handmade, bespoke guitar at about the same price as a production L4 or even an ES175. Edited March 22 by jdgm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksdaddy Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 I have about 15 guitars on my Reverb watch list. I think 2 or 3 have sold in the past month. People aren’t dropping their prices though. Sticking to their guns. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rct Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 As of two weeks ago our GC was NOT taking trades of any kind. The last trade I made, two weeks before that, they were extremely fussy about what I was trading and wouldn't take certain things at all. And neither instance was guitar stuff at all, just studio and pa type stuff from gigging. So, I'll wait until they are taking trades and maybe something nice will come along at a decent deal. rct Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparquelito Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 An extremely good and informative video, Rabs. I thank you for turning us onto that. Much like rct, I almost took a bath recently, trying to do a trade-in thing at CG. I walked away from a very bad deal. Later on, a day or two later, I did extremely well on a better trade-in at The Fret Shop, a local mom and pop operation. They did well, I did well, we all walked away happy. That said, I think I will avoid doing any buying or selling in the coming months. 🙂 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NighthawkChris Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 Nice video. I’m glad I don’t sell and trade my stuff. I take my time to make sure I will like and actually want what I get. I don’t worry too much about the used market in terms of selling generally. I like it when there is something I’ve been after and the prices go down. Well, the guitars the guy in the video was talking about aren’t the kinds of guitars I go after so I have yet to see the market go down in price for what I look at. Gibsons usually hold value very well it seems. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigtim Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 The whole problem with the used market currently is the over priced gear. I do not mind a good deal but some of these guys think their 1-2 year old guitar is still worth as much as brand new one. In most cases it is better just to pull the trigger on a new piece instead of over paying for a used piece. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigtim Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 (edited) This is just one example and there are a ton more here. The first is a local CL ad and the 2nd is a new model from Sweetwater. I can do without the Murphy lab but this is a prime example to me. It is the same for the standard, classic and traditional runs as well here. If your a fender guy there are some pretty good deals to be had locally. But your $hit out of luck if you are primarily a Gibson player looking for good prices on used ones here in middle TN. https://nashville.craigslist.org/msg/d/nashville-gibson-custom-shop-les-paul/7720628125.html https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/LPR58VOWCSNH--gibson-custom-1958-les-paul-standard-reissue-vos-washed-cherry-sunburst Edited March 23 by bigtim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 You're a gifted wood worker, Rabs. Make something else. Perhaps this is an opportunity. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrairieDog Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 Fwiw, Our GC is have a “bring us your gear event” today. Saying they will pay 1,000 cash with the balance for anything higher in a check. I have no idea what you’d have to bring in to get even 1G, probably a real vintage 59 LP, 😄… but they are buying here, in any case. And we may be single handedly propping up the used market and I’m not complaining too much about the slump for sellers. The last 12 instruments we’ve bought have all been used. And yeah, we’re getting pretty good prices when I check against the historical sold comps. And today we maybe going to check out a custom j45 model that sold on reverb for $2,600 11 years ago (over $3,500 in today’s dollars.) It’s priced at $2,600. So yeah, maybe not a great investment, but it’s great guitar if you want to play one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 (edited) GC where they buy at 65% of what it’s worth and turn around and slap a price on it usually reserved for a vintage guitar, and on the wall it goes. Probably never buying anything new or used ever again. Edited March 23 by Sgt. Pepper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabs Posted March 23 Author Share Posted March 23 5 hours ago, Murph said: You're a gifted wood worker, Rabs. Make something else. Perhaps this is an opportunity. Well thanks for that. But sadly its not just that, its also the fact that my hands are pretty screwed up. I have to be pretty careful these days and give them time to rest. Like I did some fencing for my mum the other week. About three hours working with my hands and I paid for it the following few days after. Then theres also what to make. I have looked at all sorts of things over the years. Recently I had the idea of making really nice wood cabinets for speakers. Like build an equivalent cab and just like fit someone's amp into it, that sort of thing. BUT these days with the mini CNC machines you can buy, almost any idea you can think of and theres already people set up and doing it. And then you have to work out if its worth the time to do that and be able to sell it for a reasonable profit. There arent many things you can build out of wood that can do that. So some might say well build them anyway. But I did that once before and then if I cant sell them you just end up with a load of guitars that no one wants and just sit in a cupboard. I do still want to finish the last few guitars I started building for personal reasons but its not a business. Its a weird world we live in at the moment. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merciful-evans Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 3 hours ago, Rabs said: I do still want to finish the last few guitars I started building for personal reasons but its not a business. Glad to hear that anyway. The Lite guitar is still of interest to us for sure. I just checked out Guitar Village used guitars and they have a Less+ and asking the original retail price that a new one cost in 2015 (£1,500). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabs Posted March 23 Author Share Posted March 23 49 minutes ago, merciful-evans said: Glad to hear that anyway. The Lite guitar is still of interest to us for sure. I just checked out Guitar Village used guitars and they have a Less+ and asking the original retail price that a new one cost in 2015 (£1,500). Thats pretty good.. But really after my 336s, I cant even be looking at buying one 🙂 Yeah, hopefully I will get my own, better one finished. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tx-ogre Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 I’m happy with my current collection of guitars and basses. There are some guitars that I’m interested in. If I can find a “gonga” deal on any of them, either new or used, I will buy them. However, the way things are now, they will remain on my wish list for the foreseeable future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 The more dollars they continue to give away, the less they are worth. Prices will keep going up for quality guitars. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larsongs Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 I want a Gibson Memphis VOS ES Les Paul Gold Top with P90’s & Bigsby.. Originally new they were about $2495.00.. Nice ones in the Used market are double.. About $4995.00.. Just before they were introduced I bought the Gibson Memphis Blacktop ES Les Paul with MHS Pickups & Bigsby for about $2000.00.. New.. Seemed like the next day the introduced the Gold Top.. I wanted one & by the time I could justify spending another $2000.00 for my 35th Guitar they were sold out.. I’m not seeing desirable Guitars going down.. Just the opposite.. They’re going up… And they’re hard to find.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 (edited) 36 minutes ago, Larsongs said: I want a Gibson Memphis VOS ES Les Paul Gold Top with P90’s & Bigsby.. Originally new they were about $2495.00.. Nice ones in the Used market are double.. About $4995.00.. Just before they were introduced I bought the Gibson Memphis Blacktop ES Les Paul with MHS Pickups & Bigsby for about $2000.00.. New.. Seemed like the next day the introduced the Gold Top.. I wanted one & by the time I could justify spending another $2000.00 for my 35th Guitar they were sold out.. I’m not seeing desirable Guitars going down.. Just the opposite.. They’re going up… And they’re hard to find.. You can thank Joe Bonamassa. He’s got all the good stuff and a bank account to back it up. The one who dies with the most guitars wins. Edited March 24 by Sgt. Pepper 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabs Posted March 24 Author Share Posted March 24 On 3/23/2024 at 4:59 PM, Rabs said: Well thanks for that. But sadly its not just that, its also the fact that my hands are pretty screwed up. I have to be pretty careful these days and give them time to rest. Like I did some fencing for my mum the other week. About three hours working with my hands and I paid for it the following few days after. Then theres also what to make. I have looked at all sorts of things over the years. Recently I had the idea of making really nice wood cabinets for speakers. Like build an equivalent cab and just like fit someone's amp into it, that sort of thing. BUT these days with the mini CNC machines you can buy, almost any idea you can think of and theres already people set up and doing it. And then you have to work out if its worth the time to do that and be able to sell it for a reasonable profit. There arent many things you can build out of wood that can do that. So some might say well build them anyway. But I did that once before and then if I cant sell them you just end up with a load of guitars that no one wants and just sit in a cupboard. I do still want to finish the last few guitars I started building for personal reasons but its not a business. Its a weird world we live in at the moment. You see... This is the sort of thing I am talking about.. Its a shop brand (PMT) and actually I have one quite close to me. Not that im looking for a new guitar.. But how they even make things like this at that price is just crazy. I couldnt come close. Not that im comparing what I did to cheap end guitars, just more about how crowded the market is and more importantly. It wasnt that long ago that you would never buy a cheap guitar cos you knew it wasnt worth it as they were just often unplayable. That has changed. The cheap end guitars of today are generally pretty decent. Especially when you consider the price. Oh and dont get too excited, its not actually rosewood, that would be beyond crazy. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 3 hours ago, Sgt. Pepper said: You can thank Joe Bonamassa. He’s got all the good stuff and a bank account to back it up. How did he get so much money? People buy his music? Who? I mean, I've seen him on YouTube and on t.v. a few times, but would never pay to see him. I guess somebody does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larsongs Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 17 hours ago, Murph said: How did he get so much money? People buy his music? Who? I mean, I've seen him on YouTube and on t.v. a few times, but would never pay to see him. I guess somebody does. How does a kid start playing with B.B. King when he’s 11 years old? How does he get Frank Sinatra’s Mgr? I don’t know about his back story but very well could be he was born into it.. Coming from a family of Wealth & Influence doesn’t hurt… I don’t know that he did but, either that or his Stars aligned… Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 41 minutes ago, Larsongs said: Coming from a family of Wealth & Influence doesn’t hurt… Indeed. Who knew you could still get rich playing blues covers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larsongs Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 1 hour ago, Murph said: Indeed. Who knew you could still get rich playing blues covers. Kind of like Steve Miller, ( “Fly Like An Eagle” ), whose Guitar teacher & mentor was Les Paul.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karloff Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 On 3/23/2024 at 7:12 AM, Murph said: You're a gifted wood worker, Rabs. Make something else. Perhaps this is an opportunity. agreed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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