Herd Management

[Hoss]

I'm close to making a big decision about my guitars. And I'm wondering how others with multiple instruments approach their 'herd management'.

It seems that I have three guitars that I play all the time. (a '46 J45, a '33-34 L7, and a new custom Maple L00)

The others tend to sit in their respective cases. They are very nice instruments. But I just don't seem to require what they have to offer.

 

I've been reluctant to part with any of them, because I know that they're real good, and lord knows I would never expect to find another of the same model as good in the future.

 

However, I'm mulling over the adoption of a 'rotating' chair philosophy. Certain guitars have acquired tenure- the others need to move on to someone who would appreciate them. And be replaced with different models that I would like to experience.

 

This revelation comes about after being offered several tempting trades. And knowing that a year from now, those guitars that weren't traded will have been in their cases for most of that year.

 

Yes, this is a fortunate position and a nice problem; I realize that. (I don't want to come off like I'm complaining about a serious problem - it certainly isn't that! ) I am not a collector, just someone who was able to save regularly over the last 5 years and purchase half a dozen nice guitars.

 

Anyone else keep a few rotating seats going?

[Gilliangirl]

I don't own enough guitars to rotate (altho' I'm mulling over the purchase of an Epiphone John Lennon 160-E at the moment so the herd's getting bigger), but I'll be interested to see the answers in this thread. Is there anyone who plays ALL their guitars REGULARLY, or is it normal to favor just 2 or 3 at a time? Interesting.

[ksdaddy]

I have traditionally kept several moving at once; I always considered a certain number to be 'swap bait'. Like you said, some have tenure and they will just never go away. Others come and go. The problem I seem to have is that I will dump a guitar and then about a year (or maybe more) later I get all nostalgic about it. Lately I have done my best to 'not' sell any unless I really didn't like them. In other words, just because I'm not using one is not enough of a reason to get rid of it.

 

I've got a '91 J-30 that I doubt has 10 hours play on it. I don't use it and I walk right past the case as if it's not there. Ditto for the '78 Kramer aluminum neck. Both pristine but nothing that sparks me at the moment. If I dump them, they're gone, and then a year fom now I'll be all weepy eyed.

 

I went through about 10 Strats in 3 years and ended up with an '89 in the sexiest maroon.... it even smelled new. I was bored with it at the moment and it went away. Guess what I'm shopping for now?

 

If you can parlay unwanted guitars into ones you would like to try, I say godspeed, brother... but there's a dark side to it.

[zombywoof]

It would be hard for me to make a call on what to keep and what to sell after owning them only a few years.

 

I own only one acoustic which they will have to pry from my cold dead hands. That is my SJ (my wife has laid claim to my old J-200 which I will only get back when I pry it from her cold dead hands). The others while I am not planning on selling - could still go bye bye at some time in the future.

 

I also have learned that there is always a great sounding and playing guitar right around the corner. Seems I run across a few I would jump on if I had the cash several times a year.

 

The real problem is when you have owned one for 40 years and every scratch and dried tobasco sauce stain is a memory. Once, being stone cold broke, I had to sell a guitar I had played for some 40 years. I had flippin' nightmares about it for months afterwards. It is like part of you is missing.

[onewilyfool]

I rotate them two at a time, about a week at a time. ....Plus I keep one in the living room on a stand, so I can practice during commercials....and one in my home office.....rotating them occasionally.....If I don't play a guitar....it goes on the shopping block...

[Jerry K]

Yeah, I have this problem now too. I have the following guitars:

 

J-50

Nick Lucas

L-00

165 rosewood

165 maple

185

 

Martin om-21

 

epiphone el-00

Epiphone aj500R

 

Also assorted nylon string guitars, Baby Taylor, cowboy guitars, and a wonderful old D-18 I bought new in '71 which needs major repair work which would probably cost a grand or two.

 

Basically I don't play the J-50 because of the size. The problem is it may be the best sounding guitar I have. It really sings. It's still maturing and will probably become a monster in about 10 years time. It's in stunning, mint shape and it's a real looker. I have problems letting go of it.

 

I don't play the Nick because it is in need of a professional setup. It needs some minor fretwork and probably a new nut; the existing nut is too low. These are tasks I don't as yet perform. So I will get it set up soon and then we'll see.

 

I like playing the small body Gibsons, the L-00 and the 165's, but I am thinking I have too many and maybe will eliminate one or two.

 

I just got the 185 and am not totally certain I will keep it. I set it up today with a new saddle and strings and the sound is beginning to blossom so I am going to play it a while and think about it.

 

The OM-21 is a magnificent sounding guitar, but the neck does not suit me too well. I should really let it go but I am having trouble doing it. I suspect I'll regret it later if I sell or trade it.

 

The EL-00 is a keeper. I use it around my dogs and for camping or other risky situations.

 

The AJ500R is probably destined to be a gift. It's a nice instrument but it's long scale and those big guitars don't work too well with my hereditary shoulder problems.

 

Overall I think I have too many now and will make some decisions eventually about which ones I like best and sell a few. It's hard to keep fresh strings on all of them and I don't really need all those for daily playing. I'm not in a big hurry to get rid of any at the moment so I'll take my time deciding.

 

I suspect the guitars may keep their value better than dollars at this point.

[DonCarlos]

However, I'm mulling over the adoption of a 'rotating' chair philosophy. Certain guitars have acquired tenure- the others need to move on to someone who would appreciate them. And be replaced with different models that I would like to experience.

 

Sounds like a wise consideration to me. After just recently thinning out my guitars. I am left with two instruments that I play, the new J45 and the old strat. I did hold on to two other guitars at my gal's insistence (sentimental stuff).

 

The five (fenders) that I sold? The feelings of guilt for keeping them so long, unused and in cases, immediately was replaced with feelings of contentment. I had justified too long why I needed to keep them (of course all were good reasons) and now that issue is gone. Yay.

 

In the end you have to do what makes you happy, without guilt or concern. If you like collecting them then do so. But if you feel those pangs of guilt when you walk by their closed cases, then I agree with your idea of rotating them out.

[kazzelectro]

I've had a good number of guitars come and go. Many were what I thought were keepers at the time, but as time passed I found the keepers were just collecting dust and soon they were gone. Of some 30+ guitars that have come and gone I only had one regret and that was a 1977 Fender Telecaster Deluxe in Mocha. I wasn't playing it much but when I did pick her up she was devine...very unique sound and just mojo that rocked your soul. Sold it and then spent 1 1/2 looking or another...ended up buying a 1976 Mocha Telecaster Deluxe...but then sold it. Can't really explain why but now I have no desire to own a Tele Deluxe. When I get the notion that one of my gals should probably be leaving, it takes me weeks or months of contemplation and eventually she leaves (but only after taking a good number of photos to remember her by). In my case it's often the quest to possess a guitar to say or feel that I know what it's like to own that particular guitar. I've had Les Pauls, Strats, Teles, Martins, Taylors, Gibsons and they are all gone...but I can tell ya that I had the pleasure of getting to know them one on one

[Gibson101]

I have so many guitars I don't even know how it happened! I want to sell some, but I find it impossible to decide which.

 

Sometimes it stresses me out and many times like today I play them all for a bit and think I'm a pretty lucky guy.

 

Which would you keep which would you sell??

 

Gibson's

J-45 Rosewood Natural

J-185 Vintage Sun Burst

SJ-300 Natural Rosewood

RJ L-1 Mahogany Sunburst 12 Fret

ES-335 Sunburst

 

Martin's

D-18GE Sunburst

000-18GE Sunburst

000-28VS 12 Fret Natural

0000-28H Natural

D-15S 12 Fret Mahogany

 

Fender Strat 2004 Anniversary Edition Sunburst

 

I like them all but I'd like to thin it out a bit! Or at least my fiance would!

[drathbun]

I have 12 guitars. I start thinking about selling or trading when I can't justify keeping a particular guitar. Now it is essential to have at least ONE of the following:

 

Nylon string classical

Acoustic 6 string

Acoustic 12 string

Electric solid body 6 string

Electric semi-hollow body 6 string

Electric 12 string

Electric 6 string bass

 

So I start questioning a guitar's presence in the herd when there are more than one in a category.

 

I have three two solid body electrics ('81 Rick 325, a Strat and a early '60's Hofner). I would never part with my strat and the Hofner is a sentimental guitar because I learned to play on a guitar almost identical to it. The Rick was a 50th birthday present from my wife and just keeps increasing in value as do all my Ricks.

 

I have four six string acoustics. The Gibson SWD is now my main acoustic. My '68 Yamaha FG150 Red Label is a collectors item and a great campfire guitar (it is very beat up), plus I did my first neck reset on it. My Larrivee L05 is a first class guitar that is gathering a bit of dust because of the SWD and I've been toying with trading both my Yamaha FG720S-12 string and the Larrivee for a Taylor 12 string. The odd man out right now is my Ephiphone EJ160e. It just doesn't get played very often, so it may go.

 

If I had unlimited resources, I'd have and keep all the different styles of six string acoustics (OM body, 12 fret dreadnought, a Jumbo etc.) and add some semi-hollow electrics like a Tennessean or a Country Gent.

 

I do have to add a lapsteel to the herd soon though (for when I'm too old to fret and pick).

[larryp58]

I only have two. I play my SongBird at bluegrass gigs regularly and my SJ only at venues where its not likely to be bumped into by other musicians (which happens often in the bluegrass scene). All in all, they both get played regularly. And the genre of music dictates which guitar I play. As each one has a different tone (mahogany vs. rosewood). I wish I had the problem of having too many guitars! Lucky you!

[ballcorner]

 

Anyone else keep a few rotating seats going?

 

I have been able to keep 30+ guitars well played in recent years by having jam sessions at my house each week. Still, I find myself in your position where I have a group of guitars I truly play on a daily basis and many that hang in the guitar room waiting for the weekly jam.

 

In my own case, I am culling the herd dramatically (selling 25 guitars) because we are moving from a modest real estate market to a very expensive one - so the instruments will give us enough money to have a similar house in the new city without a big mortgage.

 

Even though this adjustment has happened with a purpose in mind of buying a home - I have actually found peace with the idea that I will only own what I am playing, and I will have much cheaper house insurance when the herd is reduced!!

 

The worst thing, in my opinion, is to have a beautiful guitar that never gets played. I don't know the science of whether guitars are like violins - need to be played or they lose tone - but I do suspect this could be true. I will miss several of the guitars I am parting with (have already sold 13 of the 25) because they had special stories and histories with me personally - but I feel those sentiments can be adequately documented with recordings, photos and journal entries and my bank account can enjoy the new balance.

 

The only guitar that was really hard to part with was a 1957 Gibson J-200 blonde. It was sold to me by a kind man who came to see me play at a pub when I was really young. I had a crappy guitar, and he offered me this beauty for $700 - even then, a fraction of its value. I later learned he parted with the guitar because he was ill and when he passed I offered it back to his estate at the price I paid because I wanted someone in his family to have it. But, they said they felt he wanted me playing it or he wouldn't have sold it to me - so I kept it for more than 20 years and I have to say I felt terrible selling it -- but for me with my touch and approach to guitar it just wasn't an instrument I could get anything out of. The guy I sold it to is amazing, so I hope somewhere the man who sold it to me can hear the great music coming out of it now and forgive me.

 

Well, that was therapeutic. I apologize for indulging myself, but I thank you all just the same.

[Rambler]

I think you need to play 'em. Even in the days I had several, I also found myself coming back to the same favs (like you DC, a J50 & strat--the Holly/Hopkins connection). The J50 tends to hang around; Ive tried out some others (00016, Blues King, AJ) but, for its faults, the J50 is still first

on deck.

 

While traveling light can be good, I can also see a working player having a "battery" of instruments for different tones/gigs: 6's, a 12, mando. J

[Taylor Player]

I have owned so dang many guitars over the years even my head spins sometimes trying to remember some of them. I have regretted letting go of a couple but never for more than a day or two. When it's time to go, you can feel it.

 

Currently I have three acoustics that in my mind are all keepers as each has a distinct tone and application in my music taste. The Taylor is there for anything where the guitar has to "sing" the melody, hold sustain and for more difficult pieces as it is just so easy to play. My Advanced Jumbo is great when I need a strummer or more mellow fingerstyle tone or to accompany a singer or when I want to go to drop D or DADGAD as it shines with the droning bass lines. My newest acoustic aquisition, the 1964 LG1, replaced what I thought was going to be a keeper ,my 2006 Taylor GSMC. While the GSMC was right up there with my other Taylor in terms of tone, playability and shimmer for fingerstyle pieces, it was easy to let go for the boxy, blusy tones that come out of the LG1. Now I have three very different guitars that cover pretty much everything I play.

 

I also keep a semi-hollow body cheapo electric around to jam on but it has the least amount of play time. Maybe after I replace the pickups, tone and volume pots it will get more play time, but after trying many electrics from vintage to very expensive, I found that I am pretty much happiest playing my acoustics and I am fine owning a decent playing ES-335 copy and enjoy that more than the high end Strat style guitars I had prior to it.

 

Bottom line is that all of them get played at least a few times a week and the acoustics are played pretty much daily. I don't have any extras laying around gathering dust and making me feel guilty about not playing them.

[Red 333]

 

The only guitar that was really hard to part with was a 1957 Gibson J-200 blonde. It was sold to me by a kind man who came to see me play at a pub when I was really young. I had a crappy guitar' date=' and he offered me this beauty for $700 - even then, a fraction of its value. I later learned he parted with the guitar because he was ill and when he passed I offered it back to his estate at the price I paid because I wanted someone in his family to have it. But, they said they felt he wanted me playing it or he wouldn't have sold it to me - so I kept it for more than 20 years and I have to say I felt terrible selling it -- but for me with my touch and approach to guitar it just wasn't an instrument I could get anything out of. The guy I sold it to is amazing, so I hope somewhere the man who sold it to me can hear the great music coming out of it now and forgive me.

 

[/quote']

 

That's a great story to start the morning with. Thanks. And it seems to me, though you no longer own the guitar, the wishes of the first owner, his family (and the builders!) have been honored. Someone is enjoying that instrument right now, and others are enjoying listening to him play it.

 

I think the guy who sold it to you is smiling. And tapping his toes, too.

 

Red 333

[Red 333]

Hoss, I seem to be in the same postion as you. My herd just keeps growing and growing. It's over 40 right now.

 

I sometimes come across a guitar that is such a good deal, I aquire it with the express purpose of selling it, thinking it would be a fun way to make a couple hundred bucks while giving someone else a really good deal. That guitar can stick around somehow, even when I do everything in my power to resist bonding with it at first, like keeping it in a case for months. I usually justify keeping it by thinking, "Well, I don't NEED the money RIGHT NOW. I'll keep it until I do."

 

I also add guitars to my stable with another self delusion. I say, "I'll get that one, and sell this other one and this other one later in order to pay for it."

 

Right.

 

I love guitars (especially Gibsons), and appreciate them as objects as well as instruments. And while I'm not a speculator-type collector, I am satisfied that a good guitar is a good investment. I say that if collecting is not interfering with other aspects of your life, you should do so happily. It's not is if you have a collection of old newspapers stacked so high that they form new walls and corridors in your house. You have something beautiful, useful, unique, valuable, and terrible (you can kill facists with 'em).

 

Anyway, I rotate which guitars get played. Each week, I swap out some of the guitars that will stay out on stands. I polish the ones that will go back into their cases, and use this opportunity to add water to the case humidifiers in the acoustics. Of course, there are one or two that never leave a stand. If and when I ever thin the herd, these will be the keepers. Some of these are not even my "best" guitars, but they are my favorites.

 

Your approach (to rotate your unplayed guitars out of the house, by trading them for something else you'd like to try) sounds very sensible, less costly than simply buying more guitars that end up unplayed, and space efficient. It seems many of our members do something similar.

 

When it does come time to thin the herd, I'm going to re-read this thread. There's some excellent perspectives and good advice here.

 

Red 333

[jgwoods]

40 guitars? You're not married are you? I thought i had it bad when I had 9, swore I would hold it down to 2 of each like I was building an ark. Well I have 5 guitars, 3 fiddles, 2 banjos and 2 mandolins. 2 of the guitars are going very soon, one because I can no longer play a 1 11/16 neck with stiff old fingers....funny, I can still play mandolin.

 

I rotate regularly. I parked the 2 I'm selling, and I just got #5 back from the shop where it got a new nut so now I have to rotate 3, or sell one more. Frankly I think they sound poor if you leave them in the case for much over a week, so a 2 guitar rotation works fine for me. I know I am going to wind up playing 3 for a while, then one is going to be declared the spare and I'll sell it. Y guess is it will be the J185 because I am leaving behind my days of playing deep body guitars.

 

I'll wind u with the Martin OM-21 Special and the Gibson L-OO.

[EdgarHF]

Since I only own one guitar it is easy to keep my rotation schedule simple.

[ksdaddy]

You're probably the luckiest one of all of us!

[jt]

I've got something in the neighborhood of 20 guitars. That "something" tells you that I buy and sell with some frequency. But, I only let something go if I get something more interesting in return (sold a 1930 L-0 to help fund a 1929 Nick Lucas, for example). I do rotate them on a regular basis, though some faves tend to stay in the rotation. When I haven't played a guitar for a while, I really enjoy its rediscovery.

 

In any event, for what it's worth, my advice is only to trade if you're getting something more interresting to you than what you're giving away. For me, part of that "interesting" quotient is rarity.

[TommyK]

If you are to that point in your life where you are seriouisly examining the sanity of owning so many >insert collectible< , then examine your collectibles. In the case of guit tars, pick your favorite of each variety; Jumbo, SJ, fingerpicker, classical, electric, you MUST have played them within the last 6 months. Set them asside.

 

Inventory the rest, then put an honest value on them.

 

What could you do with the cash? If they are worth more than your opportunity costs, keep them. Othewise, your kids will have one whale of an estate auction.

 

My favorite bumpersticker is that seen on the back of a four wheeled Land Ark.

 

"We're spending our childrens' inheritance."

 

That's as it should be.

[ballcorner]

 

My favorite bumpersticker is that seen on the back of a four wheeled Land Ark.

 

"We're spending our childrens' inheritance."

 

That's as it should be.

 

My favourite bumper sticker is "She said it was her or my Gibson. I'm gonna miss her."

[vourot]

For me, the key is just to stay the hell out of the guitar shops.I really like my AJ so I'm going to stick with it and be happy. I find I'll be obsessing about other guitars instead of playing the one I already own. So I don't do that any more and my playing has improved ten fold. But then there are electrics...... so I just have to save for that SG 61 re-issue....