Relic'd Guitars are for Posers

[ricksdisconnected]

nuff said.

 

[Old Punker]

Hey anybody wanna buy a reliced car?

 

[ricksdisconnected]

Hey anybody wanna buy a reliced car?

i have a relic'ed pair of underwear up for grabs. one-off.
custom "made to order" upon request.
clean undies are for posers.

 

[Matthews Guitars]

You triggered me.

Relicd guitars = Harley Davidson sticker in the back window of a "soccer-mom-mobile"

Nothing makes me laugh longer or harder than "rugged 1 percenters" who are so dedicated to a specific product brand (Harley Davidson stands out) to such an extreme extent that they literally will decorate their vehicles, their homes, and even their bodies with anything and everything HD. I've BEEN in houses where they have a billiards table...and it's the HD special edition. The toilet seat is HD branded. The toilet PAPER is HD branded. The silverware, glasses, plates, and cookware are HD branded. Sheets, blankets, pillowcases, all HD branded. EVERYTHING HD from floor to ceiling. The truck outside is the Ford F150 Harley Davidson edition. Any thing they own that isn't HD branded is that way simply because there is no HD branded version of that particular item.

It's an extreme form of consumerism, and to me it's definitely a cousin of factory relic'ed guitars.

 

[JazzBrandee]

Oh boy, trust me to see this thread after ordering a relic'd guitar

Usually, I'm not a fan either to be fair. My Les Paul had developed the start of a crack in the headstock (classic, I know) after 14 years of playing, so that's off with the tech to take a look at.

Needed something in the meantime (and as a backup in case the worst happens live with the LP, you never know!), and picked up a Vintage V100. I'm a lefty so there's never really too much crossover between my taste and what's available, but I absolutely love this one.

Is the relic wearing a bit OTT? Yeah, my Gibson is nowhere anywhere as beat up looking as this thing and that's had some thrashing - but for a reasonably priced alternative I ain't gonna say no!

Will update if I get called a poser at the next gig

 

[JazzBrandee]

You triggered me.




Nothing makes me laugh longer or harder than "rugged 1 percenters" who are so dedicated to a specific product brand (Harley Davidson stands out) to such an extreme extent that they literally will decorate their vehicles, their homes, and even their bodies with anything and everything HD. I've BEEN in houses where they have a billiards table...and it's the HD special edition. The toilet seat is HD branded. The toilet PAPER is HD branded. The silverware, glasses, plates, and cookware are HD branded. Sheets, blankets, pillowcases, all HD branded. EVERYTHING HD from floor to ceiling. The truck outside is the Ford F150 Harley Davidson edition. Any thing they own that isn't HD branded is that way simply because there is no HD branded version of that particular item.

It's an extreme form of consumerism, and to me it's definitely a cousin of factory relic'ed guitars.

Good lord - it's people that make a brand their personality like this that give me a good laugh when I see it

 

[El Gringo]

indeed. i do however like the nitro thats relic'ed that allows you to continue to "wear it in" over the life time
of playing.

The relic ready Fender Custom guitars , that look pretty much brand "new" .

 

[El Gringo]

i'll pose all day long.


View attachment 107018

This might be , could be the very first ever actual real relic guitar .

 

[El Gringo]

One problem I have with the purposely relicd guitars is that they don't look anything like any guitar I've ever worn out

I would rather not run around in public with a guitar that looks like I've been sleeping with it and humping on it every night for 15 years

Relicd guitars = Harley Davidson sticker in the back window of a "soccer-mom-mobile"

Here is my take is that it is a price point as someone want's the look of an old vintage instrument , but does not have 5 to 6 figures in coin laying around for a real vintage instrument and this would be the next best thing to achieve that . Not for me as that's not what I grew up with .

 

[Derek S]

Not a fan either, but not necessarily because it looks off/wrong to me (some are ok, I guess, when done very subtly, but how many dudes do that - most relic'd guitars look like they got pulled up from the Titanic lmao), but more because they're just copying what many others have done for the sake of being hip, part of the cookie cutter mentality already mentioned (Harley's, Salt Life, etc), it's just too cliche for me, can't stand that shit. I'd have a hard time deciding which way is more odd, purchasing or ordering a new guitar already relic'd or those that take their new guitar and do it themselves (it's still weird to me but at least they're being somewhat creative).

 

[Brek]

I see a lot of references when this question gets asked to Dentists/lawyers guitars. I guess that is because of the price the charge for them.

I suppose I should tell about my first reaction when I saw one in a music shop round about 2003. I was in Sound Control in Newcastle looking at guitars when I came upon this really knackered looking guitar on the hanger, like paint scrapped of and dirty, thinking it will be cheap i flips hang tag over, 'How fucking much? that is taking the fucking piss'.

looking back and now understanding what they are about whislt I am not anti relic guitars, but I am certainly anti the sliding scale of charges that say the likes of Gibson levy on them. I have a 1958 light aged Murphy lab that looks more like ultra heavy aged. But if it said Ultra heavy aged on COA it would have been 2k more. I am not overly into aged finishes certainly not the extremes some fenders have. But a lightly aged one with wear, looks and feels good to play.

I was selling the '58 for a '59 as I am not keen on the narrow tall frets, but it is a real beast of a guitar so I am keeping it, although I would not have paid the £7k an ultra heavy aged one, as it it is the £5.5k I paid is the last time I drop that kinda money on a guitar unless its a genuine late 50's special.

I just bought a limited run fender player tele with nocaster custom shop pickups, no ageing, poly finish and it is rapidly becoming my go to, and it only cost £700 including an aftermarket vintage style bridge with intonated brass saddles.

 

[matttornado]

I'm not into buying new relic'd guitars either. All of my guitars have real battle marks from bar gigs.

On the other hand, way back when I was in by early 20s, I was re-painting my Gibson Explorer and when I was wet -sanding the edges, I accidentally sanded through to the wood and thought it looked so cool. I decided to sand the paint off around the edges so it looked kind of like wood binding. LOL

So by mistake, I purposely relic'd it wya before it became a thing. If I only new people would pay for such a thing....

 

[Derek S]

Hey anybody wanna buy a reliced car?

Haha! You raise a point and it's apples and oranges, but my dad and I recently talked about this (he plays guitar too). We still enjoy going to vintage car shows together and checking out the classics. We talk about how those dudes put in so much time (and $$$) to make their antique rides look pristine and new, usually sporting accurate colors with "like new" paint, polished chrome, silky clean bodies, original interiors, etc....and yet we have guys today buying new guitars and going out of their way to make them look OAF lol. I wonder when this fad will hit the project car world (please no)...I just can't picture going to a car show and seeing new cars with fake paint wear, fadded body paint, dull chrome, intentionally rusted out spots, etc. Vintage car enthusiasts buy and restore old cars - guitar players are buying and faux aging new guitars...strange times.

 

[ApathyForum]

The only guitar I have that has significant wear on it is the PRS Custom that I used back in my bar band days. Yes the wear & tear on it is all from me, but to be honest I don't really think about it in terms of "authentic" versus "fake." If somebody has a factory relic'd guitar that they love, and that inspires them to pick it up and play, more power to them. I'm not going to psychoanalyze their decision based on my own perceptions, because I'm not them and they're not me.

Completely agree. I’ve never understood why some guitar players get triggered by relic guitars or any other choices their fellow guitar players make. We’re all guitar players.

 

[tallcoolone]

I have no problem with used guitars that have wear and tear. That's fine by me.
My problem is with brand new guitars artificially made to look worn and heavily used

That’s a damn odd thing to have a “problem with”

 

[PowerTube44]

i'll pose all day long.


View attachment 107018

I don't really think of these as relics. I think of them more as reproductions of guitars that happen to look rough.

The thing I hate is the "relic" Strats that look like someone swiped a belt sander across the side of the body, making a nice, consistent sweep. I can't imagine a guitar wearing in like that naturally.

 

[10kDA]

Relic-ing done by the manufacturer is a marketing ploy that seems to be successful so I can't fault their thinking if they're selling more guitars as a result. I would never buy one though, and I sure as Hell would never pay a $$$ premium for one. They should be cheaper than a pristine model, shouldn't they?

 

[PowerTube44]

Haha! You raise a point and it's apples and oranges, but my dad and I recently talked about this (he plays guitar too). We still enjoy going to vintage car shows together and checking out the classics. We talk about how those dudes put in so much time (and $$$) to make their antique rides look pristine and new, usually sporting accurate colors with "like new" paint, polished chrome, silky clean bodies, original interiors, etc....and yet we have guys today buying new guitars and going out of their way to make them look OAF lol. I wonder when this fad will hit the project car world (please no)...I just can't picture going to a car show and seeing new cars with fake paint wear, fadded body paint, dull chrome, intentionally rusted out spots, etc. Vintage car enthusiasts buy and restore old cars - guitar players are buying and faux aging new guitars...strange times.

That fad has hit the motorcycle world. They're called "rat bikes," where the owner deliberately makes the bike as ragged looking as possible.

 

[Torren61]

I'll take a Murphy Labs relic'd Jimmy Page LP if I can get it for a price I can afford. It's only when someone does something completely ridiculous that I shake my head. Otherwise, why would i care?

 

[Deftone]

I like it when people sell relic guitars and say they are in "mint" condition.

I also think it's strange that people would pay $5k for a relic 70's Strat but only $2500 for a real 70's Strat. Murphy Lab LP's are $10K...almost double $ for a non Relic'd LP. Not for me. No way.

I did create one relic for myself though. My '81 Strat weighed 10+ lbs so Bought a Warmoth HSS body. Paint and relic was $300.



I've since put the original body back together and bought a new USA neck for the Warmoth body.