• From: BELGIUM
  • Registered: 2007-01-27
  • Posts: 3,403

Topic: COLLECTING GUITARS

This is for me a very sensitive subject. I am proud and sad at the same time.
I just wanted to know if I am a lonely man sticking to his collection, AND play on every "axe".

I was able due to my profession, to see a lot of problems, financial problems, often caused by drugs, alcohol.
A patient, desperately seeking money, wanted to sell his MARTIN HD28, for 500$. It happened 12 years ago, and still...
Very good friends of me, started with a music shop, and I gave them 5000€, +- $6500, but getting your money back, is more difficult. So 2 years later we agreed that they would pay me in instruments, six different guitars, ovation, epiphone sheraton (the older serie, playing super) the MARTIN D15, dark brown mahogany, also a MARTIN D1 12 string, is even now affordable, and sounds terrific.
Another guy, I knew, was also in need for money: 6500$ for a FENDER, all original  1964, and a GIBSON LES PAUL CUSTOM 1968, the first year they started to produce them again.
And having already those instruments, I started to be addicted, and my collection was getting bigger.
I KNOW, I COULD JUST GIVE YOU A LIST WITH MY GUITARS, but I was curious to find out if I am alone, or if there were other "chordians" playing and collecting guitars.
I can only say that I was blessed, having that opportunity, and having the money (got a lot, because of my car crash in 2000), and now this is for me, being disabled, not able to walk without canes, no more skiing, even bowling ball is to hard for me. ( I had a vertebra, in my lower back, causing these problems) If I play guitar, with the problem I have, you start to know how heavy a Gibson Les Paul is. I have to sit down always when I play guitar.

So are there other people outside, who had the luck to collect guitars, and how it started?

[color=blue]- GITAARDOCPHIL SAIS: TO CONQUER DEAD, YOU HAVE TO DIE[/color]   AND [color=blue] we are born to die[/color]
- MY GUITAR PLAYS EVERY STYLE = BLUES, ROCK, METAL, so I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY IT.
[color=blue]Civilization began the first time an angry person cast a word instead of a rock.[/color]

gitaardocphil's Website

  • From: montreal, quebec
  • Registered: 2007-04-17
  • Posts: 327

Re: COLLECTING GUITARS

Hi Phil, This is something that never interested me before. as long as I had an acoustic and an electric guitar I was fine, but lately I have been having the desire to buy more guitars. I have recently ordered a new martin D-42 and I should be getting it sometime next week. Now I want to get a resonator and develop my slide playing. I have also been thinkinking about a 12 string. I have a Gibon Lucille but I sometimes miss having Fender (Strat & Tele ) I believe I am suffering from the bug. Does it ever end ?

what a long strange trip it's been
  • From: BELGIUM
  • Registered: 2007-01-27
  • Posts: 3,403

Re: COLLECTING GUITARS

Hi, my Canadian friend. This is always a difficult topic. Some people are addicted to Gibson, please DO NOT SELL your Lucille, I had the pleasure to visit their plant in Memphis, and all my hairs are standing vertical when they start talking about factory. I agree it is a KIND OF FACTORY, you can see , last week for sure, how they make the hollow bodies, you don't see much, but it gives you enough to start dreaming. I can only tell, that every guitar is build, every piece of it, with respect. Is this "factory work" when they cut the form with a machine, is this factory when they paint the guitar and put lacquer on it? I just saw enough to know that this part in the production, is far the most delicate one.
Sometimes, I hate it when I start counting my guitars, and when I see, how difficult it is for other people, who count there savings for 1 guitar of their dreams. I worked up to 13-14 hours a day, saturday included, some people love to collect all products and stuff from an actor? Or spend all their money for their dream house? I think that everybody has to do what he likes, and I prefer, less expensive flowers in my garden, I don't drink, I smoke just sometimes, if you count all that money together you can afford a Taylor, or Gibson Les Paul AND LOOKING AT THE WAY THE PRICES ARE GOING HIGHER AND HIGHER, it is AN INVESTMENT, if I need money, I will sell one.
I know, everybody, on this website too, have their hobbies, because of my situation (disabled, and had to stop working) my great joy is that there are sites, and I almost never surf since I found what I needed, people with the same hobby, the same interest, to other sites, except to look for information, like history, animals, cross breads, like donkey/zebra. BUT I FEEL REALLY HAPPY HERE, EVERYBODY IS KIND, WILLING TO SHARE THEIR SKILLS, what more do you, I, need.

[color=blue]- GITAARDOCPHIL SAIS: TO CONQUER DEAD, YOU HAVE TO DIE[/color]   AND [color=blue] we are born to die[/color]
- MY GUITAR PLAYS EVERY STYLE = BLUES, ROCK, METAL, so I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY IT.
[color=blue]Civilization began the first time an angry person cast a word instead of a rock.[/color]

gitaardocphil's Website

  • From: BELGIUM
  • Registered: 2007-01-27
  • Posts: 3,403

Re: COLLECTING GUITARS

Me again, forgot to ask something. I am glad in your place concerning that MARTIN-D42, I smuggled 4 years ago, a MARTIN D-45, from Gruhn, Nashville to Belgium ( I knew the serial number, and a friend wrote me a letter, that he sold me that guitar, with the serial number on it), you never know.
But my question was: is there a difference in sound between those two guitars. I agree, when I come to Canada, we can compare them, but before showing up there we can maybe get an answer and bootleger is a specialist in these things.
WHERE ARE YOU BOOT, we need your opinion

[color=blue]- GITAARDOCPHIL SAIS: TO CONQUER DEAD, YOU HAVE TO DIE[/color]   AND [color=blue] we are born to die[/color]
- MY GUITAR PLAYS EVERY STYLE = BLUES, ROCK, METAL, so I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY IT.
[color=blue]Civilization began the first time an angry person cast a word instead of a rock.[/color]

gitaardocphil's Website

  • Registered: 2007-07-09
  • Posts: 1

Re: COLLECTING GUITARS

I understand collecting. I have almost no budget,wife, kids, etc... All 4 of my guitars came cheap, only paid for one. my favorite one is a 68 silvertone 1451 amp in case. Best sound around. There will be more instruments in the future and I'll never sell any of them. They all play differently. I'm a novice but I love my noise makers.

  • From: BELGIUM
  • Registered: 2007-01-27
  • Posts: 3,403

Re: COLLECTING GUITARS

I understand this very good, money will always be the problem. A part of my collection is from a music store. I gave them about €5000 to help them starting their store, store grows, getting your money back is another thing, but finally the best solution was, I was still working, and I earned pretty well, admitting that I worked about 80 hours a week, and being available day and night, that we agreed that they would pay me back in instruments. And once you start owning beauties, you want more.
I confess that my lifestyle and philosophy is: if I have (a lot of) money, I can spend a lot.
If I don't have money, I spend only money for paying things I need. Sometimes, it is easy speaking when you have 1 daughter 20 years old, I had to make deals with myself: I like to buy that, well I don't do this

[color=blue]- GITAARDOCPHIL SAIS: TO CONQUER DEAD, YOU HAVE TO DIE[/color]   AND [color=blue] we are born to die[/color]
- MY GUITAR PLAYS EVERY STYLE = BLUES, ROCK, METAL, so I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY IT.
[color=blue]Civilization began the first time an angry person cast a word instead of a rock.[/color]

gitaardocphil's Website

  • From: montreal, quebec
  • Registered: 2007-04-17
  • Posts: 327

Re: COLLECTING GUITARS

Hi Phil, I have done a lot of research and playing  as far as Martin goes. I wanted to be sure I pcked the right guitar for me. I think this will be my last 6 string acoustic purchace. The D-45 has more larger fret inlays (Hexegon), different tuning keys, but has the same neck shape (low profile). The D-42 has what they call foward shifted top bracing which I believe givs a much fuller sound. It also has  open geared tuning keys, not that really makes any difference. D-42 has snowflake shaped inlays on the neck. Both are Dreadnought Models. The D-45 also cost more

what a long strange trip it's been
  • Registered: 2007-01-29
  • Posts: 533

Re: COLLECTING GUITARS

Hi...I've always loved guitars and music and several years ago started a collection of "player" guitars. I don't really care about investment grade stuff that stays locked away, but wanted guitars that I could actually use. That said, I've got a few Fender Strats, Gibson Les Paul, Peavey Wolfgang, Dan Electro, Martin, and several others...I hope to be able to eventually add a couple of PRS and other G&L or two....my main weapon of choice is an American Fender Telecaster which was my first quality American made guitar... I often will buy stuff cheap off ebay or pawnshops and hotrod or tinker with and then make them available to kids in our youth group or such...lots of really good stuff out there...

Middleaged Redneck sorta guy who refuses to grow up...passion for music, especially Southern Rock but like bout everything cept Gangsta/Hip Hop. Collect guitars, mandolins, and love to ride Harleys.
  • From: BELGIUM
  • Registered: 2007-01-27
  • Posts: 3,403

Re: COLLECTING GUITARS

It is on one hand a nice topic, and on the other a sad topic.
WHY: you need money.
I told how my collection started, it started in fact in a sad way, someone asked me for money but gave his guitar a MARTIN HD 28, I still feel guilty in a matter of speaking, but he needed the money, to spend buying drugs, I helped this guy a lot, often without asking money for a consultation, but I did save that man, who spend a lot of money to buy heroin, by prescribing him medication, so he didn't need no longer to buy on the street.
Another one, badly addicted to alcohol, had to pay so much money to pay contributions, and he knew that I was a guitar freak, I even paid him more than he asked, because I got a GIBSON LES PAUL CUSTOM (black) 1968, and a fender strat 1964. Why do I feel guilty sometimes? Because I am not like that. Also I had opportunities to marry a billionaires daughter, one of the most beautiful girls I've ever seen, back in 1982, but DRINKING like hell. So I broke up, it would have made me very, very rich, she felt that I was not so happy, and she even tried to give me a FERRARI, or tried to convince me by showing me how rich she was, but I am OR A FOOL, not accepting this, OR an IDIOT, I just don't like the fact to be dependant, to be the husband of. Probably I am an exception, because she called me a lot, when I was married, for years, telling about her boyfriends who just wanted 1 thing $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. How strange this may sound, and even how bad I like $$$$$, THIS NOT WHO I AM. I worked for every cent, I traeted a lot of people whithout asking money, now I don't work no longer due to an accident, I am very well insured, and if you compare the $ with the €, I even put myself in trouble, before I realised it, by buying guitars in the USA.
It sounds weird, especially the fact that I loved that girl, I loved drinking too, but was never an addict. IS THIS A BAD HABIT, or ATTITUDE? I can only tell you that I hate to take advantage in cases like I mentionned
ONE FACT IS FOR SURE: the value of my collection is already 3x the original value. Some, a lot, are collecting stamps, dolls. In the situation where I'm in now, my guitars make me happy.

[color=blue]- GITAARDOCPHIL SAIS: TO CONQUER DEAD, YOU HAVE TO DIE[/color]   AND [color=blue] we are born to die[/color]
- MY GUITAR PLAYS EVERY STYLE = BLUES, ROCK, METAL, so I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY IT.
[color=blue]Civilization began the first time an angry person cast a word instead of a rock.[/color]

gitaardocphil's Website