You get what you pay for..DONT BELIEVE IT.

[mcasey329]

Frankly I am too old to care anymore about getting what I pay for. However the story alone will be retold countless time and over time that story and others to follow will build that guitar into something of lore if told in the right context.

I have had many occasions when things didn't work out for one reason or another. Life goes on and in the oral tradition so do the stories which cost me nothing but bring a sense of joy in the retelling and embellishing I manage to add over the years.

[Oldguy64]

So...a dent and a discoloration in the paint.
Long drive to attempt to fix both.
You spent a day with a great lady albeit in a car, Thant thinks enough of you to drive you all over Hells half acre...over a guitar.
A guitar that now has had its first calamity but plays and sounds awesome.

Now you've sent the thing off for a four month hiatus, and when you get it back, if all that stuff is fixed...you have to worry about the next first ding.
I understand being a "good steward" but I think you are way over thinking it.

I also get wanting a pretty guitar...but pristine and perfect lacks character.
We all have scars that tell the stories of our lives.

[MBE]

Originally Posted by franchelB

While I do understand the value in getting "what you paid for", I also understand the fact that "stuff" happens in life. Though it is somewhat strange that all of this "stuff" started happening at the same time to your guitar.

Nonetheless, in most cases, I still believe "you get what you pay for".

Yeah, buying a really nice guitar doesn't meant that you are guaranteed a smooth ride.

[mjz]

Check out the Law of Reciprocity.
Might explain much.
max

[Reinhard]

Originally Posted by Wade Hampton

Athana, I'm not going to comment on the Strat, given that electric guitars are not at all my field of expertise. But getting custom work done is generally expensive. The Custom Shop at Fender is undoubtedly a profit-generator for the company, otherwise they wouldn't take on that work.

I do want to chime in on the subject of storing leather straps with guitars. Particularly when the guitars have nitro-cellulose lacquer finishes, it's just a bad idea to leave the leather in direct contact with the guitar's finish, as you've discovered. Both lacquer and many leather dyes have volatile chemicals in them that can create chemical reactions when they are left touching each other.

When nitro-cellulose lacquer finishes are brand new and so are the straps, sometimes it's a bad idea to even have them closed up in the same case together if both are fresh and heavily off-gassing those chemicals. When brand new vinyl is placed in close proximity to new lacquer, again, they don't even have to touch for problems to ensue.

Sorry you've had to discover a lot of this the hard way. Getting Schaller straplocks and removing the straps whenever the guitars aren't in use is probably a good idea.

Hope this helps.


Wade Hampton Miller

+1 The only thing to leave in contact with a nitro finish is the case lining. I forgot a snark tuner on my J-45 and it reacted with the finish (fortunately only in a minor manner as I caught it pretty quickly).

The ding in a new guitar hurts, but fortunately nitro ages very nicely. I dinged my nitro EJ strat the first day I had it (belt buckle), but then again that is why I went for nitro. It still has a long way to go before it looks like this one:



http://www.paulgabriel.net/id25.html

[Otterhound]

The only guitars that stay perfect are never played and hid under the bed .

[leatherguy]

I always get what I pay for...I won't leave the store til I do.

[Teleman52]

Originally Posted by Reinhard

+1 The only thing to leave in contact with a nitro finish is the case lining. I forgot a snark tuner on my J-45 and it reacted with the finish (fortunately only in a minor manner as I caught it pretty quickly).

The ding in a new guitar hurts, but fortunately nitro ages very nicely. I dinged my nitro EJ strat the first day I had it (belt buckle), but then again that is why I went for nitro. It still has a long way to go before it looks like this one:



http://www.paulgabriel.net/id25.html

Actually even the case lining can be bad if it's the wrong color, I used to have a blue gibson sg that was supposed to be white

[Raymond Lin]

Call it battle scars and its the life of an instrument. You bought it to be played as opposed to frame it on a wall and look at right?

I accidentally hit my PRS at my lampshade and made a mark...I feel hell bad about it, still do but you know what, it is not unique, it's just a piece of wood and it still plays amazing and people pay more money for worn guitars ! I don't ever plan to sell it so as such, its resale value is meaningless.

Keep it, forget about it, play it and enjoy it. It's the music that matters.

Dark leather, especially black, is notorious for leaching into lacquer as well as white shirts. I've ended up with a black strap or two over the years, but I seldom use them. The straps that I use regularly have a vegetable tanned (natural/no-dye) suede lining. I also never leave them on the guitar in the case. Between those two things I eliminate nearly all possible issues.

Lacquer is a wonderful finish, both look and feel, but it's not the most sturdy finish compared to urethane or similar. Still, I'll take it and its quirks over most other options.

[moon]

deleted . .

[Athana]

I've kept Straps permanently attached to my guitars from the mid 70's since the Univox Les Paul as guitar slipped off a few times (while going wild) & I saw how close I came to the end of that neck.

The other straps never caused a stain but I do have stains from the DiMarzio strapsa on total 3 guitars . : (
This one bugged me the most cause it was like the first week and not good looking at all.Before i had a chance to even use it.

Somemore staining,thanks to DiMarzio Straps...Cunetto Relic.
It happened so gradually I hardly noticed and it looks like its part of the Relic thing.

[Athana]

Originally Posted by Reinhard

+1 The only thing to leave in contact with a nitro finish is the case lining. I forgot a snark tuner on my J-45 and it reacted with the finish (fortunately only in a minor manner as I caught it pretty quickly).

The ding in a new guitar hurts, but fortunately nitro ages very nicely. I dinged my nitro EJ strat the first day I had it (belt buckle), but then again that is why I went for nitro. It still has a long way to go before it looks like this one:



http://www.paulgabriel.net/id25.html

Contradictorily..when I see a guitar like that I much prefer it to a new looking one.What a beauty.

[Guitar1083]

Originally Posted by Athana

I've kept Straps permanently attached to my guitars from the mid 70's since the Univox Les Paul as guitar slipped off a few times (while going wild) & I saw how close I came to the end of that neck.

The other straps never caused a stain but I do have stains from the DiMarzio strapsa on total 3 guitars . : (
This one bugged me the most cause it was like the first week and not good looking at all.Before i had a chance to even use it.

Somemore staining,thanks to DiMarzio Straps...Cunetto Relic.
It happened so gradually I hardly noticed and it looks like its part of the Relic thing.

Start it at 3:46 - the whole video if you wanna watch

[DesolationAngel]

You really don't get what you pay for, sometimes...

Last night I was sitting in my office and I picked up my cheap Chinese made Gretsch resonator. It's a round neck but I bought a nut extension for it from Stewmac for four bucks. I'm no great shakes as a slide player but I'm trying. I picked up a 'bullet' and started noodling around–I have it tuned to Open G–and before I knew it was 11pm. I'd been sat there for about 45mins with a big grin on my face for most of the time... and you know what I realized? I get so much enjoyment out of that cheap guitar. Far more enjoyment than the money I paid for it.

(Also; considering how incredibly annoyed Athana sounded when he made his original post, I applaud his good humour to all of the responses)

(Also; chap, get your wife a more efficient car for goodness sake )