Those of us that share a passion for collecting Vintage Guitars, tend to have a preference for either Vintage Electric Guitars or Acoustic Vintage Guitars.
And then of course there are people that like to collect both.
The term Vintage in the guitar category, applies to guitars from the mid 1920’s to 1970. Guitar’s made before the mid 1920’s are judged as being too primitive in their design and therefore are not valued by collectors. At the other end of the spectrum, guitars made after 1970 - even though they are nearly 40 years old in some cases, do not have collectible appeal, mainly because of the state of the US guitar manufacturing industry during the 1970’s which saw a drop in the quality of finished products.
The materials used to make guitars pre 1970 were of a higher quality, for example Brazilian Rosewood which was often used, can no longer be legally imported into the US. And 30 years ago guitars were more of a hand made item, whereas today most guitar manufacturing is done through computer controlled routers and cutters.
Many people also think, that because they purchased a 1970’s guitar that was stopped being made after a small number of units is automatically valuable. Which is not the case at all. As for collectors of Vintage Electric Guitars or Acoustic Electric Guitars need to know that any guitar made since 1970 can easily be replicated with currently available materials.
And that if they are not currently being produced, it’s simply because there is no significant demand for them.
So you can see that there are quite a few things to know about Vintage Guitars, and my focus tends to be on Vintage Electric Guitars (though I have a few Vintage Acoustic Guitars in my collection as well).
One guide that I think every serious collector must have, is the 2008 Official Vintage Guitar Magazine Price Guide. As it is excellent in giving you a guide on what’s also out there, and also what other dealers are saying their vintage guitars are worth (remember that an item is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it).
It covers guitars, amplifiers and related equipment – and has more than 1,400 brands and 1,000 photos, plus the “hows” and “whys” of the collectible instrumental market.
I think this is an absolute must have for someone who really is serious about building their Vintage Electric Guitar and/or Vintage Acoustic Guitar Collection.
