So... why do people relic their guitars?

[Shimme]

I've been wondering for a while, why people spend time and money to intentionally damage their shiny new guitars? I guess it's great not having to worry about pampering it untill it eventually gets dinged up, but I was wondering why this would be so appealing to so many people? I've noticed that it's really only a common practice for Fenders and Gibsons, is this because you want it to seem vintage?

I think that old, beat up guitars have a cool vibe about them, but it'd just seem like poseurship to me if I went throwing my new guitar at a wall so it looked like I'd been playing it forever. I've noticed that it's really only a common practice for Fenders and Gibsons, is this this to make it seem more vintage?

So, any relicers on here? Why do you do it?

I'm honestly not trying to flame, just understand.

 

[LLink2411]

Why do people put stickers on their car, or get piercings or tattoos?

Because that is the "look" they want to convey to the world.

 

[Kullerbytta]

^

Pretty much that.
Beating a guitar up is altering the way it looks. As is swirling, coloring, stickers etc etc.

 

[LLink2411]

To expand on my previous idea:

Some people do it because they like the way it looks and feels. That's it. A beat up guitar looks like an instrument that is reliable and has stood the test of time. Also, there is a lot of thick finishes on guitars post 1970's, some people like feeling wood instead of urethane plastic. Maybe it is just wishful thinking that a guitar that is pre-beat-up will work longer.

For example, a guy with a tattoo of a dragon might just really like dragons. Maybe it makes him feel like a dragon. That dragon is an outward message to other people that he is fierce, because his is fierce himself. In this case, he is using his skin as a canvas to show the world who he really is internally.


Then there is the negative side of the coin. Some people are insecure. A beat up instrument could be a safety-net for them. They could believe that if an instrument looks like it is worthy then they are worthy players.

To bring up the tattoo example, maybe the guy was beat up as a child or wants to feel strong. That dragon is an outward message to other people that he is fierce, because he knows he cannot be fierce himself. In this case, he is using his skin as a canvas to show the world who he wishes he was internally.


The final case is they weren't thinking much about it at the time and just acting impulsively. The "it makes sense if you don't think about it" principle.



The point is, you don't know. Subjectivity means you have to take everything as a case-by-case basis and be completely ready for the explanation to be "because it looks cool lol." I can't tell you how many times I have asked people what their "stories" behind their tattoos were and their response was "I liked how he drew and wanted to support him." Then looked at me like I was crazy when I looked at them like they were crazy after I found out they made a permanent, body-altering decision because some guy's sketcbook was nice to look at.

In most cases there is no deeper meaning whatsoever. People like "logic" and "sense" because it draws nice little boxes around the world. The reality is the universe does not operate via logic and sense is not common.



On the other hand, I know for a fact some worldly gentleman buy relic'd guitars because they have the worn-in feel day one and know they can sell them "as new" and "mint" when they get tired of them no matter the condition.

Builders make them because b-stock can now be sold at a premium.

Maybe the guy got the dragon tattoo because he knows he will sell more records if he looks "cooler." It is an investment in his "brand." He might even fabricate a story about it because "existentialism" (and it's children nihilism and absurdism) pushes units in this day and age.


That's wisdom for you though, and an entirely different rant ;P

 

[metaldoggie]

I went to a Fender demo night in the UK, and story that was told was that Keith Richards took delivery of some new guitars, opened the the cases and immediately sent them back for looking too new.
Fender then hired some guys that were making really good counterfeit vintage copies, and the relic series was born

Personally wouldnt pay for relic'ed guitar myself, but to each his own...

 

[JmCastor]

For me receive a relic' ed guitar, my reason would be for my own personal comfort. So that i don't worry about ....ing it up every time i take it out of my case (like i do with my Carvin)

 

[HeHasTheJazzHands]

I'm guilty of liking properly done worn guitars, ala Fender's Custom Shop stuff, the Road Worn series, and ESP's (now E-II) Vintage Plus stuff.

 

[Eliguy666]

I'm fine with relic-ing guitars, but I feel like it's a bit silly to buy a relic'd guitar for more money instead of doing it yourself.

 

[JmCastor]

I'm fine with relic-ing guitars, but I feel like it's a bit silly to buy a relic'd guitar for more money instead of doing it yourself.

but you gain the safety of knowing that its still an monster of an instrument, where if you attempt to relic yourself, you MIGHT mess something up. Granted i don't know if a Fender Custom shop relic is twice the instrument of an EJ strat...because its certainly twice the price (granted the custom shop is a whole nother beast in itself)

 

[Zalbu]

Because they want to and like how it looks, do they need any other reason?

 

[Steinmetzify]

I dig the look. That's it. I like guitars that look like they have a history, and it doesn't matter if it's fake or not. Songs/music is most often interpreted autobiographically, as is the story of the musicians that created it and the instruments they wield....for whatever reason, the guys that I grew up admiring had beat up guitars they'd been playing for years.

That probably stuck in my subconscious somewhere, and now when I look at new guitars, they're usually the reliced versions, not the shiny new ones. Plus, like many people have said, the dings thereafter don't matter. I'm hard on guitars anyway, and the 'playing carefully while waiting for the first one' always bugs me....3 out of the 4 guitars I use at home currently are relics, and only one of them has my mojo on it. The others were bought that way.

 

[Blue1970Cutlass]

It's because REAL road-worn guitars are cool. Period. (This is not up for debate )

but since not everyone can get their hands on a REAL one, they either make their own, or buy one that's relic'd / pre-worn - to get that look


As far as other people doing it - it doesn't affect me, so I guess I don't give a shit...

...but as for myself - I would never in a billion years intentionally f*ck up one of my own guitars OR buy one already beat up. If I am someday meant to have a guitar that looks like it's been to hell & back - it's because it will have been

 

[Forkface]

I like the way relic'ed guitars look.

I would buy a relic'ed guitar, I don't mind that they are sold like that from factory.
If you think about it, PROPER relic'ed guitars (fender cs and stuff) require a great deal of craftsmanship and expertise and hours of work by a single person, I've never seen it as "damaging" the guitar on purpose, in my head it's just a different finish style, sorta like swirls.

Tell me this doesnt look fucking boss.

 

[decreebass]

...Some people are insecure. A beat up instrument could be a safety-net for them. They could believe that if an instrument looks like it is worthy then they are worthy players...

I thought you were going in an entirely different direction - I thought you were gonna talk about how people may not feel worthy enough to play a nice guitar so if they relic it, it falls more in line with what they feel they deserve to be playing instead of a beautiful, shiny new guitar.

I guess insecurity sinks in at all levels, huh?

 

[Govan Emmanuel]

Yesssss (no Fender and Gibsons)

 

[M3CHK1LLA]

ive seen a lot of relic guitars at pawn shops

pawn shops usually hang their guitars way to close together to cram as many as they can in one spot. then some dufus will grab one bang it into 2-3 others, play a some "sweet child o' mine" then bang them up as they return it and grab the next guitar in line, repeat, repeat, repeat.

 

[Misfit]

I personally never would. I'd prefer to have a guitar that was beaten through years of normal use. I guess if you're impatient, and don't plan on selling it, then why not?

 

[decreebass]

I personally never would. I'd prefer to have a guitar that was beaten through years of normal use. I guess if you're impatient, and don't plan on selling it, then why not?

Amen.

I want to know where every dent on my guitar came from. I have a Fender Kingman acoustic/electric that my buddy knocked off my bed in the barracks a few years ago. it smashed into the ground and now there's a MASSIVE dent that nearly separated the top from the body. There are spider cracks branching out from the dent; needless to say, I can never sell it for more than a pittance (a sixpence?) - but it has massive sentimental value to me.

Despite my constant upgrading of electric guitars over the last few years from crappy Epiphones up to the state-of-the-art Majesty, I have kept the same acoustic