Your Favorite Guitar Colors... Changing Over Time?

[Hamerhack]

When I was a young lad, I just had to have a black guitar (McLaughlin, Frampton LPs). Got a black Carvin doubleneck. My thinking at the time when I got the Carvin was I got 2 guitars for the price of one LP. (About $650, I think). Also had a black '65 Vette at that time.

Anyway, later I decided a guitar should look like a beautiful piece of furniture. Nice wood colors.

Now I have 2 trans red Hamers, which I never would have considered earlier. (Had a red '63 Vette at one time, too). I guess the cars and guitars have changed color.

Has your choice in guitar colors changed over time? Any color you never woulda considered that you ended up owning?

Does it depend on the type of guitar? (Maybe a Strat should be Seafoam Green or Lake Placid Blue?)

[sixesandsevens]

Has your choice in guitar colors changed over time?

Definitely!

I started out with a black explorer copy and eventually lusted after almost everything from 80's fluorescents to exotic woods and the like. For me, the "classic" colors (gold tops, sunbursts, Fender's classic car colors) are something I came to appreciate later. I'm looking at doing a kit build now so I'm convincing myself that I really like the look of unfilled, thin Tru-oil finishes since they seem simple and safe to apply.

Any color you never woulda considered that you ended up owning?

Thinking about it now, most of my guitars are things I never would have considered owning at some earlier time. Looking back though, I clearly shouldn't be surprised at whatever stray I take in next.

As far as specifics, I never liked set neck guitars and then bought two Hamers (Studio and checkerboard Special) and they're my #1s right now.

Does it depend on the type of guitar? (Maybe a Strat should be Seafoam Green or Lake Placid Blue?)

Not really, but I'm sure if I thought about it long enough I might find an exception... like, I might not like an 80's fluorescent without a floyd rose and humbuckers. But I could see a seafoam Studio being cool and Suhr makes some fine furniture-grade superstrats.

[murkat]

No.

Still the same,

I still dislike red Guitars, if they were mine.

But if yours, they are really cool, being red and all.

Bursts, black, sea foam, sky blue, Flamed natural Koa,....

[dragan]

I'm a Sunburst lush

[Willie G. Moseley]

Still prefer stark white on accounta it reflects stage lighting, Also partial to natural-finished instruments (and always have been)

[jwhitcomb3]

When I was a teenager I saw a hot-pink to neon yellow sunburst Mockingbird hanging in Brian Guitars (Hamden CT). I thought it was the coolest ever. But I wouldn't have had the guts to strap it on. I also dug a cherry sunburst Les Paul. But I got a dark brown/maroon Guild S-100. Ten years later I got a red Tele.

I used to like light colors on figured wood. The natural burst on my 30th Anniversary LTD is killer. But the guitar is too damn pretty to play.

Nowadays, I like brighter solid colors. I'd love a taxicab yellow strat. I saw a shell pink strat that looked killer. I like white guitars with dark binding. I like pearl white. I like off-white on a strat (a Mary-Kay strat would be fine, thanks). Love orange and orange burst guitars. Love 'em.

I have never liked black guitars, save for a LP black beauty with gold hardware. Don't like transparent black either. Not a fan of the three color yellow-orange-black burst. Or any burst to black. FWIW, I currently own three black guitars, and have never owned a LP.

I've seen some cool light green to white bursts that I like, one on a Parker Fly. I had a Parker Fly in Magic Blue that looked great. Too bad it didn't sound great.

Oh, and seafoam green is cool too.

[Feynman]

Nope. White, natural, and dark bursts are -it.- Orange is very cool. Red and blue and green are bad. Black is okay on other people's guitars, but not mine (except for trans-black, which is always bad). Gold hardware is awful.

[cynic]

My taste has stayed pretty much the same over my 30 years of playing. Just about any wood-tinted stain that let's the wood show through (no transparent blues/red/blacks/etc for me), lighter and darker bursts (no tri-color), or pretty much any conservative opaque color. If the grain is visible, I'm not a fan of uniformity in the flames or whatever, I much prefer irregular figuring or plain top.

[MCChris]

Never liked blues or greens of any type, be they Daphne or seafoam. I'm fine with reds and oranges, by themselves or together in a bursted combo. In general I prefer transparent finishes, ideally in an earthtone, so as to remain in tune with the fact that I'm playing a piece of wood.

[diablo175]

Not really- still like the garish and high contrast shit from the 80's. Once I feel as though I've amassed enough in that genre/scheme, I'll likely go to more refined finishes like trans over quilted or nice bookended maple.

Nah, I'll never get tired of hard rockin', retina-searing colors and designs.

[zorrow]

I like white, natural, black, trans-red, trans-green and trans-blue, in that order. No, it hasn't changed over time.

[zzzdat]

I'm getting so amazing tops just aren't that important to me. It used to be ooh aahh looky, that's pretty. Now more subtle or worn or plain finishes look nice to me. A solid mahogany see thru finish is just very appealing to me now rather than the uber flamey quilt finish. I love the look of old faded cherry red SG's.

Cool Beans

Gene

[Hamersaur]

Once upon a time I did not like goldtops but I would consider owning one now, depending on the guitar. Know this would not work for me on a Strat.

[django49]

I like variety. Not real big on solid (opaque) generally, but a gold top on a carved top guitar is irresistable.(For some reason the "copper" on a flat top, like a Huber Krautster works better that the gold, which does not have the same "shine" as the carved top----Thanks for Unka Greg for that heads up). And when the silver sparkle Duo-Tone popped up, I had to give THAT a try too.....

That said, a red Special with P-90s is just right. And a certain Studio in Candy Apple Red is drool-worthy. Damn----I am TOO easy!

Love "natural, " and transparent finishes (including sunburst) that allow the figure of the wood to show through are lovely. I enjoy working with wood and appreciate the "art" of using the figure in the wood, whether it is subtle or pronounced.

Garish (like a "clownburst") are NOT appealing----to me at least.

[Ting Ho Dung]

Believe it or not, I was thinking about this while in the shower the other day. I used to like green guitars. That was about 15 years ago. I'd look at Ed Roman's site because his was the best at the time. Now I see a green guitar and I don't care for it. Now it's blue guitars. I also noticed that I used to like guitar shapes like the Warlock. Now I like strats. But I slept with the V last night.

[veatch]

I like getting my guitars all the same color so my wife can't tell them apart.

[specialk]

Stayed pretty much the same over the years. My very favorites have always been natural wood finishes.

[Turdus]

Has your choice in guitar colors changed over time? Any color you never woulda considered that you ended up owning?

Natural, with a maple neck. in the 70's I thought it was so boring. Today, I own 2 natural basses, the rest are black.

[crunchee]

Love "natural, " and transparent finishes (including sunburst) that allow the figure of the wood to show through are lovely. I enjoy working with wood and appreciate the "art" of using the figure in the wood, whether it is subtle or pronounced.

Garish (like a "clownburst") are NOT appealing----to me at least.

^This^. I like seeing the grain, plus if the guitar body is more than one piece, seeing how conscientious the makers were in at least trying to match up the pieces. I don't care much for solid colors, I think they're about as interesting as looking at paint samples at a paint store...plus, I gotta wonder, what's under the paint that I'm not seeing?

[polara]

I don't think so. I've never had much of a pattern or even really cared what color they are. Mine have run the gamut, though I guess I never went for the 80s graphic finishes. But natural, burst, sparkle, opaque, whatever.

[3of5]

I like vintage sunburst the best by far. Natural is good and very occasionally a solid black may work on a particular guitar. Understated grain is best. No garish quilts for me. I general I do not like solid color guitars. I don't think my tastes in this matter have changed at all since I bought my first guitar over 30 years ago.

First guitar I purchased. For me this is still about as good as it gets.

[BadgerDave]

Garish (like a "clownburst") are NOT appealing----to me at least.

What??????????

[Toadroller]

I like them all.

As I look at my collection, I've got cherry bursts, tobacco bursts, wood-grains, solid colors, gold tops, trans-reds, trans-purples, wine-bursts, black. They're all good. Low on the priority list when buying, though a color can catch my eye.

[HSB0531]

I always got different colored basses.

If it looks good, that's the new color for me.

Over time was never a factor.

[Jakeboy]

I like them all......so I can be happy as long as the guitar sounds and plays good.....am partial to orange and ocean burst RULES....sadly, I do t own anything ocean burst......