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Can't seem to part ways with instruments


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Hi,

here is a special one. I have a couple instruments that I obviously never play. And this, mostly because of lack of opportunity. Secondly because I always tend to pick up the same instruments for rehearsals, gigs, etc. Yet I am not willing to part ways with those. I always ask myself: why should I ? I am not in dire need of the money I would gain from a sale. Also I would not want to be in a situation where I would kick my own a** two weeks later for selling something off. Actually I feel pretty comfortable having those instrumnets just sit in the closet and be there if I ever feel the urge to take em out and play them. What say you?

HRR

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My very first Hamer:

DSCN5773.JPG

...was this '81 Special, back in '87. I got it as a backup to my LP but it quickly became #1. While it's not a pencil, the neck was a bit smaller than what I like now. It got to the point of never leaving the case. The thought of selling it after 35 years just seemed....wrong, but not using it seemed wrong as well.

So, because I reeeeally needed it to go to the right person, I gifted it to my drummer's kid. He couldn't be happier.  In his mid-20s, he is an amazing multi-instrumentalist (drums, bass, keys, vocals, etc...) and now his guitar playing has improved as well. I also gave him 'The Book' and the tour DVD so he'd get the background and a better understanding of why these things are so great.

I did stipulate that he can't paint it or sell it while I'm alive. The ugly gray is part of its charm, and selling it would just be, well,  rude.

I know it's getting used and appreciated, and he'll take great care of it. So - win/win.

Plus - I always know where it is....

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@Hardrockracer you have summed up my outlook on the gear that has lasted with me through the years.  There is one Hamer Special that I may let go one day because it has a thinner neck than I like at this time.  It does not have to be sold.  It does not take up a lot of space.  When I hit my 70's or 80's I might let things go, but then I could just leave a mess for someone else to sort through. 

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I think about what I'd sell off and then I think that it's easier to think about what I'd keep.

Three basses, photographic gear, & the clothes on my back in the '87 Shelby GLHS and it's "Road Trip Time".

 

 

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I know a guy who uses a 'two hour per month' rule, when it comes to keeping or getting rid of guitars...if he plays a particular guitar less than two hours total per month, then he says it needs to go.  If he plays a particular guitar more than two hours total a month, then it stays.  He says that it reinforces using what he already has, rather than buying more gear.

Edited to add: He's retired BTW, so 'watching the clock' apparently isn't an issue.  

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Suppose guitars are like the characters in "Toy Story". Would they be happier locked up in cases for months on end, rarely to be played? Or re-homed to someone who will take it out and play it every day? Guitars have feelings!

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17 minutes ago, stobro said:

Suppose guitars are like the characters in "Toy Story". Would they be happier locked up in cases for months on end, rarely to be played? Or re-homed to someone who will take it out and play it every day? Guitars have feelings!

I've seen a couple of articles that remind me of that, in Vintage Guitar Magazine...it seems like they're always about some old guy (not necessarily a 'famous player', but usually just a guy that plays guitar for fun) who bought a guitar relatively new (often in the 1950s) and has used it for years, and doesn't use much else.  Funny thing is, when these stories pop up, they always seem to involve Teles.  Go figure.  :rolleyes:

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1 hour ago, stobro said:

Suppose guitars are like the characters in "Toy Story". Would they be happier locked up in cases for months on end, rarely to be played? Or re-homed to someone who will take it out and play it every day? Guitars have feelings!

Orrrrrrrrr~ on the flip siderA0svDD.jpeg

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This thread is as good of a place as any to update the quantity and styles of what I have left; I'd started reducing it when I retired 6 1/2 years ago, and I haven't been an active player for many years. The onset of Parkinson's about two years ago has expedited the final phase. Most of the seven that I have left and intend to keep are in 'pragmatic categories':

Three vintage/antique budget US-made instruments from the '60s and early '70s that I use for speeches and lectures (display only)

Two utility Peaveys (a guitar and a bass) to noodle around on if and when I feel like it

One custom-made, one of a kind, somewhat higher-end Robin guitar made to my specs in 2006 (token reference to the past personal glory days)

One  modded beater bass given to me by a rock star.

And that's it. Daughter's high school graduation present (school colors, custom-made Robin) from 2008 is in the same closet.

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I've just started my culling of the herd. So far I've identified 6 guitars and 2 basses that similar enough to instruments I really want to keep and are sufficiently budget-friendly to make selling them to Music-Go-Round a no-brainer. I netted about $2.1K on the sale, which is about what I collectively paid for them over the years. There may be a few more basses and some amps that will get similar disposition.

The hard part will be choosing which among the higher-end ones (mostly Hamers) will get re-homed.

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For the risk of regretting, it is good advice to never sell a guitar or bass or amp or otherwise. Never play on risk, where you could loose. B)

Life is good. Enjoy it!

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On 7/25/2022 at 9:09 AM, cynic said:

I often anticipate regret but the moment it’s gone I’m over it.

I’ve had lots that I swore I’d never sell…then I do. Wood and wire. 

Yeah, I affix sentimental value to instruments that really shouldn't apply. Or worse, I play the make-believe game and convince myself that I'll need them for some onstage or studio application in the future, when the truth is neither of those things are likely to happen.

But ultimately, the reason I don't sell most of my guitars and amps is an unwillingness to deal with the bullshit associated with doing so (dealing with BAMFs and lowballers, worrying if UPS or FedEx is going to destroy the shipment, etc.). I'd rather sit on the stuff than put up with the nonsense. Plus, I like having it around.

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1 hour ago, MCChris said:

Yeah, I affix sentimental value to instruments that really shouldn't apply. Or worse, I play the make-believe game and convince myself that I'll need them for some onstage or studio application in the future, when the truth is neither of those things are likely to happen.

But ultimately, the reason I don't sell most of my guitars and amps is an unwillingness to deal with the bullshit associated with doing so (dealing with BAMFs and lowballers, worrying if UPS or FedEx is going to destroy the shipment, etc.). I'd rather sit on the stuff than put up with the nonsense. Plus, I like having it around.

Exactly!

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Do what you want! I have never regretted selling something. I am the anti-packrat, never owned more than 5 at a time (got 4 right now, sold my Les Paul Special last week). I am buying & selling more now that I'm not playing as many gigs. I don't fuck w/ shipping stuff anymore, I list it local for a few months then take the hit at GC or Music-Go-Round. It's fun trying stuff out (GC online is great; while bored at the EMS base I'll search every store in the USA, if something looks interesting then the shit lands on my porch, play it for a few weeks, drop it off at the local GC if it's not a keeper). My wife & my sparklestrat are staying, everything else is temporary.

 

Sparkle 11-21.JPG

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I've missed all good amps that I've sold. But not all guitars. The Floyd Rose ones have a better life where they are now (tone suckers).

I've missed all the other guitars I've sold (except for my first guitar - A Hondo JR). Even the ones I played very seldomly are like "man, I should have had that one now. It would have worked great with this song."

Then there is always that Rickenbacker 4001 70's bass that I sold for 200 dollars. I will never get over that stupidity.

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Right On! I have always lived in NY apartments but have a commercial studio space also. That kept some kind of rein on it for years, then I moved to a bigger place farther in the suburbs.

My policy now for getting rid of gear is “how hard would it be to replace?” We can always use a little money or a little more space, but even for an instrument or amp I don’t use regularly, I think about how hard it might be to find the right replacement.

I also scratch my GAS itch by finding gear for others- several of the Duotones etc that I’ve found through here have passed from me to other players who absolutely LOVE them, and that helps me a lot, but psychically 🤩

But what about Intoxicated Acquisition?? While the above has kept me from releasing some stuff, I also quit drinking after the pandemic so… there are no longer morning-after eBay “Congratulations!” Emails… 😆😂

So… there’s that.

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1 hour ago, geoff_hartwell said:

My policy now for getting rid of gear is “how hard would it be to replace?” We can always use a little money or a little more space, but even for an instrument or amp I don’t use regularly, I think about how hard it might be to find the right replacement.

That sounds a lot like my ash-bodied Teles, which is one nice MIM Fender Deluxe Nashville Tele and four good quality mutt partscasters.  I've thoroughly bonded with those to the point where, even though I'll still look for another ash-bodied Tele now and then, I haven't found another ash Tele recently that meets my 'standards' of those guitars, at least not without breaking the bank.  And it just so happens that 'affordability' is one of my 'standards'.  Screw inflation, if I can't find what I want, then I'll play what I've got.  :rolleyes: B)

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I think the HFC doubles as a support group for this problem.

I could easily tell you which of my guitars would be the keeper if I could only keep one, but I couldn't begin to tell you which one I'd sell first.  I just took a baby step yesterday and posted an amp for sale and I have a pile of PA equipment to go through and whittle down to one small home practice system.  That stuff is meaningless to me.

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