Is it possible to define within a small paragraph (maybe in 2-4 sentences and maybe in less than 100 words) as to what is a vintage guitar ? - I know some will have a simple statement that 'it is any guitar that is over 20 (or 25 or 30) years old' - In which case all guitars will one day be vintage - Easy to accept as a statement but I don't buy into that or believe it - I've looked at many USA specialist vintage guitar dealers web sites + Reverb and no one appears to be able to make a relevant statement in one small paragraph - I've looked into what is classified as 'vintage wine' and indeed similar comments regarding 'vintage cars'
Regarding vintage cars I found this article
http://news.hrowen.co.uk/definition-dilemma-classic-vintage-veteran-just-old-cars/ with many interesting and valid comments that I'd encourage you to read before hand
The following comments probably need to be considered within this small paragraph as to 'what is a vintage guitar'
It does not have to be a good guitar with regards to the playing performance - not all old guitars from the 40's, 50's or 60's are good players but we generally accept them as vintage
It does not have to be all original - granted an original version will have a greater value then a 'players grade' version
It does not have to be built by the big names like Fender, Gibson, Rickenbacker etc - it could be a Radiotone Archtop
It does not have to be rare - there are many guitars that have been produced in far less quantities than a 1962 Strat but worth peanuts in comparrison
It does not have to be expensive - either today or when originally produced
I suppose what we classify as aspirational is a matter of opinion and taste - some collect weird, odd ball guitars be it from Italy, Japan, Europe or the USA
If we look at the 1960's, when the term 'guitar hero' was bestowed on the likes of Clapton, Beck, Page, Green, Kossoff and Hendrix, none of them played guitars that at the time that were classed as 'vintage' as many were only 5 or 10 years old or even new - Clapton purchased and played his used 1960 LP as it offered him a tone and performance that he required at the time - I suppose there were little other options for him to consider - The copy market did not exist - The boutique market from the likes of PRS, Hamer, Collings etc did not exist - Very little, if any custom builders existed - Yet this era has created an aspirational aura that still sells records, guitars, memorabilia etc etc today - As such a Gibson 1957-1960 Les Paul will generally have a far higher value and create more interest than a 1930's Radiotone Archtop used by a far less known artist - Yet both can be accepted as vintage
I'm sure there are other points to take into account, that I've missed or forgotten at this stage but I dare say will be brought into play
I'm not sure if there is an answer - I dare say it will throw up many points that many will agree or disagree with
Comments
I actually don't think "vintage" is a particularly useful term.
No idea for Gibsons.
70s on the whole should never be deemed vintage
So anything pre-74 really when it comes to the big names.
Apologies to owners of late-70s Strats and Les Pauls, but your guitars are what caused the whole vintage guitar phenomenon, even though some of them can be very cool.
You can't apply an age limit to vintage guitars, in the 70s we were looking for 10 year old guitars because new ones were terrible, but only the most optimistic of eBay sellers would describe a 2007 guitar as vintage.
I think we are simply stuck with the term as we have chosen to use it, along with Golden Era, Lawsuit Era etc etc.
In terms of do all guitars of a certain age become vintage, I think the answer is yes all clothes weather a denim jacket or a Chanel dress become vintage at a point in time.
Agree with the comments about late 70's models as it was such models that created the phrase 'old is better than new' - that phrase still lingers, but IMO no longer valid regarding playing performance as many C/Shop Strats outperform a poor/mediocre old Pre-CBS Strat
When it comes to guitars, I'd say it is a meaningless term that should be avoided - and avoid the sellers who use it, too.
I think very few would object to using the term 'vintage' for a '1962 Strat' - yet it now appears to be acceptable by some to put a '79' Strat into the same category - Yet in many ways stating that I have a '1962 Strat' for sale should be enough for it to suffice on its own - The guitar has enough credibility to stand on its own 2 feet as a '1962 Strat' without needing to acquire any other additional adjective like 'vintage'
Yet the term 'vintage' might be required to suggest a dealer who is a specialist in 'old' guitars
The consensus about wine is that, up to a point, it improves with the passing of time. This is not necessarily so when it comes to "senior" electric guitars, basses, synthesizers and amplification.
One only has to trawl eBay, Gumtree, etc for a nanosecond to find acreage of ads touting utter shite as "vintage", "mojo", etc.
If a guitar, bass or whatever was cheap crap in 1958, 1967, 1974 or 1982, the intervening years won't have magically transformed it into an object of rare import and desire.
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The first Gibson Historics are now 24 years old.
But they can never be vintage guitars - the idea is ludicrous.
The are a "Re-issue" of a vintage guitar or possibly a "Replica" of a vintage guitar depending on the language that Gibson decide to use.