I'd expect better from a Fender custom shop relic

meltedbuzzbox

poopot said:

Just out of curiosity... what do folk consider to be “accurate wear” on a guitar?...

below are three guitars that are known to me (two are mine and the other is a mates) all show totally different degrees of “wear”...

1 of the guitars has been “artificialy aged” the other 2 guitars look the way they are through being used week in week out!... 








So... which is the “relic”?

the last one

Iamnobody

rsvmark said:

Iamnobody said:

Danny1969 said:

I was looking at an SRV relic the other day and wondering what the guy did to make it look like that. I mean I've got guitars that have done thousands of gigs ... my old Ibanez RD did 520 gigs just on Monday nights alone between 88 and 98 let alone the 2000 odd gigs on Thurs, Frid, Sat and Sundays. It was never in a hard case, just a basic soft case and it lived mainly in the band van regardless of the weather and yet other than fading and a few chips off the paint it's in good nick. 
My 1984 Tokia Strat is the same ...
I honestly think some famous people deliberately distress their guitars which is kind of uncool 

Acidic sweat allegedly. Have you ever seen some people’s strings that turn black very quickly? I asssume it’s the same thing.

Serious question. Acidic sweat?

Allegedly.

https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/see-rory-gallaghers-famous-stratocaster-and-other-guitars-up-close

IvisonGuitars

The last one is the relic and the owner of the first one wants to give it a good clean, the dirty get!

Danny1969

meltedbuzzbox said:

Danny1969 said:

I was looking at an SRV relic the other day and wondering what the guy did to make it look like that. I mean I've got guitars that have done thousands of gigs ... my old Ibanez RD did 520 gigs just on Monday nights alone between 88 and 98 let alone the 2000 odd gigs on Thurs, Frid, Sat and Sundays. It was never in a hard case, just a basic soft case and it lived mainly in the band van regardless of the weather and yet other than fading and a few chips off the paint it's in good nick. 
My 1984 Tokia Strat is the same ...
I honestly think some famous people deliberately distress their guitars which is kind of uncool 

Both are poly right?

I don't know to be honest, the Ibanez started off white around the edges but that now looks like a yellow more than a white
The Tokia has the paint worn where your arm brushes over it and some chips on the edges where it's knocked against things

What I don't understand is lumps of paint missing from the middle if the body, cos nothing tends to touch the middle in normal playing 

poopot

miserneil said:

The last one is the relic and the owner of the first one wants to give it a good clean, the dirty get!

Yep, a few have got it right!...

daphne blue is my bitsa put together nearly 20 years ago, started out pristine and ended up like that... (it had a refin last year and looks nice and clean now)... sunburst is my pals 63, not bad looking for nearly 60 years old... the last one (blonde) was put together at the start of this year for the making and modding challenge...

All show different wear... only one is “vintage”... only one is “relic/aged”... and yes, I have left a gig before with a blue arm!!!!!

poopot

Danny1969 said:

What I don't understand is lumps of paint missing from the middle if the body, cos nothing tends to touch the middle in normal playing 

In my case it’s genuinly bad technique I guess, playing hard with the guitar quite low slung... pick hits the body - paint eventually comes off...

Gagaryn

RandallFlagg said:

... The thing I do like about the heavier relics is the finish worn off the back of the neck.

Agree with this.

gordiji

poopot said:

Just out of curiosity... what do folk consider to be “accurate wear” on a guitar?...

 so which is the “relic”?

Irrelevant, they both look pants.

BloodEagle

From my experience, I would suggest that a lot of relics including the more 'famous' ones are the result of bored band members sitting waiting around and absent mindedly picking at the paint on their guitars, which to them are just tools

DanR

gordiji said:

poopot said:

Just out of curiosity... what do folk consider to be “accurate wear” on a guitar?...

 so which is the “relic”?

Irrelevant, they both look pants.

Why do they look pants it's just a finish.

I don't like sunburst finishes but I don't go telling everyone I see the colour looks shit.

I honestly fail to see why they need to look perfectly authentic.

You would end up with every relic guitar looking identical and then you would be saying it's ridiculous because every guitar wouldn't look the same.

I like relic finishes, I like unreliced.

Also I don't see anything really wrong with the @lonestar Tele bar one thing I've already discussed as at least its different and someone will love it and enjoy playing it so surely that's all matters.

Danny1969

Danny1969 said:

meltedbuzzbox said:

Danny1969 said:

I was looking at an SRV relic the other day and wondering what the guy did to make it look like that. I mean I've got guitars that have done thousands of gigs ... my old Ibanez RD did 520 gigs just on Monday nights alone between 88 and 98 let alone the 2000 odd gigs on Thurs, Frid, Sat and Sundays. It was never in a hard case, just a basic soft case and it lived mainly in the band van regardless of the weather and yet other than fading and a few chips off the paint it's in good nick. 
My 1984 Tokia Strat is the same ...
I honestly think some famous people deliberately distress their guitars which is kind of uncool 

Both are poly right?

I don't know to be honest, the Ibanez started off white around the edges but that now looks like a yellow more than a white
The Tokia has the paint worn where your arm brushes over it and some chips on the edges where it's knocked against things

What I don't understand is lumps of paint missing from the middle if the body, cos nothing tends to touch the middle in normal playing 

Took some pictures this morning ... ignore the badly installed single coils, I needed a backup guitar with single coils recently so bodged these in ... the original active humbuckers will go back in soon. I imagine this must be poly as the paint seems hardy as hell, this guitar has done thousands of gigs and look at it, hardly any paint missing. 
The chip of the neck and some of the body marks was actually caused by a smash and grab in Nevada Music in 85, hence the guitar got knocked down from £600 odd to £350 





The main paint was originally white though

GoldenEraGuitars

You know what’s great fun about this customising malarkey? Actually, more about being your own boss I guess.... you can take a test body and rework it as a tribute to a guitar owned by a famous musician...

https://i.imgur.com/vtcetod.jpg

Note how I didn’t say “replica”. So... there you go. Now, I’m off to ask Dave what grade of sand paper shirt he wore to achieve this finish and tell him that no one likes heavy relic guitars (apparently)

poopot

lonestar said:

 Now, I’m off to ask Dave what grade of sand paper shirt he wore to achieve this finish and tell him that no one likes heavy relic guitars (apparently)

But... Dave Mustaine Plays a V shaped Dean...

GoldenEraGuitars

poopot said:

lonestar said:

 Now, I’m off to ask Dave what grade of sand paper shirt he wore to achieve this finish and tell him that no one likes heavy relic guitars (apparently)

But... Dave Mustaine Plays a V shaped Dean...

What about Mr Gilmour? Besides, give me an hour and I’ll make a V out of that body no bother 

WezV

i was thinking about this and realised the first time i reliced any hardware, it was all about the style and nothing to do with authenticity at all.   This one was about 11 years ago, not the best pic of the hardware


then more recently there is something like this, which is also a totally unrealistic heavy relic - but i was really happy with the overall look





That got me thinking about the guitar i like at the mo and top of the list is probably Novo guitars.  You get mostly authentic wear on unusal woods and shapes, often with unrealistically sunken grain too... but they look great.  A good mix of vintage and modern
https://www.instagram.com/novoguitars/?hl=en

SNAKEBITE

I know this has been done a million times before, and I know I have voiced my opinion an equal amount of times, however I'll say it again because I'm a gobby twat!

I like relicing, but I don't think I'd buy one. I'd like to have a go myself but it would be a project for fun, not to achieve or prove anything to anyone.

I am confused at what @lonestar says when relicing is not to replicate authentic wear. I am not having a pop, it is just something I don't, at present understand. I can understand wanting to replicate wear and tear in a realistic way but not random wear. I am open minded to understand why it is done though, so any explanations will be listened to.

axisus

SNAKEBITE said:

I am confused at what @lonestar says when relicing is not to replicate authentic wear. I am not having a pop, it is just something I don't, at present understand. I can understand wanting to replicate wear and tear in a realistic way but not random wear. I am open minded to understand why it is done though, so any explanations will be listened to.

It's just a look, a vibe. Most people who play relic guitars aren't actually interested in accuracy to the nth degree of perfection. They don't all get a slide rule out to check it! 

As far as I'm concerned, if I think an aged finish 'looks' cool then I'm OK with it. 

GoldenEraGuitars

@SNAKEBITE  go and ask Dale Wilson to explain himself first, then I’ll answer

WezV

axisus said:

SNAKEBITE said:

I am confused at what @lonestar says when relicing is not to replicate authentic wear. I am not having a pop, it is just something I don't, at present understand. I can understand wanting to replicate wear and tear in a realistic way but not random wear. I am open minded to understand why it is done though, so any explanations will be listened to.

It's just a look, a vibe. Most people who play relic guitars aren't actually interested in accuracy to the nth degree of perfection. They don't all get a slide rule out to check it! 

As far as I'm concerned, if I think an aged finish 'looks' cool then I'm OK with it. 

Yes, this


did you have a link to the one in your OP?  I am really curious how it looks from different angles 

DanR

SNAKEBITE said:

I am confused at what @lonestar says when relicing is not to replicate authentic wear. I am not having a pop, it is just something I don't, at present understand. I can understand wanting to replicate wear and tear in a realistic way but not random wear. I am open minded to understand why it is done though, so any explanations will be listened to.

I honestly just see relic as a different finish.

No different to choosing between Red and Blue finish to choosing Red or Red Relic.

Same as paintings can be abstract or realistic as far as I'm concerned relics can be semi realistic or what ever looks cool.

I honestly can't understand the hang up on it being realistic it's no less "fake".

Plus you have half the threads on this board which take the piss out of Gibson for pushing closest to whatever year with regards to parts and the rest complaining that relics aren't authentic.

What do we want guitars that play well in what ever finish and construction or just slavish copies of what was built 50 years ago with appropriate wear.