Every year, thousands of people head to guitar shows to admire and play vintage Gibsons, Fenders, Martins and more.Some of these guitars can sell for up to a quarter of a million dollars.They're not all that expensive, putting many in the reach of less wealthy collectors, but all of them have a few things in common.Vintage guitars are beautiful, high quality, and they appreciate in value over time.
The vintage guitar market has been going up as older Americans buy the same models of guitars as their heroes once played, and younger collectors look for the best in older instruments.Guitar collecting can out perform ordinary investments - it's much more stable, and a lot more fun than playing the stock market.A 1950s Les Paul purchased just a few years ago may now be worth five times that price.
Only a few thousand of those guitars were ever produced.That means they're among the most popular out there.Some collectors are paying record prices for them, and they don't even play.These beautiful, rare guitars are so compelling that even non-musicians are interested in owning one.A 1961 Les Paul Custom might sell for more than a hundred thousand dollars.When the first Les Paul was produced in the early 1950s, the sale price was $210.
In the past five years, the vintage guitar market has nearly doubled.The average price is about thirteen thousand dollars, according to the Vintage Guitar Price guide, which tracks the price of forty two different models produced by Gibson, Fender and Martin.Acoustic guitars have increased in price steadily, but the most collectible are electrics, propelled by the mystique of rock 'n' roll.
Solid body electric guitars from what some call the golden age - the 1950s and 1960s - have been increasing in price significantly.There's a little bit of everyone's rock heroes in these guitars, even the ones that are just the same type as those used by celebrities.Actual celebrity guitars are worth even more.Eric Clapton's famous customized Stratocaster, Blackie, sold for nearly a million in 2004.
Fame isn't all there is to it, though.Older instruments have a richer, better tone, and are made from higher quality materials.Collectors love the sound of a great Martin acoustic, or a golden age Telecaster.An older guitar produces a much better sound than a brand new one that sells for a tenth of the price.A well treated old guitar resonates better and has better action when played.
While a solid body guitar won't reverberate in the same way as an acoustic, there's still a big difference between a vintage Les Paul and a brand new one.It's the difference between a growl and a purr.If you love to play, a real, high quality guitar from the 1950s and 1960s will be a delight, as well as a great investment.
If you are interest in getting started collecting vintage guitars for fun and profit or even if you have been doing so for years, Bob's Vintage Guitars is a website that you should visit. It has a lot of useful information about vintage guitars and also a great selection of vintage guitars for sale.
The writer operates a website selling vintage guitars, Bob's Vintage Guitars at http://www.bestguitaronline.com
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