Electric Guitar Trends

The trend towards collecting electric guitars really increased around 20 years ago.  Since that time, pre-1970 electric guitars have experienced huge leaps in price.  You can buy a luxury automobile for what you will pay for a prized vintage electric guitar.  And when you’re paying that kind of money for a guitar, you don’t want it damaged.  You keep it safe, in a glass case.

Here’s how the used guitar market used to work.  If I wanted to sell an electric guitar, I would tell my friends.  If one of my friends wanted that guitar, I would sell it for a very reasonable, used guitar price like, $500.

After a few years, my friend decides to sell that guitar.  The guitar was originally mine, so you would come to me first and allow me to buy the guitar back for $500.  If I did not want to buy the guitar back, you would tell your friends, in case one of them wanted to buy the guitar.

This approach has some good points.  Guitars stay in the hands of guitar players.  And guitar players are able to afford to buy great vintage electric guitars.  Plus, the guitars continue to get played.

Guitars are supposed to be played.  Thats the whole idea of making them.  Good guitars get better sounding with regular use over the years.  I think it’s a crying shame how some used guitars are priced above the ability of most players to pay. 

In my opinion, putting an electric guitar in a glass case, ought to be a crime.