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I've never had a Precision. I don't know why. It was my favourite bass when I was a kid (JJ Burnel). I've actually been looking at kits to build myself one. It was going to be my Covid project but I never got round to it. Geddy's signature tone is a Rickenbacker. I was surprised when he switched to Fenders. My favorite bass player is Paul Gray from the Damned. He also plays a Rickenbacker. I should have one. One of these days.Originally Posted by SLUDGE FACTORY
Just thinking of when I was fourteen. Had a paper round, delivering morning and late afternoon. I bought a Rosetti Super Solid Seven on the never-ever - my first electric guitar - played through the radio. Read later that McCartney was playing one in the early Hamburg days. First time we gigged in a youth club, I blew up the record player I used as an amp. And Sid the drummer only had a snare.
And this kid's got a Tele and a Strat and may get a Gibson! World's gone mad!
My first electric guitar wasn't even a Rosetti. It had a neck "by Rosetti". It was a Strat shape. The best part is got it in a swap. I gave the other kid my copy of Live And Dangerous by Thin Lizzy and he gave me the guitar. So my first electric guitar cost me £4.49!
Lizzy always in my top ten , thought lynott was a great bassist , the break down on sha la la is great
Think he used a precision
He did. Black. With a mirror scratchplate.
You should be a good Dad and let him see this chat... I bet he could learn a lot from people who know rather than from you, who with respect doesn’t have much knowledge at all
Must be an age thing but my dad bought me my first guitar (a classical) when I was 16 and the action was so high you could drive a bus under the strings. I find it hard to believe a 14 year old already has a Strat and a Telecaster and may soon be the proud owner of a Gibson. A Gibson 335 would be my guitar of choice by the way.
Great analogy.
He's 14 ffs
He has US made fenders - I might not know much about guitars, but that much I do know.
I'm going for the Gibson with a pedal board.
He's a sensible lad and listens to the likes of porridge, the big pink and the oh seesbut he likes the classics like dylan, malmestein and gilmore
We'll go into town in the new year and he can have a wander around the music shops and he can do as much talking as he wants. We'll also go and buy some vinyl, he's not really experienced that yet so a new world of pleasure awaits him.
You spend as much money as you want , its your money
But he has two superb guitars that with a pedal board can give him a wide range of styles to develop
I think you are being a bit daft really , and if he's hassling you to buy him another guitar at his age , considering he has two very good ones, tell him you will buy him a les Paul for his 18th or something
Thats my view
Now you're talking. Get him a nice, vintage system and introduce him to discogs. If you're looking to burn money, vinyl is where it s at.
And a wind-up gramophone with a years supply of needles?
Get him this:
https://tinyurl.com/y2p53v8e
If, when he discovers the sex and the drugs he decides he's not that into the rock and roll, at least you probably can sell it for a profit
Les Paul guitars can be a bit heavy what about a PRS S2 Standard Singlecut Satin?
a curveball of course would be to buy him a decent amp.
I was thinking this yesterday. Any suggestions?
I was also thinking a Gretsch but no one here had suggested this.
question if I may - are the gold guitars something worth having, as we were in PMT yesterday and there was one on the wall, and I thought it looked a bit twee if I'm honest (it sounded great though)
Guitars are such a personal thing; weight, sound, the neck, set up etc that buying an instrument without your son present is not a good idea. Weight was important to me because after a couple of hours on stage your neck doesn't half hurt. In the end I opted for a hollow bodied guitar as the solids are just too heavy although my preference was always for a Strat which your lad already has.
At the end of the day it's a question of going around the shops so he can try things out and that is what you have said you will do, and by the sound of it already doing. That's great. He's a lucky lad.
You mention amps. Trying amps out in shops in a confined space is not great as it is difficult to judge how the amp performs at a decent volume.
There's so many reasons to like a guitar.
For me, they are in this order: 1. Playability 2. Sound/Sustain 3. Looks
I have a relatively small hand (not helped by a shattered knuckle from a cricket injury) and the neck measurements and shape are very important. At the moment, I'm modding a Washburn Parallaxe which looks cool and plays fast because it had a chunky 'D' shaped neck which felt awkward. I reproduced the shape of my fav neck on card cut-outs in three places and used a Japanese Iwasaki file/rasp and sand paper. Had to get down to the wood thru an odd waxy finish for the wood stain to take. I'll finish the Wipe On Poly with some gentle .000 gauge wire-wool rubbing to replicate the matt finish. Just hops the truss rod doesn't pop! It already plays amazingly, though I've got to finish the job by setting it up.
Any guitar with a glossy, poly finish neck (like a Tele) needs careful fine sanding. The difference in playability is remarkable.
Another factor is scale length - a big difference between Fenders and Gibsons. The shorter the scale length, the smaller the frets. This was brought home to me when I try to play chords now that I used to play with ease when I was younger. They are a stretch. I realised it was because I played a Harmony H77 (still got it - its worth around £1,500) and the scale length is shorter than any other guitar I've played.
And don't get me started on the frets! I prefer medium jumbos. You need to know the fret size (height and width) that suits you and periodically give them a polish with Autosol Car Metal polish. They then play like silk.
Makes me smile when guys say, 'that guitar plays well'. Folk should sit down and work out why. It's a science on its own. Then, you don't look at another guitar which doesn't conform to what you know you want.
'Course there's always modding!
I suggest you show these comments to your boy - with a warning - they could seriously eff him up!
If he is really into guitars and you have no idea, he should be choosing and not you (/us).
Well yes, but that kind of ruins the christmas present if he chooses it himself.
Thanks for posting that. My last serious guitar was a Harmony H76 which I sold in 1971 for £50 and is now worth around £1500. I hated the thing and was surprised that there were any still available. Before seeing your post I thought Harmony guitars were obsolete but it seems they are still going strong.There's so many reasons to like a guitar.
I realised it was because I played a Harmony H77 (still got it - its worth around £1,500) and the scale length is shorter than any other guitar I've played.
I'd say it ruins it if he doesn't.
Yeah, when I bought mine, they were ten-a penny in used guitar shops. Now they are regularly featured in Guitarist mag as vintage guitars. There are Youtube vids of guys lovingly playing them and some bands use 'em on stage.
This is another guitar I'm modding. Someone forty years ago messed up the fretboard. It's been scored with a knife in places and there are grooves on either side of frets which is down to the poor removal of old ones. I've removed the fretboard using an iron, bought a new one, used the old one as a guide to cut the fret slots. The knobs are long gone and I've replaced the pots. Finally, the guitar was originally green. It's been sanded and poly brushed so that it was a blonde. I've sanded this back to the ply-wood and am doing a burst using Crimson Guitar's yellow and brown stain. Purists will growl at this, but it will be nearer it's original appearance and the fretboard and knobs had to be replaced.
Incidentally, the way Guitarist mag is going, I'm waiting for a new offshoot to hit the magazine stalls: Modding Monthly
There are five and more articles a month touching on this craft.
Shout out to #Wales Bales. Let's be havin' ya on this, mush!
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