Rotten Relics

Discussion of newer designs, copies and reissue offset-waist instruments.
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noisepunk
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Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments(Absurd Poll added!)

Post by noisepunk » Sun May 02, 2010 3:26 pm

I personally think it's a really dumb concept, they look cool but it's cheating, if you really want a beat up looking guitar, you should play this shit out of it.

I especially detest the fender custom shop models that go for as much, if not more than, their "standard" custom shop models that look brand new as a brand new, expensive ass guitar should. (By the way, I'm not talking about things like vintage or old sounding pickups [antiquities, right?] as this is an effect of time more than it is of use and as such can't be obtained as easilly from just playing the guitar).

I don't know, I'm mostly just wondering what other people thought of this whole concept; I keep thinking of those stupid abercrombie and fitch jeans they started making in the early 2000's with holes and paint pre applied.

Ps.

I searched, I didn't find, so i'm sorry if this has been touched on before, I'd be surprised if it hadn't considering how long this has been around now.
Last edited by noisepunk on Tue Jul 06, 2010 2:18 am, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments

Post by Pepe Silvia » Sun May 02, 2010 3:34 pm

Only time I think it is ok is if you are refinishing an old instrument and want the finish to look like it belongs there. Super heavy relics are dumb. I hate the look of lots of reliced pickguards, hardware and knobs. Looks like it just wasn't cleaned for years or rubbed in cigarette ashes.

But if you buy a bad refin, I see nothing wrong with trying to get some finish checking and some appropriate wear.

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Re: Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments

Post by Carbohydrates » Sun May 02, 2010 3:35 pm

I like them because I like how a guitar looks when it's aged. Frankly, I never gave it any more thought than that until a number of people started talking about how terrible the idea of relicing a guitar is. I always just took it as just another option, like maple versus rosewood.

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Re: Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments

Post by gishuk » Sun May 02, 2010 3:52 pm

i dont understand why its such a divisive issue with guitarists really, just another finishing option imo.

but people want the look of old nitro finished guitars that have been played hard, and you just wont get that look by abusing a poly finished guitar, and they do feel nice and played in.

dont understand it so much with offsets though, when custom shop relics cost around the same price as a genuine vintage piece im not sure why anyone would want one, but on strats/teles/les pauls where the real thing costs as much as a car or house i totally get it.

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Re: Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments

Post by noisepunk » Sun May 02, 2010 4:25 pm

eurotrashed wrote:Only time I think it is ok is if you are refinishing an old instrument and want the finish to look like it belongs there. Super heavy relics are dumb. I hate the look of lots of reliced pickguards, hardware and knobs. Looks like it just wasn't cleaned for years or rubbed in cigarette ashes.

But if you buy a bad refin, I see nothing wrong with trying to get some finish checking and some appropriate wear.
I don't know, still seems like the same thing with me, but I guess if you're already changing the authenticity of the instrument you might as well bring it back a little bit.

I wonder what reliced instruments are going to look/play like in 20-30 years when people have played the shit out of them and they've naturally reliced on top of the artificial relicing.

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Re: Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments

Post by Satur9 » Sun May 02, 2010 5:10 pm

Real relicing > Artificial relicing.

End of story.

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Re: Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments

Post by Danocaster » Sun May 02, 2010 5:25 pm

artificial aging is stupid !!

if you want a beat up guitar , you need to "earn" every scratch !

oh wait.... 8)

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Re: Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments

Post by Dave » Sun May 02, 2010 5:56 pm

I also find it strange how people get so pumped up about the issue. Relics aren't my thing personally, but everyone has different tastes aesthetically speaking. And there are some guys who really nail the look, like the above poster whose work is absolutely phenomenal.

It's just how the guitar looks.

I challenge someone for a rational answer to this question:

If a guitarist has always lusted over beat up old Jazzmasters but simply DOES NOT have $4000 or whatever to drop on a vintage piece, why shouldn't he be able to purchase or build a guitar that is very aesthetically pleasing to him, at a price he can afford? What is the logical answer as to why he can't have a guitar that looks the way he wants?

I know it seems funny to pay extra for a custom shop relic, (I agree for me that would be funny) but people are free to purchase and play guitars that look the way they like.

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Re: Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments

Post by Secluded » Sun May 02, 2010 6:06 pm

I think it's mostly spoiled by people getting carried away with it. When you have entire areas of finish sanded away, wood showing around the entire perimeter of the body, or the guitar just looks like a victim of shrapnel fire...it just fails. Cheap whore and poser tend to come to mind. :jacked:

Kinda like fake tits. They just don't look or feel right. Might be fun for a minute, but doesn't warrant a second pass. :whistle:
Perhaps it's just the way the light falls...but everything looks like a target to me.
And I don't know where the gun is...but I'm certain that it's pointed at me.

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Re: Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments

Post by knpknpknp » Sun May 02, 2010 6:12 pm

I think I hold the same opinion as most. If you really want a beat up jazzmaster, get a jazzmaster and beat it up. Then again, I prefer my guitars looking nice.

The main reason for my detest to the entire thing is the idea of seeing people spend a ton of money on a beat up looking guitar, only to be polishing it before putting it in their hard case. I'd much prefer them just buy or build the guitar looking new, and then carry it around without a case, and maybe toss it in the back of a pickup.

Oh yeah, and play it a lot. That will help!

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Re: Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments

Post by Pepe Silvia » Sun May 02, 2010 6:19 pm

Dave wrote:I also find it strange how people get so pumped up about the issue. Relics aren't my thing personally, but everyone has different tastes aesthetically speaking. And there are some guys who really nail the look, like the above poster whose work is absolutely phenomenal.

It's just how the guitar looks.

I challenge someone for a rational answer to this question:

If a guitarist has always lusted over beat up old Jazzmasters but simply DOES NOT have $4000 or whatever to drop on a vintage piece, why shouldn't he be able to purchase or build a guitar that is very aesthetically pleasing to him, at a price he can afford? What is the logical answer as to why he can't have a guitar that looks the way he wants?

I know it seems funny to pay extra for a custom shop relic, (I agree for me that would be funny) but people are free to purchase and play guitars that look the way they like.
When I think of reliced guitars, I think of the fake "rat rodding" of newer, perfectly good cars. Either making a new car or a new guitar look like its old is stupid.
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Re: Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments

Post by peterherman » Sun May 02, 2010 6:27 pm

If it actually LOOKS NATURAL, then I've no problem with it. Guys like Nash Guitars, Fano and our own Danocaster all do a great job making a new or parts guitar look like it's been around for a long time.

I've seen plenty of new "road worn" or "reliced" guitars that look like they've had decals applied. I'm thinking of the ESP Kirk Hammett models especially. It just looks fake as anything.

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Re: Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments

Post by epilepi » Sun May 02, 2010 6:35 pm

I don't get people who want their stuff to look like shit. If my instrument got naturally beat up I'd probably get it refinished so that it looks pristine again. Artificial aging is completely out of the question.

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Re: Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments

Post by andy_tchp » Sun May 02, 2010 7:02 pm

To each their own - My next guitar will be finished in nitro so it can 'age' as I play it, but I won't be getting any fake wear put on it.

It's not for me, but I get it though - genuinely 'old' looking guitars do have a coolness about them - The Danocaster stuff is superb, and seems to actually look authentic.

The flipside is Strats/Teles that appear to have randomly had a belt sander taken to them. Frankly :k

I've played the shit out of my CIJ and aside from some very superficial paint scratches, and seriously scratched up pickguard and pickup covers it basically still looks new, even after being thrown across stages, landing in drumkits and generally not 'babied' in the slightest. That poly finish is tuff!

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Re: Thoughts on Relicing/Reliced instruments

Post by budda12ax7 » Sun May 02, 2010 7:14 pm

I think there was a thread here last summer that got locked down about this. If I remember a formumite sat on top of his jazzmaster body and rode it down a hill.

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