Rory Gallagher tribute strat..........

[OldSchool]

No chance I'll ever get to play one of these locally...........I see Daves got them for a fair price. I expect to see them now and again on Ebay.................anyone here play one personally? Is it just a nice relic with cosmetic features..........or does the finish (or lack of) help the tone? Neck ,frets,playability,tone..........what did you think?

[Joe Perry]

Oldschool,

I've had mine for about 3 months now and I like it alot. It's light, resonant and the CS '61 p/u's sound very vintage. I had the 5 way put in and the cavity grounded & shielded. It's pretty quiet now. Overall I would say it is a slight step above the relics. It plays very well with the 9.5" rad and larger frets. Sounds killer through blackface style amps. The only thing I didn't like about the guitar was the tuners. They were VERY sloppy. I knew this going in and I put a set of vintage replacements in. Even though they mount a set of Vintage style tuners on to get the imprint you have to do some slight work to mount them. I did it myself so it's not that hard. You have to fill the screw holes a little because the roll pins for the existing tuners are bigger than the major dia of the screw. I used toothpics and wood filler. You also need conversion bushings that cost about $6 from Stewmac. After making this change it made a huge improvement. It's definately a keeper.

Joe

[Joe Perry]

Man, sorry I can't afford a real '61 strat like you. This is an affordable alternative for this poser and a lot of other people. Not to mention it just happens to be a copy of one of my favorite guitar player's guitar. This is why I rarely post even tho I've been registered for a long time. Since you started the pissing contest. I didn't realize Rory was born the "Son of a poor black man" in the delta. F.Y.I., that's from the movie "The Jerk". Go figure. He was from Ireland. Unless he was part of that whole "Great potato ordeal", I don't think he really had the blues just like Clapton and a laundry list of other white guys.

Anyway, OldSchool, please pm or e-mail if you have any other questions about the so called poser guitar. I really like it anyway.

Joe

[OldSchool]

Originally posted by barbarossa
If you told Rory there'd be a day when people pay a premium to buy a new guitar that's artificially beat up he would have laughed at you.

A poser guitar to ape the ultimate non poser is quite an insult in my book.

b

Thats a valid comment. And playing the guitar out with that much fake wear is a slight concern of mine ............that I would look like a wannabe..............but if the lack of paint did actually serve a purpose other then aping and the back of the neck feels as good as it looks...........its worth considering.............used of course . Don't need to worry about stratches on this guitar!!

[OldSchool]

Originally posted by Joe Perry

Anyway, OldSchool, please pm or e-mail if you have any other questions about the so called poser guitar. I really like it anyway.

Joe

Don't let it bother ya..........I did ask for any and all opinions.

Your headstock tuner respeonse was quite helpful. I wondered how the 1 different tuner would operate with the other 5. I figured the Custom Shop would make it work or find a different alturnative. Thats surprising. Thanks for your thoughts.........Got a Pic of it with your rig?

[Joe Perry]

OldSchool,

It doesn't bother me that much. I just thought this was the Gear Page and we discussed, well, Gear. If I wanted to be ragged on for my guitars I would just talk to my wife. BTW, the back of the unfinished neck feels great. Very similar to my friends original non-poser '67 Tele.


barbarossa,

I also think Rory would laugh at the prices of vintage strats that the average person can't afford. I thought 10 years ago I would buy a pre-CBS 60's strat after I got settled in with the whole family thing. Now, no way. Relics and signature/tributes are always an easy target, but for some they are the only choice for a fine playing vintage style guitar. Suhrs, Grosh and Lentz's are also targets because they are not the "real thing" to some. Not me. I like the regular production RI's but prefer bigger frets. The CS stuff offers this right out of the box with better attention to detail. Inflation considered, CS guitars aren't overpriced IMHO.

Joe

[OldSchool]

Originally posted by Joe Perry
I also think Rory would laugh at the prices of vintage strats that the average person can't afford.

Another valid point.............

[Relicula]

I have seen a bunch of posers with brand new guitars, it had nothing to do with the relic yourself mantra that comes up every time a person talks about a relic style guitar.

The majority of players out there have gone through so many guitars that "relicing" it yourself is very much the exception.

I have owned literally hundreds of guitars since I have started playing in the early sixties, and the only one that has never been sold is my Danelectro, the first guitar I had bought by my Mom.

Recently I purchased a new Gibson custom shop guitar, it plays nice, sounds real good in fact, but feels shiny, slinky new, and it drives me crazy. I wont live long enough, (nor will most of us) to "relic" it myself, thats a bunch of crap. Wearing in a guitar takes years, and if you like the feel of a worn in guitar like I do, you need to find it in your sense of vanity to overcome having it done by the custom shop, or your own attempt.

One of the selling points of any vintage guitar is its sense of worn in feel from years of playing. If I buy an old strat from someone that is beat up, and has all the magic voodoo vibe of smoky bars, and bla bla bla, am I not just as much a poser as the guy who bought it that way from the custom shop? I didnt put the relic factor on the guitar, it was done by a player right?

We are all posers with our guitars, and how we look is only a part of how he make them sound. I hate the look of new guitars, but never do I begrudge anyone who likes them.

For those few that have owned their number one guitar for a long enough period to relic them on their own, good for you, but you are in the minority.

I have 3 fender relics, and a 57 Les Paul Junior, the jr., is beat up in all the right places, and not by me, I dont feel any difference when playing either guitar.

With the absolute ridiculous prices of vintage strats, and vintage anything for that matter, it only makes sense to me, to take advantage of guitars that at least feel like the old ones, because most of us cant afford 20k for a real one, it gives the player an opportunity to enjoy something that feels good, if you like the worn in feeling like I do.

[shallbe]

Originally posted by Relicula
I have seen a bunch of posers with brand new guitars, it had nothing to do with the relic yourself mantra that comes up every time a person talks about a relic style guitar.

The majority of players out there have gone through so many guitars that "relicing" it yourself is very much the exception.

I have owned literally hundreds of guitars since I have started playing in the early sixties, and the only one that has never been sold is my Danelectro, the first guitar I had bought by my Mom.

Recently I purchased a new Gibson custom shop guitar, it plays nice, sounds real good in fact, but feels shiny, slinky new, and it drives me crazy. I wont live long enough, (nor will most of us) to "relic" it myself, thats a bunch of crap. Wearing in a guitar takes years, and if you like the feel of a worn in guitar like I do, you need to find it in your sense of vanity to overcome having it done by the custom shop, or your own attempt.

One of the selling points of any vintage guitar is its sense of worn in feel from years of playing. If I buy an old strat from someone that is beat up, and has all the magic voodoo vibe of smoky bars, and bla bla bla, am I not just as much a poser as the guy who bought it that way from the custom shop? I didnt put the relic factor on the guitar, it was done by a player right?

We are all posers with our guitars, and how we look is only a part of how he make them sound. I hate the look of new guitars, but never do I begrudge anyone who likes them.

For those few that have owned their number one guitar for a long enough period to relic them on their own, good for you, but you are in the minority.

I have 3 fender relics, and a 57 Les Paul Junior, the jr., is beat up in all the right places, and not by me, I dont feel any difference when playing either guitar.

With the absolute ridiculous prices of vintage strats, and vintage anything for that matter, it only makes sense to me, to take advantage of guitars that at least feel like the old ones, because most of us cant afford 20k for a real one, it gives the player an opportunity to enjoy something that feels good, if you like the worn in feeling like I do.

I understand your point to a degree. I don't like the feel and response of a new guitar either. I really feel that a great guitar becomes great by being PLAYED. It has little to do with how the finish looks on the guitar, IMO. Wood, over time, becomes more resonant----and that process is sped up by use, IMO, and has nothing to do with how many dings or how much forearm wear it has.

I DO keep my guitars. Breaking them in may take a few years, but I'm willing to invest that enjoyable time in the right instrument. My 1998 58 RI Les Paul looks like an "authentic" now after 7 years of use in Gulf Coast clubs. It sounds and responds like a real 57 and 59 Les Paul I've played. It is not as shiny as it once was, but doesn not look like a relic.

The mojo of a guitar is in its wood, feel and sonic history, and not measured by battle scars, real or relic'ed. I have nothing against relics, but they won't reach their potential until someone invests a lot of hours playing them.

[buddastrat]

There's one here locally. I love the neck. Nice raw woody feel. Any guitar I buy, I make it like that anyhow with some sand paper and a shot glass.

But the finish (or lack of) on it is a joke. It almost looks and feels like decals placed on the body. It's too thick and clean right to the edge of the paint and wood meet.

I wish Fender would just put ultra thin finishes on and let the buyers abuse them theirselves by playing. I own a relic currently, that's only got a few dings in it. Two of them are from me. But I can't stand the fake arm wear on most of them and the goofy looking checking. They just go too far and it doesn't even look realistic.

The guitar itself sounds pretty good, but needs attention. Has an old, woody, steely tone to it. Real buzzy though and needs a rod/action adjustment. It came that way from Fender.

[EL 34 X2]

From what I've read Rory couldn't afford a "new" Strat when he purchased that '61, either. He put in on time pay and kept it under his bed to hide it from his mom.

Someone had apparently wanted a red finish like Hank Marvin and didn't want to keep the Sunburst model that had come in. Though he was younger at the time, it seems he was in a similar financial situation as I am now. I feel lucky to have the meager instruments and gear I now own. But, Rory could certainly use what he had to much better effect than I can.

[buddastrat]

I heard that Rory used to get nervous before a show and would chip away at the finish with his pick. That's how his guitar got like that.

The first relic in making!

Originally posted by buddastrat
I heard that Rory used to get nervous before a show and would chip away at the finish with his pick. That's how his guitar got like that.

The first relic in making!

cool. I was wondering how it got like that, since SRV played vey very hard too and his were not nearly that finish free.

[OldSchool]

Originally posted by buddastrat
I heard that Rory used to get nervous before a show and would chip away at the finish with his pick. That's how his guitar got like that.

The first relic in making!

The Makes sense. No way a guitar gets that finish free without help............but thats not to take away from all the abuse Rory put on that guitar the Normal way.........

[Badfinger]

I got my Rory Strat about a 1.5 years ago from Frank at Music Gallery. The neck is really smooth, a but thin for my taste (no pun intended), but the guitar really sings. Really comfortable, feels like an old pair of jeans.
Rory had very acidic sweat that contributed to the aging process of his guitar. It was also stolen once and spent a couple of weeks in a Dublin garden, exposed to the rain and elements. I'm sure that contributed to the wear as well.