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My roomie came back this weekend and said that one of the discount stores(Walls) in his town had about a hundred Gibsons and Fenders that were in the flood from the hurricane. From standards to custom shop guitars. Some that were totally submerged and some with only minor damage. One he liked was a custom shop SG. The paint was peeling off of the headstock and their was minor rust on the metal peices from the moisture, pups might be shot from the moisture too, body looked good, priced at $1300. The American Fenders and Gibson standards were around half price, depending on condition. I might have to make a trip down there to see what they have.


Originally Posted by matt99camero

Some that were totally submerged and some with only minor damage. The paint was peeling off of the headstock and their was minor rust on the metal peices from the moisture, pups might be shot from the moisture too, body looked good, priced at $1300.

Not a chance... $1300 for a guitar that may or may not work, that is more than likely have issues down the road with no warranty? Not a chance.


Originally Posted by The Golden BoyNot a chance... $1300 for a guitar that may or may not work, that is more than likely have issues down the road with no warranty? Not a chance.

I have to agree 100%.... for 500bucks, maybe....and that´s a BIG maybe...

Can a guitar ever recover after being submerged in water. I've never done it, so I don't know. It seems like the neck would warp slightly as it was drying out.

The finish isn't the issue. It's the damage you CAN'T see that is going to cause problems down the road.

yes they can be saved. my luthier is right now working on 6 or 7 vintage fenders, martins and taylors (acoustic and electric) that got submerged either partially or all the way due to a washing machine hose exploding while the owner was on vacation. what a nightmare we are talking 50s and 60s fenders here and high dollar martins. but he is resotring them all. grated they will now be worth lessdue to restoration and some refinishes but they will be playable. some of them the finish was able to be saved and others the finish just flaked right off. but either way they can be saved if you know what you're doing.

-Mike

Personally..and I'm not one easily offended nor politically correct in the least...but I find this kind of offensive...that these things are being sold like this...I understand they are likely to be crap...but...trying to make a buck off of so many people's misfortune just rubs me the wrong way.

I remember Dan Erlewine talking about fixing Albert King's Lucy V that Dan made for him after King's trailer ended up in a river. Water damaged guitars... no way.


Originally Posted by JeffBPersonally..and I'm not one easily offended nor politically correct in the least...but I find this kind of offensive...that these things are being sold like this...I understand they are likely to be crap...but...trying to make a buck off of so many people's misfortune just rubs me the wrong way.

That's kind of the thing about pawn shops folks are inclined to forget. If it weren't for the shops then the odds are the guitars wouldn't provide any financial assistance to those currently in need, which is what I think you're getting at.

Just because something gets pawned doesn't always mean the owner isn't going to get it back.

Considering the instruments are water-logged I think it's actually pretty noble of the shop to take them in when they know they are a significant risk. They don't want to have to see some guitar they've sold off come back to them, and the odds are that more than a few probably will.

As much as I love my guitars I'd gladly exchange them for money for me and my family if we'd lost everything in a disaster.


Originally Posted by XSSIVEyes they can be saved. my luthier is right now working on 6 or 7 vintage fenders, martins and taylors (acoustic and electric) that got submerged either partially or all the way due to a washing machine hose exploding while the owner was on vacation. what a nightmare we are talking 50s and 60s fenders here and high dollar martins. but he is resotring them all. grated they will now be worth lessdue to restoration and some refinishes but they will be playable. some of them the finish was able to be saved and others the finish just flaked right off. but either way they can be saved if you know what you're doing.

-Mike

Exactly.. they CAN be saved, but it´s a ****load of work, and often in no relation to the ACTUAL value of the guitar..... that´s why I´d steer clear

Maybe I misunderstood...are these instruments sold to the pawn shops by flood victims (i.e. their personal instruments) or were these picked up by any tom, **** or harry (looters, thieves, scavengers, whateveryou'd like to call them) during the chaos and sold to/given to the pawnshops?

I'm under the assumption its the latter...

These guitars I'm talking about were either sent by a guitar shop(s) or sent by Gibson/Fender here to be sold or at least that would be my guess. These are not in a pawn shop, they are in a discount store, they sell clothing, food, misc. items like that. I was supprised when he told me where these guitars were being sold, I would have thought they would be distributed to other guitar shops to be sold. Who knows why they went there to be sold. I'm suprised Guitar Center didn't grab them up at a rock bottom price and mark them up for a big profit.

I personally wouldnt touch any guitar that was in a flood for $1300 bucks regardless of what brand or kind it was. Wood is very very good at absorbing moisture, and i am not entirely sure what the various glues that hold together set neck guitars would do. I mean when the wood absorbed the water it expanded, maybe enough to tweak the neck considerably. When it dries it would contract again which might result in the neck totally coming unglued.

Also consider the water that they were submerged in. I imagine being submerged in raw sewage water would smell quite bad until the end of time.

In short i wouldnt touch for more than MAYBE $200 bucks and that is a HUGE maybe. A $1300 dollar pile o crap is, is still a pile o crap regardless of how far it was marked down.

Amen.

Steer clear.

I dunno, I think the curiosity would make me want to at least check them out. If it's not a far drive, go take a look. It would be cool if there was a high dollar guitar with no signs of damage, and you were able to buy it on the cheap. Nobody's forcing you to buy anything.

I don't even have the money to buy a half priced custom shop guitar, but I am curious also. I'd like to see for myself just what kind of condition these guitars are in. He said they have a bunch of Les Paul Studios and I forgot to add that they have Epiphone LP standards at $199.

If any of them are severely water damaged, stay far away. They have no right a) taking other peoples' guitars and selling them as their own and b) there may be possible negatives associated with the quality (smell, wood warping, etc.). I wouldn't pay much of anything for any of those guitars. An SG custom may be a great guitar, but soaked in water, you should be looking at $400, NOT $1300

I'd have a look round, could get a real cheap good quality guitar for modding or something, but i certainly wouldn't spend any medium or large sum of money on one.


Originally Posted by ForbesI'd have a look round, could get a real cheap good quality guitar for modding or something, but i certainly wouldn't spend any medium or large sum of money on one.

So you'd spend $200 on a guitar that could just spontaneously fall apart with no warning nor recourse?

I'd take a look. Who knows what you could stumble on. Maybe some cheap guitar cases. If I had the knowledge Zerb has, I would feel alot more confident should I buy, as he knows his wood .