DoubleOhStephan

Ahh right, I hadn't realised that clicking that also sent an IM to Messager. Explains it... 🙄

How I imagine seniors research a guitar on tinternet. 17:15 Tuesday Afternoon. Fred - "Right, what does it say on the top bit?" Ethal "FENDER JAGUAR" (Fred Google Search - FENDER JAGUAR) (Look at Shopping results. Prices range from £500 to £6000) "Which one have we got Ethal?" "I don't know Fred, its red. Is there a red one on there?" "No" "I don't know then. Why don't we take it on Flog It!? That Paul is such a nice man, if they can sell it for us maybe we can afford to turn the heating on over Christmas!" 😢 "But shouldn't we take it to a specialist guitar auction house? After all, that's what anyone who knows anything about vintage guitars would do!" "Shut it Fred, I wanna go on telly, meet Paul and make some dosh!"

What's wrong with wanting to make some money?

Just as what I'd do is irrelevant, to be fair so is what you'd do. The couple made a decision to go on the show which is unarguably wrong. But the point of this thread is that the flogit producers & experts should have shown a bit of care and redirected them to a specialist. That they didn't, simply to make "good" TV is poor form.

I think you're missing my point. I've already said that if you have no interest or experience with (in this case) vintage guitars, how are you supposed to know if the information you're reading is accurate. The internet is full of misinformation about all sorts of things, to expect someone who knows nothing of the subject to mine through all that info to come to an informed decision would require them to approach it from an informed position in the first place. Given this couple fall directly into the target audience for the show and are appearing on the show, you can make a pretty safe assumption that they believe that these Beeb assured experts are fully trustworthy and will have put their faith in them to accurately perform the valuation, just like the show purports to do. That's why I think the producers have show such bad form in this case. They will know their audience better than anyone. You know that the advise from the expert should have been "dunno, specialist auction", so will the producers. What I'd do is irrelevant.

I'm finding it really interesting how the responsibility for knowing if an accurate valuation has given is being placed at the feet of the owners, with the suggestion being they should do their research. But, isn't going to an antiques expert for a valuation doing research? Especially a proclaimed Expert who works for Auntie Beeb, the most trustworthy of all the media outlets who wouldn't see an old couple lose a grand on a guitar just cos it makes good (in the loosest sense of the word) TV. Pre-internet, speaking to an expert was research. Not everyone knows how to mine the Web for useful information and how to differentiate the nonsense from the useful. For me, Flog It is basically The Antiques Roadshow for those who don't say "oh we'll never sell it, it's been in the family for generations and will handed down to our grandchildrens grandchildren." The premis is the same, people have old things that they don't know the value of, so take it to an expert to find out. 🤷🏻‍♂️

Some old cars are worth a lot more than others. For example, classic Fords from the 60s are worth a lot more than comparable Vauxhall from the same era. That's common knowledge to those who are interested in classic cars from the 60s, but I'd waged most folk wouldn't have a clue. Same with vintage guitars, if you don't know your Fenders from Fernandes' you wouldn't be any the wiser. A thousand pounds is a lot of money and if you have no idea of values of vintage instruments, that is easily representative of a valuable guitar.

Boooo!!!

Ooo I'll play!! 😁 I reckon my Spector NS2000/4 falls into that bracket. I bought it cheap about 6-7 years ago (£220) and they're now worth nearer £400-450ish. Given they're pretty rare and hugely underrated, I reckon the only way is up.

@mcnach yeah I'm getting it's the practice thing. Dammit 😜

OK, but I wasn't talking about market value, I was talking about originality, with my disagreement being a repaired pickup with 75% original parts retains more authenticity than a new pickup. Which it does.

If only there was some way you could buy something from overseas without having to actually go there 🤔😂😂😂

I disagree. The restorer will endeavour to use as many original components as possible, including the coil if at all possible, in order to repair the pickup. It will also be rewound to its original spec, not a modern interpretation of that spec. Even if using just 75% of the original parts, it's far more authentic (by which I mean of undisputed origin and not a copy; genuine ((dictionary definition)) than putting in a new unit.

Cause... Effect...

Funnily enough we played that in my last band. It gets a little repetitive after 50 or so play throughs... 😬

Personally, for the sake of authenticity I'd go the rewind route. Theres a fella in East London called Ash who runs Oil City Pickups who's a bit of a pickup genius. May be worth getting in touch with him if that's how you choose to go forward - https://www.oilcitypickups.co.uk/

I've found selling on the Facebook marketplace a bizarre experience. I'll get the "is this still available" message, reply pretty much straight away and then nothing! Jokers 😒 That's a nice bass you're selling BTW, didn't realise they had a 36mm neck though!

Looks lovely, fair play 👍🏻

Thats exactly it, I want it in my locker because in some situations it is just right for the song. Its not always appropriate, I get that, I was listening to a new R&B track the other day and for no discernable reason, the bassist was putting little pops in, seemingly at random. It just sounded crap, these random clanks which added nowt to the song.

You're right to be wary, they do have negative side effects. They also have very positive effects and can help with leveling out your emotions. Being absolutely straight, they're not the solution, they're the start of a recovery from a very serious illness which can take months, years or a lifetime to overcome. Honestly, my depression is always with me. Now, 10 years after diagnosis, it's pretty rare that I'll have a bout of depression and I can usually identify it happening pretty quickly and deal with it. That's taken time though. I needed to work through all the issues from my past as well as in my present. But I now see it as a real positive. I can now be brutality honest with myself and challenge my thinking on pretty much anything now. My mind is clear. Most importantly, I learned how to forgive because I found holding a grudge is a monstrous weight that takes you down. ^^^More important than you can imagine. Especially alcohol! Good luck dude. As you can see, there are people on this forum who have been there and can offer help. There are lots of mental health charities, some specifically for men who want to help. My advice, get to the docs, get a diagnosis to know exactly what you're up against and start from there.

Its worth a look. I was able to take another of my Bergs (with a neck I think was shaped by a pure genius) to the Gallery and have them match the profiles as closely as possible. They're not exact, but near enough and it's stopped me from having to sell it and lose a load of cash.

Exactly. I think I took them for a few months, but I was in a bad place. As soon as I felt level I binned them. Exercise, good diet and zero alcohol all help now days as did facing and dealing with the issues that got me down in the first place. Stuff goes deep, it takes time (10 years now) and every day is an unknown. But you learn to understand your moods and see a crash coming so can learn to deal with it.

Ahh close 😬 Yep! If I may give a little advice... Dont press hard with your left hand and try to pluck lightly (or if you're using a pick, don't grip too hard and use your wrist). I know its harder not being amped up as you're trying to hear yourself, but at this stage the most important thing is getting the bass in the right place on your body and your hands in the right place on bass. Oh, and don't overdo it at first. If your near East London I'd be happy to show you around the basics 👍🏻